Severus Snape is a fictional character in the Harry Potter book series written by J.K.Rowling.In the first novel,Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone,he is one of the primary antagonists.As the series progresses,Snape's motivation grows more layered and complex,and Rowling does not fully reveal the details or his true loyalties until the end of the final book,Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows.Snape appears in all seven novels of the series.
Snape is generally depicted as having a dour and intense personality.He is cold,calculating,precise,sarcastic,bitter,and displays a strong dislike of Harry and often insults him by insulting his father,James Potter.As the series progresses,it is revealed that his treatment of Harry stems from Snape's bitter rivalry with James when they were in school together.In particular,James and Sirius Black bullied Snape,which according to Alan Rickman caused the already lonely boy to further "shut himself in".Rowling further described the young Snape as insecure and vulnerable:"Given his time over again [Snape] would not have become a Death Eater,but like many insecure,vulnerable people he craved membership of something big and powerful,something impressive.He was so blinded by his attraction to the dark side he thought [Lily] would find him impressive if he became a real Death Eater."