- "Blood traitor, abomination, shame of my flesh! …Filth! Scum! By-products of dirt and vileness! How dare you befoul the house of my fathers!"
- — the portrait of Walburga Black screaming at her "traitor" son[src]
"Blood traitor" is a disparaging term commonly used by elite pure-blood families for a witch or wizard that sympathizes with the non-magical community and/or willingly associates with those who are not pure-blood. Other similar terms include "Muggle-lover"[1], "Mudblood-lover"[2], "Dunglicker", "Scumsucker", and "Mudwallower"[3], all of which refer disparagingly to those who are comfortable in the company of Muggles and/or Muggle-borns, who prejudiced wizards and witches believe are somehow dirty and inferior.
Those Considered "Blood Traitors"
Isla Black was burned off the Black family tree for being a blood traitor.
- "You place too much importance, and you always have done, on the so-called purity of blood! You fail to recognize that it matters not what someone is born, but what they grow up to be!"
- — Albus Dumbledore to Cornelius Fudge[src]
Among those usually considered to be "blood traitors" are:
- Pure-bloods who marry Muggle-borns or Muggles;
- Pure- or half-bloods who oppose prejudice based on blood purity;
- Pure-bloods who associate willingly and openly with those of different blood status;
- Pure- or half-bloods who openly agree to equal rights for Muggles and Muggle-borns
People can also be considered blood traitors by association, given that Cedrella Black was disowned for marrying a so-called blood traitor.[4]
Attitude Towards "Blood Traitors"
- Lucius Malfoy: "What’s the use of being a disgrace to the name of wizard if they don’t even pay you well for it?"
- Arthur Weasley: "We have a very different idea about what disgraces the name of wizard, Malfoy."
- — Lucius Malfoy and Arthur Weasley in Flourish and Blotts in 1992[src]
Arthur Weasley with Muggles Mr. and Mrs. Granger in Flourish and Blotts.
Most pure-blood wizards and witches consider themselves to be the elite of the wizarding world, akin to royalty. They look down upon half-bloods, Muggle-borns, and half-breeds, and consider the Muggle world to be inferior to their own. Pure-bloods, and even half-bloods, who do not share this view are considered traitors to their own kind, hence the term "blood traitor". They are considered disgraces by pure-blood supremacists such as the Malfoys.
Elitist pure-bloods believe that it is a sign of weak magic to enjoy non-magical company[3], and seem to believe that some of the supposed dirtiness of Muggles and Muggle-borns will rub off on those who associate with them, thus they consider blood traitors to be "filthy" as well[5].
Some extremists consider blood traitors to be nearly as bad as the Muggle-borns they are prejudiced against. Bellatrix Lestrange, for example, claimed that "blood traitor is next to Mudblood in [her] book"[6], and her family often disowned and blasted off the family tree any members who could be considered blood traitors. Blood traitors might also be shunned by their families and acquaintances; for example, Bellatrix and her younger sister Narcissa Malfoy stopped seeing their sister Andromeda after she married a Muggle-born wizard, Ted Tonks.[6]
Lord Voldemort and his Death Eaters targeted blood traitors during the First and Second Wizarding Wars because they opposed their goals. When they were temporarily in control of the Ministry of Magic in late 1997 and early 1998, they kept blood traitors such as Arthur Weasley under surveillance. However, even most Death Eaters were reluctant to kill pure-bloods, even "traitorous" ones, if it could be avoided. The same situation existed at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry while Voldemort was in power.[7]
Examples
Anti-Purity Ideology
The following individuals were considered “blood traitors” for openly opposing the ideology of pure-blood supremacy.
| “Blood Traitor” | Reason(s) |
|---|---|
| Beedle the Bard | Beedle thought that Muggles were ignorant, but he still had pro-Muggle views which were adopted in his stories. He wrote stories about Muggles marrying pure-bloods which displeased people like the Malfoy family. |
| Phineas Black | Disowned for not sharing his family's beliefs in pure-blood supremacy. |
| Disowned for not sharing his family's beliefs in pure-blood supremacy, Sirius also fought against Death Eater ideals as a member of the Order of the Phoenix. However, it is possible he had some bias against non-human beings, such as house-elves, as he did not believe that his servant Kreacher had feelings equal to a human. | |
| Charity Burbage | Burbage had a strict Muggle-rights curriculum when she was Muggle Studies professor at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, for which Lord Voldemort had her killed. |
| Albus Dumbledore | Dumbledore was once supremacist towards Muggles but eventually he decided to give up his beliefs and decided to fight for Muggle rights. |
| Godric Gryffindor | Gryffindor ended his relationship with Salazar Slytherin because of Slytherin's supremacist views. |
| Idris Oakby | Oakby would have been considered a traitor since she supported Squibs, who elitist pure-bloods also look down upon. |
| Order of the Phoenix members | The Order opposed Lord Voldemort and his Death Eaters, fighting for the rights of all people. |
| Carlotta Pinkstone | Pinkstone was an activist who believed that Muggles had rights and they should know all about wizards. She performed magic in front of Muggles which led to imprisonments, presumably in Azkaban. |
Pro-Muggle
Some pure-bloods were considered “blood traitors” for not only being unbiased about blood purity and towards Muggles, but for showing outright fondness and admiration for the Muggle world.
| “Blood traitor” | Reason(s) |
|---|---|
| Weasley family | The Weasleys are known for not supporting the notion of blood purity and for associating with Muggles and Muggle-borns. Arthur Weasley was openly fascinated by Muggles. |
By Marriage or Association
The following individuals were considered “blood traitors” because of their close association with those of non-pureblood blood status.
[[File:The_potters_hp.JPG|thumb|right|170px|James Potter with his Muggle-born wife Lily and their son Harry.]]
| “Blood traitor” | Reason(s) |
|---|---|
| Reginald Cattermole | Married a Muggle-born witch, Mary Cattermole. |
| Percival Dumbledore | Percival would likely have been considered a blood traitor for his marriage to a Muggle-born witch, Kendra. However, when he was imprisoned in Azkaban for attacking Muggles and refused to reveal the reason, many believed it was because he was a supporter of the notion of blood purity.[6] |
| Merope Gaunt | Called a “filthy little blood traitor” by her family because of her love for, and eventual marriage to, Muggle Tom Riddle Sr.. |
| Viktor Krum | Despite attending Durmstrang Institute, a school that does not permit Muggle-born students, Viktor became romantically involved with Muggle-born witch Hermione Granger for a time, and later remained her friend. |
| Neville Longbottom | Fought against Death Eater ideals as a member of Dumbledore's Army and associated with Muggle-borns such as Hermione Granger. |
| Ernie Macmillan | Fought against Death Eater ideals as a member of Dumbledore's Army and associated with Muggle-borns such as Justin Finch-Fletchley. |
| James Potter I | Married a Muggle-born witch, Lily Evans. |
| Eileen Prince | Married a Muggle, Tobias Snape. |
| Horace Slughorn | Though he did have some bias, believing that pure-bloods were usually more talented at magic than Muggle-borns, Slughorn’s favourite students included Muggle-born witches Lily Evans and Hermione Granger, and he fought against Lord Voldemort himself during the Battle of Hogwarts. |
| Severus Snape | Snape fell in love with Lily Evans, but because he dabbled in supremacy she rejected him. |
| Andromeda Tonks | For marrying Muggle-born wizard, Ted Tonks. |
| Harry Potter | Harry was associated with Muggles since his maternal family were Muggle. He was Lord Voldemort archenemy. He also was a keen supporter of Albus Dumbledore and also married a blood traitor, Ginny Weasley |
Notes and references
- ↑ Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets
- ↑ Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, Ch. 11
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 The Tales of Beedle the Bard (real)
- ↑ Black family tree
- ↑ The various terms for blood traitors, such as Dunglicker, Scumsucker, and Mudwallower, all make associations with uncleanliness. Marvolo Gaunt also called his daughter a "filthy little blood traitor" for admiring a Muggle, and Blaise Zabini once declared that he would never so much as touch a "filthy blood traitor" like Ginny Weasley, despite finding her physically attractive.
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows
- ↑ Neville Longbottom says of the Carrows in Chapter 29 of Deathly Hallows: "They don’t want to spill too much pure blood, so they’ll torture us a bit if we’re mouthy but they won’t actually kill us.” Given this statement, and the fact that the Weasleys were only in direct danger after Ron Weasley's help of Harry Potter was revealed to the Death Eaters, it seems that they were hesitant to kill blood traitors unless they were very rebellious.