Harry's in Da House
Okay, and here's where I talk about the hugely missed opportunity that is the Four Houses of Hogwarts.
Also, Dudley so fat, he sat on a rainbow and Bertie Bott's Every Flavor Beans popped out.
Cut for spoilers.
I like the idea of four founder of Hogwarts representing four different and admirable qualities, and I've read some fan theories about Salazar and Godric and their falling out that don't involve Slytherin being outright racist/evil.
The weird thing is, I think the only good house was Ravenclaw. I should start with what the houses represent and the trouble they caused. Beginning, obviously, with Gryffindor:
You might belong in Gryffindor,
Where dwell the brave at heart,
Their daring, nerve and chivalry
Set Gryffindors apart
Gryffindors are the remedial class, those of the lowest intelligence. It makes sense for Harry to be in Gryffindor simply because he JUST found out about magic and needed a lot explained to him, just the skepticism alone means he needed to be re-trained to think. I'm guessing Hermione was put there rather than Ravenclaw simply because of the Muggle parents. Who else is there...Percy? Idiot. Fred and George? Troublemakers. Ron? Goofball. Neville Longbottom? Speaks for himself. And don't even get me started on Dean Thomas. They're brave but only because they're too dumb to think about their actions first.
Ravenclaw:
Or yet in wise old Ravenclaw,
If you've a ready mind,
Where those of wit and learning,
Will always find their kind
I love Ravenclaw. Okay, they're the stereotypical nerds, but the most important Ravenclaws are Luna Lovegood and Cho Chang. Luna is awesome and isn't entirely a nerd, she's got a lot going for her. And Cho and Padma aren't bad, either. I like the password question and the fact that Ravenclaw was important in the last book. I feel like this is the only house you can actually aspire to be in.
Hufflepuff:
You might belong in Hufflepuff,
Where they are just and loyal,
Those patient Hufflepuffs are true,
And unafraid of toil
...right. Hard-workers, that's it? Hufflepuff is just there to round the houses out. Cedric Diggory being the Hogwarts champion in the Triwizard Tournament was the ONLY thing that made Hufflepuff the least bit noteworthy. A lot of wasted potential and opportunity here.
And that brings us to the biggest offender, Slytherin:
Or perhaps in Slytherin,
You'll make your real friends,
Those cunning folk use any means,
To achieve their ends
Those two words, "any means" instantly brands the entire house as being full of villains. I understand how in the beginning Draco and Snape were Harry's two biggest antagonists and Slytherin being schemers makes sense. But as the series wore on, the good aspects of Slytherin should've been shown. You can be ambitious without being EVIL, you know. Maybe it was the blood purity thing they put into it, but with the exception of Wormtail, every bad guy was in Slytherin. Slughorn is a great example of a good Slytherin, possibly the only one who isn't evil or just neutral.
I was expecting Slytherin to take off in Order of the Phoenix, honestly. The Sorting Hat said it was time for all houses to be united, and I thought we'd see more of a coming together, particularly in the DA. You know who should've been in Slytherin? Zacharias Smith. Why was he a Hufflepuff? Yeah, he was a major ass, but he could've been the smart cynic who has a more common sense approach but joins the DA because he knows they're the winning and morally right side.
I was waiting for this big turnaround, too, and Deathly Hallows had the perfect moment for it during the battle for Hogwarts, but no, the Slytherins remained the House of Evil and didn't show any different ways in which "ambition" could work.
Okay, I'm sounding overly harsh, but when it turns out Ravenclaw is the only house I don't have any major problems with, I kind of chalk up the whole Four Houses thing to wasted potential.
Also, Dudley so fat, he sat on a rainbow and Bertie Bott's Every Flavor Beans popped out.
Cut for spoilers.
I like the idea of four founder of Hogwarts representing four different and admirable qualities, and I've read some fan theories about Salazar and Godric and their falling out that don't involve Slytherin being outright racist/evil.
The weird thing is, I think the only good house was Ravenclaw. I should start with what the houses represent and the trouble they caused. Beginning, obviously, with Gryffindor:
You might belong in Gryffindor,
Where dwell the brave at heart,
Their daring, nerve and chivalry
Set Gryffindors apart
Gryffindors are the remedial class, those of the lowest intelligence. It makes sense for Harry to be in Gryffindor simply because he JUST found out about magic and needed a lot explained to him, just the skepticism alone means he needed to be re-trained to think. I'm guessing Hermione was put there rather than Ravenclaw simply because of the Muggle parents. Who else is there...Percy? Idiot. Fred and George? Troublemakers. Ron? Goofball. Neville Longbottom? Speaks for himself. And don't even get me started on Dean Thomas. They're brave but only because they're too dumb to think about their actions first.
Ravenclaw:
Or yet in wise old Ravenclaw,
If you've a ready mind,
Where those of wit and learning,
Will always find their kind
I love Ravenclaw. Okay, they're the stereotypical nerds, but the most important Ravenclaws are Luna Lovegood and Cho Chang. Luna is awesome and isn't entirely a nerd, she's got a lot going for her. And Cho and Padma aren't bad, either. I like the password question and the fact that Ravenclaw was important in the last book. I feel like this is the only house you can actually aspire to be in.
Hufflepuff:
You might belong in Hufflepuff,
Where they are just and loyal,
Those patient Hufflepuffs are true,
And unafraid of toil
...right. Hard-workers, that's it? Hufflepuff is just there to round the houses out. Cedric Diggory being the Hogwarts champion in the Triwizard Tournament was the ONLY thing that made Hufflepuff the least bit noteworthy. A lot of wasted potential and opportunity here.
And that brings us to the biggest offender, Slytherin:
Or perhaps in Slytherin,
You'll make your real friends,
Those cunning folk use any means,
To achieve their ends
Those two words, "any means" instantly brands the entire house as being full of villains. I understand how in the beginning Draco and Snape were Harry's two biggest antagonists and Slytherin being schemers makes sense. But as the series wore on, the good aspects of Slytherin should've been shown. You can be ambitious without being EVIL, you know. Maybe it was the blood purity thing they put into it, but with the exception of Wormtail, every bad guy was in Slytherin. Slughorn is a great example of a good Slytherin, possibly the only one who isn't evil or just neutral.
I was expecting Slytherin to take off in Order of the Phoenix, honestly. The Sorting Hat said it was time for all houses to be united, and I thought we'd see more of a coming together, particularly in the DA. You know who should've been in Slytherin? Zacharias Smith. Why was he a Hufflepuff? Yeah, he was a major ass, but he could've been the smart cynic who has a more common sense approach but joins the DA because he knows they're the winning and morally right side.
I was waiting for this big turnaround, too, and Deathly Hallows had the perfect moment for it during the battle for Hogwarts, but no, the Slytherins remained the House of Evil and didn't show any different ways in which "ambition" could work.
Okay, I'm sounding overly harsh, but when it turns out Ravenclaw is the only house I don't have any major problems with, I kind of chalk up the whole Four Houses thing to wasted potential.