Why Hermione isn't in Ravenclaw

[milz]

No: HPFGUIDX 6378

Why isn't Hermione in Ravenclaw? After re-reading PS/SS and CoS, I 
am  now inclined to think that the students are sorted into the 
various houses based on their own wants and desires. Here's why.

PS/SS Chapter 5, Draco tells Harry in Madame Malkin's Shop " Well, no 
one really knows until they get there, do they, but I know I'll be in 
Slytherin, all our family have been.." Draco wants to be in Slytherin 
as was the rest of his family.

PS/SS Chapter 6, Hermione says "Do either of you know what house 
you'll be in? I've been asking around and I hope I'm in
Gryffindor
It 
sounds by far the best". Hermione desires to be in Gryffindor because 
it was the "best" in her opinion and further in that passage she says 
that Dumbledore was in Gryffindor.  

PS/SS Chapter 6, Ron responds to Harry's inquiry about which house 
Ron's brothers are in thusly "Gryffindor," said Ron. Gloom seemed to 
be settling on him again. "Mom and Dad were in it too. I don't know 
what they'll say if I'm not." Ron desires to be in a particular
house 
because he thinks he'll disappoint his parents if he isn't sorted 
there.

PS/SS Chapter 7 we have Harry's take on the Sorting. "Harry gripped 
the edges of the stool and thought, Not Slytherin, not Slytherin"

Dumbledore explains how the Sorting Hat sorts in CoS Chapter 18.
"It only put me in Gryffindor," said Harry in a defeated 
voice "because I asked not to go in Slytherin."
"Exactly," said Dumbledore
.."It is our choices, Harry, that show 
what we truly are, far more than our abilities."

I understand Dumbledore to mean that the Sorting Hat takes the 
student's choices/wants/desires into consideration along with the 
student's ability. Perhaps Ron was thinking "Please put me in 
Gryffindor" or Hermione was thinking "I want to be in Gryffindor". 
Maybe Cho Chang thought during her Sorting "Ravenclaw is for 
smarties, so I belong there."  This might also explain why the Patil 
Twins are in separate Houses. Perhaps, Parvati thought "Don't put me 
in the same house with Padma" or why Fred and George are in the same 
house "Please put me in the same house with Fred"

Now the question is why did Hermione choose to be in Gryffindor 
rather than Ravenclaw if she is the "cleverest witch"? Could it be 
that Hermione doesn't think she is clever at all? If so, then is 
Hermione memorizing textbooks and studying very intensely because she 
is insecure about her "smarts"? Her boggart was Professor McGonagall 
telling her that she failed. Hmmmm.

:-)Milz