[HPforGrownups] School houses and Dark Wizards

[Amanda Lewanski]

No: HPFGUIDX 30550

jspotila at yahoo.com wrote:

> Amy Z wrote:
>
> <snip>  but do we really
> > believe no Dark wizard has ever come out of Gryffindor?
>
> I've seen some speculation that dark wizards could come out of the
> other Hogwarts houses.  This is possible, but Hagrid tells Harry
> otherwise.  In SS chapter 5 he says, "There's not a single witch or
> wizard who went bad who wasn't in Slytherin."

The list has generally taken this comment of Hagrid's to be exaggeration
for emphasis. Reason mainly being, I believe, that Sirius Black is
believed (known? has JKR said?) to be a Gryffindor, all that foursome
are thought to have been, and at the point when Hagrid says this, he and
the rest of the world believe Sirius to have gone significantly bad. And
later, Pettigrew shows himself to be rather bad as well. Were half of
the Marauders in Slytherin? Interesting. How *could* a weenie like
Pettigrew be a Gryffindor?--but he *does* do warped-brave things like
cut off his own finger.

Minutiae of canon aside, and probably more significantly, I don't think
JKR would allow such a blanket generality to be true in her universe.
One of the major themes of these books is that the world is NOT black
and white, you better get used to gray. Having all bad wizards be
Slytherins goes against the complexity she's trying to get across. It's
too easy.

--Amanda


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