Where's the Bang?/Hogwarts Houses (Was: RE: House assumptions)

[m.bockermann at t-online.de]

No: HPFGUIDX 45579

As a big fan of the House assumptions I feel compelled to answer this one.


>>>So, Harry finds out Sirius/Remus/James was a Slytherin. I mean, what's
the point? Without trying to sound
too much like Cindy - where's the Bang?

I work on the presumtion that is was either Sirius (more likely) or Remus
that was in Slytherin (James was in Gryffindor, we know that from JKR). I
can imagine several bangs. The first bang is the shock for Harry when he
finds out. Nice questions like "How will he react?" Will he say: "Oh, so
what, you are just a nice Slytherin. No big deal." A very unbangy
possiblity, but quite unlikely. But that would be different if the
disclosure would challenge his view about the Slytherins. Maybe that would
change his view on present Slytherins, or Snape, or the fact that he was
nearly sorted into Slytherin himself (I also adhere to the believe that
without Harry's pleas he would indeed have ended up there).

Another scenario is to have that disclosure as the cause for disclosing
Harry's little secrets: that he would/should have been sorted into Slytherin
and that his wand is the brother to Voldemort's. Or revealing that one of
the Marauders was a Slytherin might help to calm the waves after the
disclosure of Harry's secrets. And I am certain, that those will be revealed
and that it will be the mother of a Big Bang. Why? If it wasn't big time
bangy, why would JKR have Harry keep silent about it. Yes, I know, people
argue against this stance, quoting Dumbledore's *it's our choices...*
citation. Fine, but that is tolerant, muggle-loving Dumbledore speaking.
People like the Malfoys and others at the MoM for whom blood is everything
would certainly disagree. Slytherins and Ex-Slytherins would certainly not
be happy to learn that Harry turned down their house. Especially since
Harry's popularity must have certainly dropped after Rita's last article.
Another arguement in favor is that if you say that choices are more
important than your blood or origin, it also clearly implies that it is that
blood or origin that will force this choice on you. And last but not least,
Ron and Hermione will certainly not be pleased to learn that Harry kept a
secret from them. Do I know how all of this fits together? No, but I see
enough conflict potential here to ensure a major Bang.


>>>Apart from that, I've never been that fond of the idea that what
House you got into really mattered (outside of Hogwarts that is ;-)).
Aside from a few old grudges against old rivals, I just really hate
the idea that people from the Gryffindor and Slytherin Houses have
some lifelong blood feud.

I think the houses as similiar to student - ouch, I can't recall the English
word for it :-( - those sororities or elite clubs they have at US (and
British?) universities that are often named with Greek letters. We have
something similiar here in Germany called Burschenschaften (though they have
a different tradition and political stance as far as I gather). At least for
the Burschenschaften I know, that the senior members of those societies keep
in contact well beyond their university time and are expected to help each
other along. I can imagine that wizards from the same house will help out a
fellow ex-mate, for example helping with a promotion or such. While I grant
to you that Gryffindors, Ravenclaws and Huffle-Puffs would scorn such
practice, I can well imagine the Slytherins to behave this way. If indeed
the DEs were mostly or exclusivly made up of alumni-Slytherins, the DEs
would likely have exploited this unwritten code.


>>>Do the DE's follow LV because of his
ancestry, or because they agree with his goals, and respect/fear his
power? Is it more important to people that LV is the Heir of
Slytherin or a Parselmouth?

I assume, that for the people, being a Parselmouth will place you along the
descendants of Slytherin or in their very close relations. The talent is
certainly rare for that. So for the people, LV would of course speak Parsel
because he was the Heir of Slytherin. That reasoning is the only logical
explanation why the other Hogwarts students were so quick to shun and blame
Harry.


>>>This also tends to be my problem with the "Harry is the Heir of
Gryffindor" theories, and it has nothing to do with Destiny vs.
Choice.
Just why does it matter if Harry's descended from Gryffindor?

There you ask me to much, since I am not a fan of the Heir of Gryffindor
theory myself.

Greetings,
Ethanol