On Why Hermione is a Gryffindor

[grace701]

No: HPFGUIDX 55143


> Greicy:
> I wonder what exactly made her want to be in Gryffindor.  She 
> obviously knows she's smart so why not have Raveclaw as her first 
> chioce?
> 
> Taryn:
> I think it's a question of what she values. Yes, she values 
> intelligence and wisom. Highly, as is very obvious. But she values 
> other things more--such as bravery, as she says in PS/SS ("There 
> are more important things--friendship and bravery..." 287, US 
> Paperback). So from there it's natural for her to want to be in the 
> House that values the same things she does.


I actually meant what made her want to be in Gryffindor before that 
and I think Patricia answered it beautifully:

The first, and simplest, explanation for why Hermione wanted to be in
Gryffindor is that whoever she was talking to on the train about the
various houses heaped lots of praise on Gryffindor and made it sound
better than all the others.  For instance, if Hermione were talking to
Fred and George, I would fully expect them to be biased in favor of 
their own house.  She almost certainly talked to Neville since she 
helped him find his toad, so if he had a preference for Gryffindor 
for whatever reason that may have come out in their conversation as 
well.

But additionally, I think Hermione wants some of the glory that 
Gryffindor is famous for.  Yes, she's smart, and yes, she does love 
knowledge for its own sake, but she's also a bit of a show-off.  It's 
not enough for Hermione to quietly be the smartest girl in class -- 
she wants everyone to *know* she's the smartest girl in class.  So 
naturally she'd want to be in the house that gets the most attention 
(the most positive attention, anyway).  Ravenclaws are generally 
respected, but they're not as often in the spotlight at Gryffindors, 
so they wouldn't be as attrative to someone who tends to want to show 
off.

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Greicy