Blood and Artifice (was The Sorting Hat)

[Shirley]

No: HPFGUIDX 78422

> Talisman wrote: <heavily snipped>
> >Debates about the Sorting Hat blossom and subside on this site, 
with 
> >the regularity of the seasons.  I haven't followed a Sorting Hat 
> >thread lately, 
> 
> >And, of course, we know the Hat would have been happy to put Harry 
> >in Slytherin.
> 
> Margaret: 
> I actually have a theory on this (see post #76525 for the whole 
> thing, *I* think it's interesting ;-)  The gist of which is that 
the 
> hat, with its sneaky little sense of humour, was not going to put 
> Harry in Slytherin HOUSE.  It commented on the fact that he didn't 
> want to be in Slytherin, and then said :
> 
> "You could be great you know, it's all here in your head, and 
> Slytherin will help you on you way to greatness, no doubt about 
> that." (SS-paperback)
> 

->>snipped<<-

now Shirley:
I don't have CoS with me, but I just re-read it last weekend.  You 
are correct with your 'semi-quote' about what the Sorting Hat said to 
Harry when he was sorted.  However, later in CoS, when Harry is in 
Dumbledore's office and puts the Hat on again, the hat says - 
something to the effect of - it stands by what it said, he would have 
*done well in Slytherin* (emphasis mine).  This stood out to me, 
because I was happily laboring under the impression that the hat, 
during the sorting, was telling Harry that Slytherin would help him, 
but that he didn't have to be *in* that house.  So, I think the Hat 
*was* saying it would put Harry in Slytherin HOUSE>.

Also, I'm not sure that Harry has ever told any of his friends about 
either of those exchanges with the Hat....

Shirley, who really needs to get back to work, but keeps getting 
pulled back to see what the next posts will say....