The Sorting Hat and Houses

[Juliet <lilpurplealdy@netscape.net>]

No: HPFGUIDX 52944

Quoth the Sorting Hat:
> A thousand years or more ago, 
> When I was newly sewn,
> There lived four wizards of renown,
> Whose names are still well known:
> Bold Gryffindor, from wild moor,

To which Morgan D. pondered: >> could this "wild moor" be a hollow? 
^__^ >>


Lol, well, I'm afraid Webster is telling me they are rather 
different.  A moor is an "expanse of open rolling infertile land", 
whereas a hollow is "a small valley or basin". Hmm...
 

A suggestion a la Andrea:
> You see, I have my own pet theory on the Hat. The
> Hat's song in GOF said the Founders "put some brain in me so I could
> choose instead." My own theory is that the Founders used their OWN
> brains; that is, a preserved memory (like the diary) of each of the
> four Founders still lives inside the Hat. 

To which Morgan D. expanded on:
> And I nod: I had the same idea. I was under the impression that the
> four founders had created a unique personality from a sort of 
magical
> merging of part of their minds. So in a way, the Hat would *be* the
> living mind of the founders. Therefore, he must know many of the
> secrets we're all dying to learn. 


Well, then I have three thoughts to post based on the above.

A)-  The Hat has then given itself it's own personality, or maybe 
just it's own voice(for obvious reasons, I would think). I can just 
see the kids faces if McGonagall were to put the hat on their head 
and suddenly they have four voices jabbering at them, trying to 
figure out where they belong.  I think Slytherin in particular might 
have had a few choice words for Harry if he had been listening to 
Harry's "Not Slytherin, Not Slytherin.." pleading. =P

B)-  The "voice" Harry has encountered every time he has put the hat 
on has been Gryffindor(since he is, afterall, a Gryffindor).  
Hmm....well, that one doesn't make a whole lotta sense, then, because 
the first time he put it on, he had no idea where he belonged.  But, 
maybe, when you put the hat on(or just when you hear it singing), it 
awakens whichever Founder you most resemble and that's whose voice 
you hear.  Eh, just throwing out a thought.

C)-  The Founders do have very seperate, very distinct preservations 
of themselves still alive and kicking in the Hat.  But either they 
can only "speak" if the Hat chooses them to, or it takes some sort of 
magic to draw them out.


Morgan D. suggested:

> Wouldn't the Hat keep inside itself other magical weapons,
> objects that belonged to the other three founders just as the sword
> that was once Godric's? Isn't it possible that others will ask for 
the
> Hat's help in the hour of need and receive those secret weapons?


I readily agree with you here, I do believe the Hat has some other 
objects hidden inside it(and, if in the next book we finally see some 
*other* House members seeing enough action to need to pull out a 
weapon, I'll be overjoyed).  

Oh, a thought has just ocurred to me...what if that's how the 
Founders put their "brains" inside it?  IOW, they had to insert a 
very personal object of their's, one they felt best represents 
them..?  "Brave Gryffindor", makes sense he'd go for the sword, eh?


Morgan D:

>Isn't it? I confess I find this absolutely annoying.


And I agree with you.  Gryffindor has enough texture, I wish the 
other houses could get some.  Ravenclaw, in particular, always seems 
left out(except, it seems, when it comes to finding a girlfriend- 
i.e. Cho and Penelope).  In one of the quote/rumor/interview threads, 
someone posted a snippet of an interview in which someone asked JKR 
if Book 5 would be about one major event, or if it would have more of 
the classroom and Quidditch(paraphrasing all of this here, of 
course).  JKR responded that the classroom and daily life would 
review.  So, perhaps this year Gryffindor will have a class with 
Ravenclaw(because, IIRC, they have yet to do so)?  Or, we can have 
the Trio getting to know other House members better or atleast 
*something* along those lines. 


Morgan D:
> And I laugh: At least one of them must have had a sense of humour
> similar to Dumbledore's then... ^__^

Or perhaps just a drinking habit that popped up the night they named 
the school.. ;)


~Aldrea, tipping her hat to Morgan D. for not mixing up "Andrea" 
and "Aldrea" throughout their post.