Hogwarts Pop (was: the sorting hat problem)

[Andrea]

No: HPFGUIDX 54607

--- Serena Moonsilver wrote:
> My own personal theory:  That the 800-1000 is correct.  That when the 
> students are sorted, they aren't only sorted into houses, but into 
> groups (Group A and B).  Group A is the upper half and group b is the 
> lower half (in terms of academic ability).  Harry (and the rest) are 
> in group A and since that is who Harry is around all the time, that's 
> who we hear about.  Group B simply act as background players.

Hrm.  I agree with the basic presumption that the years are divided up
into two or more groups, and we've only seen Harry's group (and the
matching Slytherins) with any kind of regularity.  However, I don't like
the ideas either that the Sorting Hat was responsible for the division or
that the division is in terms of academic ability.

1.) If the Sorting Hat was responsible for the division, why doesn't it
call out, "Gryffindor, A!" instead of just the House name?  It goes
against everything we've seen of the Hat to think it's somehow
transcribing a list (with...what, exactly? *g* No hands) while sorting the
students that is later given to the professors with everyone's "group
assignments".  So any group division is, IMO, far more likely to be done
by the professors, not the Hat.

2.) Likewise, we've seen absolutely no indication that Harry's particular
group is the "cream of the crop".  Yes, Hermione's in it.  However, so is
Neville, who does abyssmally in most classes.  As is Seamus, who manages
to blow up a feather rather than levitate it.  For that matter, Ron and
Harry routinely make up answers to their Divination homework.  While I
don't think any of these kids are dumb, I don't think they're necessarily
the brightest of Gryffindor. (Though that may explain how wizards like
Stan and Ern went to Hogwarts. *g*)  Oh, and I'd assume that groups are
put together in joined classes -- you wouldn't want the smart Hufflepuffs
and dumb Gryffindors together, after all.  You'd want to keep to roughly
the same level, if that's how people are divided.  So Crabbe and Goyle are
the cream of the crop in Slytherin?  God help us all. ;)

I think any divisions would be made on a purely random or arbitrary means
while putting together the timetables.  ("All right, all names with an odd
number of letters go in Group A and all names with an even number of
letters go in Group B, unless you were born on a full moon during a Leap
Year or a month with no vowels in in."  -- Hey, who said it had to be a
*logical* division? *g*)


Andrea

=====
"Reality is for people who lack imagination."

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