uniforms

[Arya]

No: HPFGUIDX 84685


Yolanda wrote:
They don't wear house specific markings.  Remember in CoS when 
Harry and Ron disguised as Slytherins asked a girl where the 
Slytherin common room was and she said she was in Ravenclaw.  They 
never could have mistaken a student from one house for another if 
they wore markings.  They wouldn't have had to guess who was a 
Slytherin in the first place.  House markings would have solved that 
problem easily.
 
sachmet96 wrote:
I just reread the passage and she sounded to me that she thought they 
were stupid to even assume she was Slytherin which implies to me that 
it must have been obvious she was a Ravenclaw.

ARYA NOW:
Actually, it could also just be that she took offense at being 
mistaken as a Slytherin.  (*gasp*!!!  what an awful thing to accuse 
someone to be!!!)  Not to mention the fact that she might have been 
offended that other students didn't know the name of a Prefect.  
(Maybe she and PErcy bonded because of mutual bigheadedness.  Hmmm, I 
wonder if Perce is still seeing that muggleborn...)

sachmet96 wrote:
I still think there are markings on the robes true it isn't said in 
the books that there are markings but it also isn't said that there 
aren't. As it never says plain robes, except in the Hogwart letters 
and that means that the markings are attached later (after the 
sorting).

ARYA NOW:
It could be true-- I do think it would fit more with the whole 
British school theme if they wore their colors.  Plus, that would 
make them seem not just stupid for treating Penelope as a Slytherin 
because not only would she be clearly marked as a Ravenclaw, but they 
would have been wearing Slytherin robes then in their roles of 
impersonating C&G.  They would have to be extremely thick to not knwo 
someone in their own house.  Then again, they were trying to fake 
being C&G, so it probably just fit the bill to be thick, if this was 
the case. 



sachmet96 wrote:
Also I find it hard to believe that Harry and friend could recognise 
students from different houses (like pointed out in previous posts), 
like a group of Slytherins, even when they are eating with them 
nearly every day. 

ARYA NOW:
I do tend to agree with you about the robes having *some* 
distinguishing feature to denote House.  However, just to play the 
argumentative advocate, your above point may be explained by Harry 
recognizing groups of students via association.  For example, he sees 
Malfoy and a group following and all laughing at Malfoy jokes, then 
that group is a "group of Slytherins".  Or he sees some Hufflepuff 
(he knows them because they had Herbology together) and sees a group 
with let's say Justin Finch-Fletchly and Ernie Macmillan who are all 
associating and that is a "group of Hufflepuffs".  It seems to me 
that since the Sorting Hat groups people according to personality and 
skills that "grouping" (perhaps "stereotyping??) is just a very 
natural thing to do to file away the people you meet.  ('This is 
Padma and she's a Ravenclaw' then means 'This is Padma and she 
studies hard and likes to excel academically'.)


sachmet96 wrote:
And how are professors to distinguish first year students to 
deduct/award points. I can't believe they have such a good memory to 
recognise every single first year student after only a few days to do 
that. And what about teachers who don't teach all students (like the 
ones from the elective classes?) are they going to ask what house the 
student is in and then deduct points? I find that hard to believe and 
it would be easy for the student to lie wouldn't it?

ARYA NOW:
The only classes that we seem to have any canon evidence for the 
classes being mixed together is for Potions with the Slytherins and 
Herbology with the Hufflepuffs.  It hasn't ever been mentioned for 
any other classes and it could be possible the classes are almost all 
one house per class.  Or it could be that the classes are segregated--
Slytherins all up front and on the right, Gryffindors on the left, 
Hufflepuffs, in the back, behind the Slytherins and Ravenclaws, fall 
in into the last quadrant of the room.  Afterall, except for 
Herbology or Potions, we never hear Harry describe what any student 
other than a Gryffindor says or does in class.  

sachmet96 wrote:
In my school we had over 1000 students and about 90 teachers and esp. 
when I was in a higher class I wasn't able to distinguis the lower 
class students anymore (I simply didn't pay any attention to them) 
and same goes for students of different classes in the same year. I 
knew they were in my year but I couldn't name which class. My primary 
school was a half boarding school so all students had meals together 
and there were only about 200 students and I could also not say in 
which class who was (neither could the teachers btw.). So from 
personal experience I would say that there must be a distinguishing 
feature on which the teachers can recognise the house the student is 
in simply to deduct/award points.

ARYA NOW:
We only really hear of Snape and McGonagall deducting points in a 
hallway setting.  Both are very well aware to what House Harry 
belongs.  So how would Snape take points away from some 
indistinguishable student?  Well, since the hourglasses of House 
Points (with the jewels) seems to automatically respond to a 
professor saying "Fifty points from Gryffindor" then I think it may 
also be able to respond to "Ten points from your house for running in 
the hall".
 
sachmet96 wrote:
So that's why I believe there are some markings on the uniforms.

ARYA NOW:
Well, I tried to be a good debater and add some counterpoints to this 
to try to figure it out and I think I've done well.  However, I still 
tend to agree with you.  I think it just fits more with the "theme" 
and "feel" of the school.  Maybe we should add the topic of uniforms 
and house signia on uniforms to the thread with questions for JKR.
Arya