House Qualities (Was: Re: Slytherin Purebloods?)

[Geoff Bannister]

No: HPFGUIDX 88191

--- In HPforGrownups at yahoogroups.com, "severelysigune" 
<severelysigune at y...> wrote:

Sigune:
> In fact, the whole Hogwarts system turns on competition. The 
Houses. 
> The House Cup. The Quidditch Cup. It might be useful if Dumbledore 
> just started a School Reform instead of forcing rivalry on his 
> students and then asking them to be nice and friendly with each 
> other. Well, I guess a really wise person should be able to 
overcome 
> these obstacles, but not all witches and wizards can be expected to 
> become Dumbledores, can they?


Geoff:
Yes, but this is an echo of the schools in the UK. It is very common, 
in both public and state schools, for there to be a house system of 
some sort which is used as a basis for competitions (usually 
sporting) within the organisation. It may carry more weight in a 
residential situation but it is still used almost universally to 
promote healthy rivalry.

My grammar school which I attended in my teens had six houses and 
when old pupils meet up there is still an extra feeling of camaradie 
between those who were in the same house. The school in which I 
taught for 30 years had houses; my local Community College today has 
four houses which serve similar purposes. If you don't have some sort 
of competition to which students can strive then things like 
excellence can flag.