Problem with OotP? (was: Pampering)

[hickengruendler]

No: HPFGUIDX 118901


--- In HPforGrownups at yahoogroups.com, "Hannah" <hannahmarder at y...> 
wrote:
 
> > Del replied :
> > I completely agree.
> > 
> > I was particularly dismayed in OoP when not a single Slytherin 
> became
> > a DA. That points only to 2 possibilities as far as I can see :
> > 
> > - Students from Gryffindor, Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff don't 
> associate
> > with the Slytherins. Or at least, those students that became DA 
> don't
> > associate with Slytherins.
> > 
> > - Some of the DA associate with some Slytherins but those DA 
> members
> > didn't deem those Slytherins trustworthy enough to tell them 
about 
> the DA.
> > 
> > In either case, it implies that Slytherin is indeed an evil House 
> out
> > of which no good can come. Needless to say, I don't like it. And I
> > REALLY hope a good Slytherin will integrate Harry's circle in HBP 
> (not
> > necessarily the inner circle -the Group of 6-, but the DA for 
> example).
> 
> Hannah: Yes, and add to that the 'evil' Inquisitorial Squad seems 
to 
> be made up entirely of Slytherins.  Why?  Is it because their 
> reputation preceded them, and Umbridge chose just Slytherins out of 
> the old fashioned house prejudice no doubt instilled into her as a 
> child at the school?  Or was it because the only 'nasty' students 
in 
> the school happened to be in Slytherin?   

Hickengruendler:

I disagree and would have been surprised if a Slytherin had become a 
DA member. IMO, Del's conclusion that Slytherin is indeed an evil 
house because they weren't in the DA isn't true, all it shows is, 
that the other houses don't trust them enough. And that shouldn't 
come as a surprise, since they were always anti Slytherin (and 
probably had some good reason, seeing how many of the Slytherins 
turned out to be). But the lack of trust does not necessarily have to 
mean that all Slytherins are evil, but also that the members of the 
other houses have to overcome their prejudices against them.

About Hannah's point: Yes, the Squad contained only of Slytherins. 
But how many Slytherins were in this thread. I think 6 or 7 we know 
of. That's not much, and frankly, it are those who were portrayed as 
nasty from the very beginning. But there are still hundreds of 
Slytherin's who were not in the IS, and I think those are the really 
interesting ones. Especially Theodore Nott, who was not a member of 
the Squad although his father is a Death Eater, which suggests to me, 
that he's not a clone of his father, like Malfoy, Crabbe and Goyle 
are. Also, the betrayer of the DA was a Ravenclaw. Of course, if no 
Slytherin's are in the DA, than no Slytherins can betray it. But 
still, both Marietta's and Wormtail's example suggest, that future 
foes and candidates for betrayal are in all the houses.

And there is one reason why I'm sure that we will see Slytherin 
become closer to the other houses: The Sorting Hat's New Song. If JKR 
didn't intend to have at least some Slytherins fight on Harry's side, 
than she wouldn't have included the song. It would be most awkward to 
rise such an important topic in the books and than totally ignore it.

Hickengruendler