Sorting Hat - Slytherin Truth -Additional Thought

[annemehr]

No: HPFGUIDX 115730


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

> This thought just occured to me. Can we assume that up until Slytherin
> left each of the Founders chose their own students? If that is true,
> then would it imply that the Sorting Hat wasn't created until after
> Slytherin left? [...] That would imply a time after Slytherin
> left and indeed after the other founders were gone and probably in
> their graves.

Annemehr:
The only canon I remember is this bit from the Sorting Hat's song of GoF:

While still alive they did divide
Their favorites from the throng,
Yet how to pick the worthy ones
When they were dead and gone?
'Twas Gryffindor who found the way,
He whipped me off his head
The Founders put some brains in me
So I could choose instead!

I sounds to me like they were thinking quite well ahead, and did this
when even Salazar was still at the school.

For clues to what Salazar's criteria actually were, here are the parts
of the three songs we have where the Hat describes them:

PS/SS:
Or perhaps in Slytherin
You'll make your real friends,
Those cunning folk use any means
To achieve their ends.

GoF:
And power-hungry Slytherin
Loved those of great ambition.

OoP:
Said Slytherin, 'We'll teach just those
Whose ancestry is purest.'
[...]
For instance, Slytherin
Took only pure-blood wizards
Of great cunning, just like him,

I notice that the hat never mentions pure-bloodedness until it's
relating the *history* of who Salazar chose *himself.*  I'm not sure
if that means anything.  We do know that during the last 50 or 60
years, the House has had both purebloods and half-bloods, but know of
no Muggleborns at all. 

Make of it what you will!

Annemehr