"Slytherin" Hermione? (was Re: The Beetle At Bay)

[huntergreen_3]

No: HPFGUIDX 112355

Potioncat:
>>I'll bet Lucius feels his actions are justifiable too.
[snip]
Do you think it is bad to have Slytherin traits? Or do you think it
is only bad to have them in the degree Slytherins do? I don't think
there is anything wrong with those traits, but rather in the way
we've seen Slytherins use them.<<

HunterGreen:
I think Slytherins too often get seen as the "evil house" (although I 
don't think that Susana necessarily sees it that way). Personally, I 
think that being ambitious and driven is not evil at all, its not 
even a bad trait (I know I could use a bit more of it). However, (IMO 
only, feel free to disagree), I think a lot of that bias comes from 
the way the books are written. The only "good Slytherin" we've seen 
is Snape, and he's a horrible example, because he went off and became 
a Death Eater. JKR thinks that courage/bravery is a very important 
trait (I know I read an interview or quote from her at one point 
where she says that almost exactly...I think it was on her website 
somewhere). The main character and his two best friends are from 
Gryffindor. Sirius, James, Lily, Lupin and Hagrid were all from 
Gryffindor (and most likely Dumbledore too). Many of us are waiting 
for the "good Slytherin" to come around and break the stereotype, but 
is that person really coming? JKR has been dismayed to see fansite 
author's who align themself with the Slytherin house, does *she* see 
it as the evil house? Because there's nothing in the traits that 
points to "evil" (certainly being 'clever' could lead to evilness as 
much as ambition). 
However, it doesn't really matter if the good Slytherin never appears 
in the books, or if JKR really does think that Gryffindor is the best 
house. There's still enough gray there for readers to draw their own 
conclusions about which house is "best" (personally, I think its 
Hufflepuff).