Scapegoating Slytherin (was:Punishing Draco ) LONGish

[zgirnius]

No: HPFGUIDX 144015


> a_svirn:
> Besides which, even if the other three founders were OK with 
> Slytherin's beliefs and values, it doesn't mean that subsequent 
> generations of wizards should. The founders all lived a thousand 
> years ago, after all.  Views on what is right, what is wrong and 
> what is permissible do change even within considerably lesser 
> periods of time. Yet, the underlying principle of selection to 
> Hogwarts houses – if the Hat to be believed – hasn't changed one 
> jota. And – again, if the Hat to be believed – a patent-card 
> Slytherin must be cunning, very ambitious and 
 bigoted, there is 
no 
> way around this particular requirement. 

First, the requirement (such as it is) stated by the Sorting Hat, 
which ought to know, is not that they be bigoted, but that they be 
pureblood. The two are not equivalent, as we have seen from numerous 
canon examples of non-bigoted purebloods.

Further, we are told that pureblooded families are rare. And yet, it 
seems that the Houses are each of roughly the same size. (JKR tells 
us Harry's class had 40 students, 10 per House. I doubt she meant it 
to be a highly anomalous incoming class.) If the vast majority of 
Slytherins are purebloods, then 'rare' means "comprising at least 25% 
of the student population". Especially because we have lots of canon 
purebloods sorted into other Houses, especially Gryffindor. 

While yes, JKR is apparently not noted for her mathematical prowess, 
I think she is well aware that the idea of purebloods being rare is 
incompatible with the idea that Slytherin House, 25% of the Hogwarts 
student population, is almost entirely pureblooded. 

How to resolve this apparent contradiction? To me it seems the only 
way is to admit that purity of blood is a criterion which MAY in the 
absence of other relevant criteria lead to sorting into Slytherin. 
But most often it is not present in Slytherins. They get Sorted in 
for the other reasons. (Cunning/ambition). 

Then why, we may ask, is it that most of the Slytherins we know ARE 
purebloods? JKR has given the answer in an interview, IMO. She has 
said that we know Slytherin House mostly through the children of 
Death Eaters. And yes, Death Eaters are definitely far more likely to 
be purebloods than the general population, (half bloods like Snape 
appear to be exceptions) and far more likely to marry other 
purebloods (thus producing pureblooded children to send to Hogwarts). 
I would say that the Slytherins we do not know are therefore quite 
likely to be half-bloods or even Muggle-borns. Who are ambitious 
and/or cunning, and not particularly good fits for other Houses. But 
they do not belong to Draco's clique for obvious reasons, so we have 
no reason to meet them.