Hogwarts Theory

[sneeboy2]

No: HPFGUIDX 172140

Hold for tomorrow - this is his sixth post for the day.  michele  Good post, btw.

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

> > Sneeboy2:
> >
> > My own theory is that Hogwarts will not be reopened
> > until LV is vanquished, and that when it does reopen,
> > the separate houses will be abolished. ...
> >
> > Anyway, I think the sorting hat will be destroyed
> > somehow, making it impossible to keep the houses
> > separate.
> >
>
>
> bboyminn:
>
> The rivalry between Houses is very common though, and has
> nothing to do with Sorting. At the college I went to, we
> has several Residence Halls where students lived on campus.
> These Residence Halls had their strong rivalries. Our Hall
> had the best parties, the coolest guys, the prettiest
> girls, the best inner-school teams, while the other
> Houses were just...well...lame.

Sneeboy2:

The house system definitely has a parallel in the real world. And
you're right that there will still be separate residence halls and
sporting teams. I didn't mean to suggest that there was something
wrong with rivalries, per se. What fun would life be without them?
Stereotypes about different groups of people, however, are something I
would hope JKR would want to discourage. The whole idea of the sorting
hat placing people according to some aspect of their character
encourages stereotyping. I've seen many people use it to support their
theories about the books: "So-and-so couldn't do that; he's a
Syltherin," or a Griffindor.

Bboyminn:
>
> Plus, being Sorted into a specific House doesn't
> completely define you. Harry could have been Slytherin
> or Gryffindor, Hermione could have been Ravenclaw or
> Gryffindor, and many fans suspect that Neville could
> have been either Hufflepuff or Gryffindor. So, there
> is a danger to assume the House characteristics are one
> dimensional. That all Slytherins are [insert Slytherin
> characteristic here]. Yet, there is nothing to prevent
> Slytherins from being highly intelligent or dumb as a
> rock. They can be brave or cowardly. They can be hard
> working or lazy. They can be immensely loyal or
> completely selfish.

Sneeboy2:

I agree that JKR has given us examples that defy the stereotypes, and
I consider it a promising aspect of the books. She's also warned
readers in interviews not to make assumptions about characters based
on what house they're in. I hope she's setting people up for the idea
that there's really nothing to the whole sorting idea. But it will
take some bold change to convince them. The fact is that in reality
people aren't often deterred from their belief in stereotypes by one
or two examples to the contrary. I think JKR will give us some much
stronger evidence that there's no truth to the types and no need for
them. Simplest way to do it plotwise is to get rid of the hat.

bboyminn:
>
> These House characteristics are a very complex matter,
> and I don't think we can define someone completely by
> what House they were in, as human nature is far more
> complex than a set of defined characteristics.

Sneeboy2:

I couldn't agree more about human nature and defining people. I wish I
could say that the way the houses are presented in the books were more
complex already, but the fact is that, with a few exceptions, JKR has
put all the good guys in one house and all the bad guys in another,
and the fact certainly hasn't escaped young readers, who are quick to
identify with one house or the other, depending on whether they think
it's cooler to be bad or good. If JKR does get rid of the houses, or
at least the idea that they are character-defining, it will likely be
unpopular with many readers, who seem to relish how easy it makes things.

Bboyminn:

> So, let me say, that it is possible that the Sorting
> will come to an end. But, if it does, then students
> will likely be arbitrarily assigned to a 'residence'
> house and likely those Houses will still retain their
> same names for historical and traditional reasons,
> and likely the same fierce House rivalries will
> continue.

Sneeboy2:

I agree that there will be different residence halls and sports teams
regardless. But if students are assigned to them randomly and don't
persist in ideas that all Slytherins are jerks, for example, it would
satisfy my prediction/hope about a rejection of the present system,
which offers a magical basis for stereotypes -- the equivalent of a
scientific basis in the real world. There's a difference between a
fierce rivalry (Beat Duke!) and a ridiculous stereotype (All Duke
students are a**holes.)

Can you tell I went to UNC?