Dark Book - Blood and Cruelty/ Draco

[muscatel1988]

No: HPFGUIDX 177261

--- In HPforGrownups at yahoogroups.com, "starview316" <starview316 at ...> 
wrote:

> Every new student was cheered at their Sorting

Mus responds:  It's a key scene, because it establishes the position 
of each student in relation to the rest of the school.

And here's the scene: 

" 'Potter, Harry!'

As Harry stepped forward, whispers suddenly broke out like little 
hissing fires all over the hall.

'*Potter*, did she say?'

'*The* Harry Potter?'

The last thing Harry saw before the hat dropped over his eyes was the 
Hall full of people craning to get a good look at him."

<snip>

"He was so relieved to have been chosen and not put in Slytherin, he 
hardly noticed that he was getting the loudest cheer yet.  Percy the 
Prefect stood up and shook his hand vigorously, while the Weasley 
twins yelled, 'We got Potter!  We got Potter!'.  Harry sat down 
opposite the ghost in the ruff he'd seen earlier.  The ghost patted 
his arm, giving Harry the sudden, horrible feeling he's just plunged 
it into a bucket of ice-cold water."  [PS, UK pb: 91]

The cheering is remarked on for few of the sortees - Hannah Abbott is 
cheered by Hufflepuff, and Gryffindor cheers for Lavender Brown, but 
the only other acclaim in canon is for Terry Boot and for Ron, who 
get clapped (no cheering mentioned).  Malfoy is described as walking 
to the Slytherin table, looking pleased with himself - no clapping, 
no cheering (damn right, too <eg>).  No, every student doesn't get 
cheered.

Harry's sorting, both before and after, is very different to the 
others'.  Before he's even sorted, he's a school celebrity. 

Actually, there's a really interesting little detail in there.  Harry 
is relieved that he has been been "chosen and not put in Slytherin".  
Not "sorted", which is what has actually - to the casual observer - 
been going on.  Others get sorted.  Harry gets chosen.  

And what's the opposite of being "chosen" in this charming magical 
world?   Being put in Slytherin.  

Mus.