Typical Slytherin Family / Ravenclaw Crouches

[Catlady (Rita Prince Winston)]

No: HPFGUIDX 183018

Potioncat wrote in
<http://groups.yahoo.com/group/HPforGrownups/message/182955>:

<< And then, what would be a typical House-based family? (snip) How do
the Snape, various Black, Gaunt and Malfoy families compare? (The one
big difference I can see between the Malfoys and the Blacks, (at least
some of the Blacks) is that family members were more important than
the Cause. Of course, no one in the Malfoy family had actually
rebelled against the Cause.) >>

I see the typical Slytherin family as arrogant, proud of themselves
and of their lineage, motivated to increase the glory and power of
their family, and sticking together with family members. (This would
apply as much to a lower-class Slytherin family striving to reach
working-class as to an upper-class Slytherin family striving not to fall.)

The Black family is not very different from the Malfoy family: only
the naive young sons actually cared about the Cause, while the parents
viewed the Cause as a way to increase the power and glory of the
family. Mrs Black didn't cast out Sirius because he rebelled against
the cause, because Sirius didn't start by rebelling against the cause;
he rebelled against the cause as a result of rebelling against his
family. It seems Mrs Black didn't cast him out until after he had
deserted her (running away to live with the Potters).

The Gaunts think that living in a hovel and avoiding other wizards
will increase their family's power and glory. A mad erroneous idea,
but the same motives as other Slytherin families.

The Snape family can't be a typical Slytherin family because Tobias
can't be typical of any House because he's a Muggle, and I can't see
Eileen as arrogant while cowering. Still, it would not be implausible
that she had raised her son on tales of how clever and talented and
successful all the Princes are. I don't know if the Princes were a
typical Slytherin family; I don't know if young Severus even got to
visit his Prince grandparents; if so, did they scorn him for poverty
and half-bloodedness, or did they dote on him for being a grandchild? 

Carol wrote in
<http://groups.yahoo.com/group/HPforGrownups/message/182958>:

<< If it's possible to be Sorted into Slytherin based on pure blood
and ambition alone, despite an aversion to Dark Magic, I can see Barty
Sr. being a Slytherin. Otherwise, he strikes me as a Ravenclaw, very
intellectual and austere like Rowena herself. >>

No one has commented on whether a liking for Dark Magic is a
requirement for being Sorted into Slytherin House, but Barty Sr's
aversion to Dark Magic was a fake. He did Dark Magic himself, keeping
his son under Imperius for all those years. Barty Sr sure seems like a
Slytherin personality type, ambitious, power-hungry, proud. 

On another tentacle, his relationship with his wife and son seems more
'intellectual and austere' than sticking together. Rowena's daughter
(who annoyed me very much by not having an alliterative first name)
rebelled against her by stealing the diadem and running away; I don't
like the idea that Ravenclaw is the only House whose typical family is
dysfunctional.