![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
conuly
A lot of people have commented disparagingly on the implied "ranking" of the various houses: Clearly, they say, Gryffindor is considered the best, followed by Ravenclaw, then Hufflepuff, then Slytherin, unless you happen to be in Slytherin, and what does being told you're not in the best house do to your precious self-esteem?
Except that this is the viewpoint of a bunch of kids who all ended up in Gryffindor. As I've said before, I'm firmly of the belief that children are sorted into the houses they want to be in. Now, I think this is what makes them who they grow up to be, unlike Dumbledore, who seems to think it just shows who they're going to grow up to be, but that's just a side-conversation.
How do we know that all the other houses have the same ranking system? We know that one kid, impressed at Hermione's knowledge of an advanced spell, was surprised she wasn't in Ravenclaw - clearly, to his mind, his house is best. Hufflepuff is a load of duffers? Maybe - or maybe that's just the view of all the people who aren't Hufflepuffs, and they view themselves differently, the people who support the school. Slytherin means you're gonna be evil? Do the Slytherins know that? Maybe that's a prejudice handed down by the other houses, but as far as they're concerned, they're just interested in 1. being smart and making connections and 2. preserving wizarding traditions, unlike those who'd give up everything they had in order to go with the new.
Maybe they even rank the other houses not just lower than their own houses, but lower than we'd expect. Maybe the Hufflepuffs think that Gryffindors are all irritable, impractical, and flashy - no use to anybody.
Why do we assume that because Harry and his friends, who are Gryffindors think that their house is the best, that means that every other student in the school agrees with the assessment?
Except that this is the viewpoint of a bunch of kids who all ended up in Gryffindor. As I've said before, I'm firmly of the belief that children are sorted into the houses they want to be in. Now, I think this is what makes them who they grow up to be, unlike Dumbledore, who seems to think it just shows who they're going to grow up to be, but that's just a side-conversation.
How do we know that all the other houses have the same ranking system? We know that one kid, impressed at Hermione's knowledge of an advanced spell, was surprised she wasn't in Ravenclaw - clearly, to his mind, his house is best. Hufflepuff is a load of duffers? Maybe - or maybe that's just the view of all the people who aren't Hufflepuffs, and they view themselves differently, the people who support the school. Slytherin means you're gonna be evil? Do the Slytherins know that? Maybe that's a prejudice handed down by the other houses, but as far as they're concerned, they're just interested in 1. being smart and making connections and 2. preserving wizarding traditions, unlike those who'd give up everything they had in order to go with the new.
Maybe they even rank the other houses not just lower than their own houses, but lower than we'd expect. Maybe the Hufflepuffs think that Gryffindors are all irritable, impractical, and flashy - no use to anybody.
Why do we assume that because Harry and his friends, who are Gryffindors think that their house is the best, that means that every other student in the school agrees with the assessment?
