Harry Potter Houses...

[beccastareyes]

So, I said on Fanficrants that I tended to think of Happy Potter Houses by 'what they want and how they prefer to get it', and was asked for details... so, here goes.


Gryffindors want to be important and famous. They want to be The Guy (or The Girl). Bravery -- of various types -- is a common method for this, and is the defining House trait, and can thus lead Gryffindors to being heroes, everything from Harry, the Boy who Defeated Voldemort to Hermione, the Fearless Advocate for the Downtrodden. Bravery also helps one stand out -- not being afraid of social ostracation (a ore mundane fear than Voldemort or dragons) is a Gryffindor trait. Dumbledor says it himself about Neville -- that Neville is brave because he is willing to take a stand against his friends. A moral compass is what makes a Gryffindor a hero as opposed to the will to stand out and stand up - all Gryffindors are brave, but, like all people, not all of them act correctly. Percy is an example of this -- all of the Weasley kids want to stand out, and Percy wanted to do so by being the Pillar of Righteousness. Unfortunately, Percy is a bit more Lawful than Good, and has a strong Slytherin streak (not a bad thing -- Harry has one too), which lead him into conflict with his family, and conflating 'following the rules' with 'being good'. But, never let it be said that Percy lacked the bravery to follow his convictions.

Slytherins come into conflict with Gryffindor as both tend to seek importance, but Slytherins want the power and control that comes of having influence. Many Slytherins would be happy being 'the power behind the throne', a position few Gryffindors could last long in. The types of power might vary -- for example, due to Tom Riddle and Lucius Malfoy's connections, many Death Eaters were Slytherins, because Tom and Lucius offered them access to control over Wizarding society itself. On the other hand, you also got people like Slughorn (who sought influence through being the beloved teacher of the great) and Snape (whose drive for power seems to be internal -- he sought control and mastery over himself and his art).

Ravenclaws want to be experts. Again, they are pretty easy to pin down, like Slytherins. They aren't all nerds -- Cho Chang is an example of someone who is both smart and reasonably well socialized (and athletic -- no wonder Harry developed a crush on her). They value learning -- not just academic achievement, though that can a big component. Consider Luna, who is a bit of a space cadet in her classes but is an expert on conspiracy theories and things that may or may not actually exist.

Hufflepuffs want to be part of the community. It works well with their ability to be loyal -- they value tight bonds to other people, and making sure that everyone advances, even if the able ones have to help the less able. It also means if you piss one off, the rest tend to fall in beside him or her, as Harry learned several times. Insularity is one of the House flaws, in my opinion. On the other hand, one of Voldemort's bigger mistakes was killing Cedric Diggory, in that he would have no hope of any Hufflepuff at Hogwarts ever standing with him. A big part of that is also fairness, at least within the group.

Another thing to consider is how they approach problems. Overall, Gryffindors and Hufflepuffs tend to be more direct, while Slytherins and Ravenclaws tend to be more thoughtful.

Gryffindors tend to be people of action, the sort to charge in and start doing things.

Slytherins are cunning (remember the song?) and look at a problem first, maybe taking a few tentative pokes, trying to figure out the best angle of approach. They also tend to be more morally flexible if things come down to it -- if doing something the sneaky way gets it done better, so be it. They don't tend to think in absolutes, even the ones who have strong morals. They consider the problem as a whole: which set of actions will be best considering my own desires and values? This can make them very practical when dealing with a choice between bad options. (Outside of HP, an example comes from Piers Anthony's Virtual Mode. Colene's lover promises a galactic emperor access to the world-crossing tech his universe has because said emperor threatened to lobotomize Colene if he didn't do so. He was an honorable sort, so he intended to keep a promise, even under duress. She, on the other hand, when he threatened her friend's life and her own, decided to play along until she could ask her friend the telepath to distract him long enough for them all to get away. That is a very Slytherin thing to do -- to judge that breaking one's word, given under duress is better than either dying or inflicting a conquering emperor on the Multiverse, even though none of those things are good. Granted, Colene didn't consider that her lover would be rather put off by this.)

Hufflepuffs tend to take the slow and steady approach -- pick at the obvious thing or usual method and work at that until a better idea comes along. They don't object to hard work if that's what is needed to solve a problem -- they have determination, even stubbornness. They also try to make use of the group. I can imagine that if Quidditch was less about 'who's Seeker found the Snitch first' and more about making goals, the Hufflepuff team would be a lot more of a challenge. (I can imagine that the Hufflepuff strategy would be a lot like the Irish strategy in GoF -- focus on making sure the team is good at making and blocking goals, so the other team's Seeker doesn't matter that much.)

Ravenclaws hit the library. Like Slytherins, they favor being informed and knowledge about a subject. Hermione, while a Gryffindor, solves problems in a very Ravenclaw way.

Of course, no one is a pure Lion/Snake/Eagle/Badger. Harry and Tom Riddle both are noted as having a mix of Gryffindor and Slytherin traits, with it noted that the difference is what one chose to get out of life. (Though, I wonder about that, since Tom Riddle was pretty nasty even as a kid.) Percy, arguably, does too. Hermione and Snape both have a lot of Ravenclaw traits -- I'd imagine a lot of the other teachers and the healers do as well. Ron seems to have a lot of Hufflepuff traits -- he is incredibly loyal to both his family and his friends. A lot of it comes down to 'if you are in a conflict between these values, which will you choose'?

Comments

[yonmei.insanejournal.com]

Cool. Thank you. I particularly like your analysis of the Hufflepuffs. (I like Hufflepuffs.)