Is the Sorting Hat always Right?

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Gail Allen
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Is the Sorting Hat always Right?

Post by Gail Allen »

I've often pondered this exact question when reading the Harry Potter books; Did the hat really always place students in the right house? And what might it's reasons have been for some of the more unlikely candidates?

Like, Hermione Granger - she seems to have been just as likely to have been a Ravenclaw and we are even told that the hat considered this. But what do you think tipped the scales in favour of Gryffindor for the hat? And do you think it was right?

Or Neville Longbottom - he hardly seemed very brave, but he seemed to grow into his bravery later. Or do you think he always had it? What do you think showed that he was brave?

Or Peter Pettigrew - did he really belong in the house for the brave?

I'd love to hear your opinions on both whether you think the hat was ever wrong with a placement, or what you think made some of the less obvious sortings make sense after all.
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Re: Is the Sorting Hat always Right?

Post by River Grey Phoenix »

Did the hat really always place students in the right house?
Sometimes it's hard to say yes as I've met many people who have had qualities on 2 or more houses and I think as a person grows there house would change and for some it wouldn't. Personally have always been a Slytherin from the start but I do constantly always check every few years to see if I am still. For the Hats pickings I would say it factors in other things other than just characteristics, such as Family Tree for example. In conclusion I think the sorting hat can't always be 100% right but I do for the most part think it picks correctly with some exceptions.

Hermione Granger - Although we know Hermione was considered for Ravenclaw, I think what put her more in favour towards Gryffindor was she has all the traits to a Gryffindor as were she only has a few for Ravenclaw. I personally think Gryffindor was the right choice for her.
Prof. Maxim Trevelyan
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Re: Is the Sorting Hat always Right?

Post by Prof. Maxim Trevelyan »

I never really subscribed to the whole Sorting Hat is never wrong idea, and the Sorting itself. The series is all about proving that people can grow and change and learn from previous mistakes and experiences, so who is to say your personality is completely shaped and set in stone when you have turned eleven?

As for the questions, I always found it weird that Percy Weasley was in Gryffindor. I think it was just made so because he was a Weasley and they were all sorted into that house, similarly to the Blacks and Slytherin. I thought of Percy as either the obvious Ravenclaw, being the studious type, or a Slytherin. Percy was so ambitious throughout the series, it was a wonder he was not in Slytherin.
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Kaissa Chessley
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Re: Is the Sorting Hat always Right?

Post by Kaissa Chessley »

The Sorting Hat places the students depending on both traits they possess and traits they value. Hermione was favoring Gryffindor from the very start, and she clearly states on the train that "I hope I'm in Gryffindor, it's by far the best" and when Harry has to go on through to face Voldemort, she says "Books, and cleverness! There are more important things... friendship and bravery, and, oh, Harry, be careful!"

As for Neville, the reason why he was placed in Gryffindor was because he didn't see the bravery in himself yet, and the Hat wanted to make that happen. He didn't have anything against Gryffindor's ideals (unlike Harry, who was biased against Slytherin due to interactions with Ron, Hagrid, and Malfoy) and he valued bravery, but he didn't see it in himself. He valued it, and he had it, but he didn't know that. There's nothing in your head that the sorting hat can't see :)
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Emily Spencer
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Re: Is the Sorting Hat always Right?

Post by Emily Spencer »

Maxim Trevelyan wrote: Sun Feb 28, 2021 7:10 pm I never really subscribed to the whole Sorting Hat is never wrong idea, and the Sorting itself. The series is all about proving that people can grow and change and learn from previous mistakes and experiences, so who is to say your personality is completely shaped and set in stone when you have turned eleven?

As for the questions, I always found it weird that Percy Weasley was in Gryffindor. I think it was just made so because he was a Weasley and they were all sorted into that house, similarly to the Blacks and Slytherin. I thought of Percy as either the obvious Ravenclaw, being the studious type, or a Slytherin. Percy was so ambitious throughout the series, it was a wonder he was not in Slytherin.
I have to agree; I think Percy was much more suited to Slytherin. I also believe that Hermione would have fared quite well in Ravenclaw. I know they wanted to keep the 'trio' together, but I still think this would have been the more logical choice.

I also agree that people change as they grow, and I highly doubt a person's completely finished growing (mentally and morally as well as physical) by age eleven.
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Skylar Peyton
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Re: Is the Sorting Hat always Right?

Post by Skylar Peyton »

This question is very interesting. I recently rewatched Harry Potter 1 and 2 with my mom. After the second one, my mom wondered why Hermione was a Gryffindor and not a Ravenclaw if she is so smart.

It's true that Hermione is very smart, but she is also shown to be very brave and have a lot of courage. I think sometimes a student could have more than 1 or 2 qualities of different houses, like be brave and have courage, but be very smart and witty.. Another student could be very loyal and value friendship, but also be very smart so would that student be a Hufflepuff or a Ravenclaw? Another one could be cunning, but also be brave so would that student be a Slytherin or a Gryffindor? I think it really depends on 2 things. 1, which quality outweighs the other qualities that a student has and 2, what house the student doesn't want to be in. I have an example, there's Harry Potter. Mostly because of Voldemort, Harry had a lot of Slytherin qualities. But he also had Gryffindor qualities. Harry didn't want to be put into Slytherin, so the sorting hat put him into the other house that he fits into which was Gryffindor.

Hermione's Gryffindor qualities might have outweighed her Ravenclaw qualities. She told Harry one time that there are more important things than being smart, and they are bravery and courage. So it seems like she valued bravery even more than her cleverness.

Neville Longbottom probably had bravery all along, he just had to find it in himself and he did. I think standing up to Harry, Ron and Hermione in the first Harry Potter showed how brave he was. He might have been nervous, but he didn't run away. He stood there ready to fight them to keep them in the common room.

Now Peter, it sounds like he really belonged in Hufflepuff, where they are loyal. Peter was bad, but he was still loyal. He was loyal to whoever he thought would win. The sorting hat might have made a mistake with him or maybe he didn't want to be in Hufflepuff or whatever house the sorting hat was thinking about for him, so the sorting hat put him into the next best house that he fit into.
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Re: Is the Sorting Hat always Right?

Post by Georgie Sithern »

I think the Sorting Hat doesn't always put the witches and wizards in the right house but knows which one they will be most successful in. The hat probably also takes into consideration what the person would feel most comfortable in. For harry the hat knew that he would do well in Slytherin but as Harry's friends and his personality fit with those in Gryffindor he was chosen to be in Gryffindor. This is similar with many other characters so i believe that the sorting hat ultimately is correct but for reasons that are to the hole wizard or witch.
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Re: Is the Sorting Hat always Right?

Post by Cole Thronheart »

Honestly, I believe Harry should have been a Slytherin, Hermione could fight into Ravenclaw and Gryffindor, Neville I see him more in Hufflepuff and maybe even Ron.
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Re: Is the Sorting Hat always Right?

Post by February Fortescue »

I think the Sorting Hat is always correct. It looks at the witch or wizard at the age they currently are, what their values are, and which characteristics they currently possess. The theory, I think, is that, by placing them in the house with others with those same values, it will strengthen those values in that particular student.
Like, Hermione Granger - she seems to have been just as likely to have been a Ravenclaw and we are even told that the hat considered this. But what do you think tipped the scales in favour of Gryffindor for the hat? And do you think it was right?
Hermione stated she valued friendship and bravery (Gryffindor) over books and knowledge (Ravenclaw). She had the required Gryffindor traits, and the Hat thought she'd be a good fit.
Or Neville Longbottom - he hardly seemed very brave, but he seemed to grow into his bravery later. Or do you think he always had it? What do you think showed that he was brave?
I think Neville valued bravery. His parents showed courage when they were tortured, and his grandmother seemed to highly value this trait. The Hat knew Neville had it in him, and that Gryffindor could draw it out of him.
Or Peter Pettigrew - did he really belong in the house for the brave?
I think Peter underscores my opinion. I suspect he met James and Sirius on the train and really admired them. The Hat saw that he did have the capacity of bravery; after all, he freed Harry and Ron from Malfoy's dungeons, in direct defiance of Voldemort. I think it's a shame he didn't follow follow James and Sirius more closely from the beginning and develop the trait earlier.

And while I definitely agree that Percy Weasley has many Slytherin traits, at the end, he chose his family and their values over his ambition.
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Aquaria Sandalwood
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Re: Is the Sorting Hat always Right?

Post by Aquaria Sandalwood »

I don't think the hat is ever wrong, but I do think that there is more than one house that some (if not all) kids could be put in. Obviously with Harry, we know that the hat could have put him in Slytherin, but Harry wanted Gryffindor, and since that was also a good fit, and it was what he wanted, that's where the hat put him. I think like, just like in life none of us are one thing or have just one personality trait or label that defines us, there is more than one house that could accommodate just about anyone.
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Re: Is the Sorting Hat always Right?

Post by Chasen Carter »

That's the question. I believe the Sorting Hat is almost always right. There are a couple students from the Harry potter series that I wonder if it got it right. But I do think it has its reasons for putting them into their houses. Hermione could have easily been a Ravenclaw, but like she said before "there are some things that are more important than cleverness". The sorting hat knew that as much as she valued cleverness and learning, she valued friendship and bravery more. Same thing with Neville. Neville could have been a Hufflepuff probably. He didn't really seem very brave. He always forgot things and was always dropping things. But he was among the bravest students at Hogwarts. He stood up to his friends as a first year, he's the one that killed the last Horcrux that helped Harry finish the battle. So I truly think that the sorting does have its reasons for putting students into their houses even if they seem more fitted for a different house.
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Re: Is the Sorting Hat always Right?

Post by Jenn Draguar »

Original prompt: "I've often pondered this exact question when reading the Harry Potter books; Did the hat really always place students in the right house? And what might it's reasons have been for some of the more unlikely candidates?"

I initially had a very long post about the being of the Sorting Hat (where it pulls its magic from or if it was wholy sentient and a unique power source), because truly I don't know if these answers exist in the HP Universe, canon, etc. Mostly asking a lot of questions about the Sorting Hat, its goals, possible possible ties to its creation or creator, and how it behaves or exists in present time.
I drew quite a few assumptions about its goal (doing what's best for what or who? or is "the best" even in its own purpose?) and what it could do (divining students' futures, or understanding something about students that any other magic folks could not, etc.).
As well, further inquiring about if this sorting process was employed at absolutely every wizarding school; if we should consider how a sorting could validate or extinguish a trait that a student thinks they have or are thus proving its own choice right or wrong; questioning if a person's kernel, what makes them tick, can change or not; and if sorting precludes the students' ability to choose their own values.

And lastly, I asked the question to myself...what do we mean by "wrong" or "right" in regards to trying to categorize complex beings?

Ultimately, my thoughts are this: the Sorting Hat cannot choose a "wrong" house but will at the very least choose the best house it can in that moment, and clearly taking into consideration the wearer's opinion of themself. It is the magical community's judgements on those houses and expectations on the students in parallel to their behavior, choices, and attitude that will put an unnecessary conclusion of "rightness" or "wrongness" on the choice.
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