How Hogwarts Are You?

My friend Andreya and I have spent a lot of time discussing the nuances of Hogwarts House personalities.

And by a lot of time, I mean a lot of time.

At first, we were just interested in our own. We took the Pottermore quiz (you can find it right here if you haven’t already taken it yourself) and focused a lot of our discussions on the results.

Eventually though, we started using the Hogwarts House personalities to describe people to each other.

If, for instance, Andreya was trying to tell me a story about a fellow classmate of hers who I had never met, she would say something like, “He’s annoying, but in a Gryffindor kind of way.”

Things escalated quickly, and we began to talk for hours about how each House differed from the other.

Just in case you have no clue what I’m talking about when I say “Hogwarts Houses,” let me get you up to speed. Hogwarts is the magical school that Harry Potter goes to in J.K. Rowling’s famous book series. The students at this school are separated into four different houses based partially on their personality and partially on their desires.

The Houses and their base traits are as follows:

Gryffindor–Bravery and determination
Slytherin–Cunning and resourcefulness
Ravenclaw–Intelligence and Wisdom
Hufflepuff–Loyalty and Patience

Now, obviously a person can’t be summed up with just a few adjectives. I’ve met more than a few Ravenclaws, and none of them are solely “intelligent” and “wise.”

When Andreya and I discuss a person using Hogwarts Houses as descriptors, we attribute more than these traits to them. We have also gone into more depth concerning each House and what they are like.

And here are our thoughts for your reading pleasure.

• Gryffindors: Alongside bravery, Gryffindors are also very outgoing. They enjoy trying new things, meeting new people, and going to new places. New experiences are part of what they love about life. If you have a group of friends, the Gryffindors are the go-getters, the planners, the leaders. They always have an idea about what to do next. It may not be a good idea, but at least it’s an idea. The best thing about them is how engaging they can be. They ooze personality, so they draw people to them like a magnet. You’re never bored when you’re with a Gryffindor. You might get exhausted or drained after spending a day with them, but never bored. The worst quality a Gryffindor can possess is how unabashedly insensitive they can be. In their rush to find the next thing, they can be pretty inconsiderate. They are not even trying to be mean. They’re just heedless. My sister is a Gryffindor, and she’s responsible for all the scrapes we’ve gotten into. However, she’s also responsible for the best times we’ve ever had as well.
• Slytherins: A huge misconception about Slytherins is that they’re all evil. In the Harry Potter books, the whole of Slytherin House is filled with jerks. In real life, Andreya and I have made Slytherins less one-dimensional. They have a good dose of self-interest and the ambition to achieve their goals. That doesn’t make them bad. If anything, that just makes them honest with themselves. Andreya and I agree that one of the best things about Slytherins is how self-aware they can be. A Slytherin may lie to other people about how things are going, but a true Slytherin will never lie to themselves. And yes, just in case you were wondering, Andreya is a Slytherin. One of the reasons she’s one of my closest friends is that she has a firm grasp of her flaws. She knows she’s a tad self-absorbed and she knows she’s a “trash” person (I have never called her that). But the best thing about Andreya is her ability to adapt to fit a situation. And Slytherins make the best of friends. When you’re mad at someone, a Ravenclaw will be logical about the whole situation and try to smooth things over. A Slytherin will be able to suss out what you want to hear and give it to you, whether that’s some good old trash-talk or a complete denial of the real problem.
• Ravenclaws: I know two Ravenclaws really well: my boyfriend and my long-time friend Mia. They are perfect embodiments of everything the House stands for. Reason is the underlying force that allows them to function, but one thing I’ve noticed is that they can be very passionate. People assume that Ravenclaws are these dried-up scholarly types, but I have found that Ravenclaws usually have an undercurrent of enthusiasm for whatever it is they want to set their minds to. Mia, for example, loves The Lord of the Rings. Even though it is a fantasy series, Mia knows more tidbits and facts about that world than a mathematician knows about Calculus. I swear, enthusiasm that is supported with rationality is one of the most refreshing traits I’ve ever encountered in a person. The best thing about Ravenclaws is that they can always tell you the logical approach to a situation. I don’t know how many times I’ve face-palmed in disbelief at my own stupidity when Danny or Mia told me how to go about a certain scenario that I originally had no idea how to handle. Unfortunately, Ravenclaws can forget about emotions, and in this regard they can share the insensitivity that Gryffindors have. They also have a tendency to get hung up on the little things.
• Hufflepuffs: I’m a Hufflepuff. So I’m probably a bit biased. Just putting that out there. Hufflepuffs are kind of considered to be the throwaway House in Hogwarts. When all the other Founders of Hogwarts were fighting over who would keep the brave students, the cunning students, and the intelligent students, Hufflepuff’s founder simply said that she would “take the rest.” I feel like that’s the undercurrent that should run through every true Hufflepuff. It’s an acceptance of others and a willingness to trust in others no matter how lowly, unqualified, or dumb they appear to be. I think the best quality about us is that we’re the best kind of support anyone could ask for. We know how to bolster others. We’re indecisive as hell though. We have no standards. We’re occasionally too trusting. Being in Hufflepuff is a bit of a running joke. We’re considered the lame ones. The average ones. (Or below average, in my case.)

Andreya and I both agree that the traits of several Houses can reside in one person. I, for example, have a bit of Ravenclaw in me aside from Hufflepuff. (We blur the lines between each House and allow people to be more than one adjective.)

And we both agree that Pottermore can sometime not truly capture what a person is like. Instead, based on the answers people select in the quiz, Pottermore will give them the House they want to be in.

Still, it’s fun to talk about. Both Andreya and I are avid Harry Potter fans (along with most of the world), so we clutch onto any reason to talk about Hogwarts.

Any fellow Puffs out there? What Hogwarts House are you in?

Till next time!