I've been chatting with a lot of people lately about Harry Potter. Partially, this is because I've started listening to Harry Potter-themed podcasts and therefore I've been thinking about it more, and partially because I've been reading J.K. Rowling books lately and re-watching the movies. Okay, fine - I'm drowning in Harry Potter stuff lately and I love it. J is holding up well, considering.
I asked people on Facebook a few weeks ago which house they think they'd be sorted into, and I decided to talk about it here on the blog as well.
What I love about asking this question is that it really tells me (as well as the four houses can) what people's base values are, who they are as people, and who they want to be.
I've taken tons of Harry Potter house quizzes and got sorted into almost every house. After all, different quizzes have different levels of "accuracy," especially if you're using some four-question quiz or a Buzzfeed article. I took the same one for several years that's no longer running, but it was based on those ENFP-type psychological quizzes and over 150 questions, so I think it was actually super accurate, all things considered. The last two times I took it, I was just about to start and then had just started law school. The last two times I took it, I was sorted into Slytherin.
I was sorted into Slytherin on Pottermore, too (though I joined while in law school so take it with a grain of salt).
A lot of people may be shocked by this, because I don't seem like a very Slytherin-type person, but I do have traits that Pottermore associates with the house. For example, while I'm very loyal, Slytherins are also very group-oriented and loyal - just to their group. I fear public humiliation more than almost anything (but I mean, I can't think of someone who doesn't). I have a fear of heights, and I desperately want to succeed at what I do. I like being the center of attention (blogging is not for the privacy-focused), and I'm would 100% rather fight than run away from a problem or a literal fight. I like (some) traditions, because I love that they connect us to another time - like books, it's kind of like time traveling!
I think I started getting picked for Slytherin around the same time I started law school, and I'm not at all surprised by that. This isn't to say that law school makes you a bad person, because, at least on Pottermore, being in Slytherin doesn't make you a bad person. But I think law school really started to change me for a while there, and I got really confused about who I was.
When I first got to school, I didn't feel like I fit in. I was emotional (for a whole heap of reasons, but also just by nature), I had pink hair, I didn't wear suits, I liked shitty romantic comedies, and I didn't take things too seriously. I wasn't sure how to be me in law school, so I changed my mindset - I became more logical out of necessity, I became obsessively organized, and I really, really struggled with who I was. I didn't feel like myself anymore.
Then things just... changed. I stopped trying to be "Lawyer M" and started being "M the Lawyer," if that makes any sense. I decided to try this whole law thing as me. That meant playing to my strengths instead of changing myself for the game. It meant embracing my emotional nature, starting to read again (!!!), being more unorganized, and dressing in suits and work clothes that were still totally my style.
It also meant embracing myself as a Hufflepuff.
While part of me wishes I was more logical and not so emotionally-invested in everything, I had to accept myself for who I am at heart. I am fiercely loyal to my friends. I am a nurturer by nature and get frustrated if there's nothing around for me to care for (I once bought a fish in college just so I could care for something alive). I love being around people, and I love being loved even more. I'm a group-oriented person, so I love being on teams where everyone can succeed. While I have bouts of spontaneity, I'm a homebody at heart and love curling up after class with a glass of wine on my couch, watching Netflix. While I don't like confrontation, I embrace it in the law because that's the world I live in. I work so hard for the things I want. I always strive to be kind, thoughtful, and caring - the trademarks of Hufflepuff house.
I will never understand why people paint Hufflepuff as this house of mentally-slow losers, because when I think of Hufflepuff house, I think of them staying in the final battle while half of Ravenclaw and all of Slytherin house leave. It's a house of people who will fight for their friends, who will love and take care of other people, who will try to do the right thing even if it's hard or dangerous. I would HOPE to be in Hufflepuff. I would hope to be that good of a person.
So, more than anything - more than any traits, more than any characteristics I may have - I'm a Hufflepuff because of my values. I value hard work; I value loyalty; I value caring; I value kindness. I would rather be all of those things than brave or cunning or witty. I work hard to be those things. In short, I'm a Huffleuff because I strive to deserve to be a Hufflepuff. And honestly, I think we all should.
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