The House of Gryffindor

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Today we are going to delve into the subject of our famous Harry Potter and wander through his Gryffindor house.

 

Hogwarts the school of the ultimate magic lovers is divided into four houses. Established the great wizards and witches of their time these four houses are the central theme of the storyline of the HarryPotter series. Hogwarts four houses Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw and Slytherin is the embodiment of different human qualities in the series. To put it simply Gryffindor resembles bravery, Hufflepuff resembles loyalty, Ravenclaw resembles wisdom and Slytherin stands for cunning. The author of this series J K Rowling is telling us the story from the point of view of Gryffindor and she frames this house as the central piece of the storyline.

To be honest all of our heroes come from Gryffindor house and the story she is telling us is about the very nature of the good person. In this world of Harry Potter is a good person means simply show the moral courage of inner self. It is the urge to always do the right thing. So, let's just wander about the house of Gryffindor with all its perks and ponder upon the question- What it really takes to be a true Gryffindor?

The convictions

Every student who comes down to Hogwarts is sorted into different houses. It is like reading their cores and inner voice. The definitiveness of this sorting ceremony seems like students will always be judged by their innate qualities and those perks they are born with. But the story eventually tells us that it is not the inner talents or abilities we are born with that makes the difference, it is our choices.

The sorting hate is a very defiant character in the HarryPotter series. It takes the hint from the person will and keen to listen to the thinking and feelings of the person and often might consider them as well. As per the famous Harry is concerned, he could easily be sorted into the Slytherin house, but the sorting hat considers Harry’s pleading and put him in Gryffindor. But he is not the only one who seems to have qualities of other houses. Hermione with her wisdom and resourcefulness is a perfect fit for Ravenclaw and from the book, we know that the hat considers her to put her there. If genes and bloodlines are considered then Syrius Black should have been in Slytherin like his ancestors. Nevile Longbottom in the book even said to the sorting hat to put him in the Hufflepuff house because he thinks that he doesn’t have the qualities of a Gryffindor.

So, the sorting is actually a combination of what these students are and what they are capable of doing. All these Gryffindor characters posses’s different traits and abilities but what they all share is the will to be brave in tough circumstances and choose to do the right thing. Over the years we fell for those who have been able to overcome their non-Gryffindor nature and become the person they always meant to be. So, if you want to choose Gryffindor house choose it for the right reasons. Not because many Potter heads believe it is but because of the heroic and moral courage that can drive you to be brave and truly fearless from your heart. 

Colours and qualities

Gryffindor house colours are scarlet and gold. Their element is fire because of their inner flame. The colours actually define fire and like the Gryffindor, they are bold and unequivocal. J K Rowling has attached red by passion and emotion. These two inner qualities really match Gryffindor because they are passionate and driven solely by their emotions. Gold makes us think of the best and also living up to the golden standard. It also means to have a heart of gold and Gryffindors are known for their strong bond with one another.

In the first book of the Harry Potter series the sorting hat defines the house by these words, “You might belong in Gryffindor, where dwell the brave at heart, their daring, nerve and chivalry set Gryffindors apart”. Chivalry is the most interesting part of that. In the modern English language, this word means a man is gallant towards a woman but as per the medieval time, this word has a broader meaning. Chivalry often refers to the knights who are moral and brave. Harry and his friend’s kind of modern representers of these knights. They have a keen sense of urgency to hold themselves high in their moral conducts that others don’t feel necessary. 

House animals; The lion and the Phoenix

Harry Potter and his creator J K Rowling share the same birthday which is July 31^st. The zodiac sign of this birthdate is Leo and that is a fire sign. So, it will be safe to say that the perception and imagery of this house are directly linked with the creator. In Latin, Leo means lion that is the Gryffindor house animal. The lion makes us thinks of leadership, courage, nobility and strength. A group of lions is called a pride and Gryffindor shows pride in a true and positive sense. Sometimes though they can show the negative sense of the word and be accused of being arrogant. Harry’s father James bullied Snape in their student years. The Slytherins defines Gryffindors as those show-offs who are craving for glory. As Professor Snape said, “Clearly fame isn’t everything”. Gryffindor enjoys unfair favouritism in the school as well.

Another Slytherin explanation of this house is their bravery some times more like stupidity. But they can channel their pride and recklessness into a positive direction with time. Unofficially the Phoenix is connected to Gryffindor as well. Dumbledor’s Phoenix Fawkes is actually the animal version of the man that helped him to escape the detention in Azkaban. The Phoenix is known for its ability to rise from the ashes as the Gryffindors do. Harry and Nevile both became stronger after they lost their parents in tragic incidents.

What’s in the name?

The name Gryffindor came from Godric Gryffindor, one of the four founders of Hogwarts. A gryffin is actually a magical creature that is half lion and half eagle. To christens, this is a perfect symbol of the Christ because the eagle rules the sky and the lion rules the earth. So, it defines the hybrid nature of Jesus as human and divine. Gryffindor house symbol embodies the fact that Gryffindors are regarded themselves high and lead life with high human values. The suffix ‘dor’ in French means gold or golden that defines the golden heart of these folks.

Godric Gryffindor’s greatest legacy might be going against Salazar Slytherin on the issue of pureblood and their magical sacrilege. The spirit of the Gryffindor house is even resembled by the Gryffindor house ghost, nearly headless nick that spirit and moral conduct is the higher values of life. So, the greatest legacy of this house is standing up against evil as Harry stood against Voldemort.

 

Is it the best house?

Well, that is a question to ponder upon. If you take out the main quality of this house into our world most of us might say that Gryffindorhouse motto of courage is not the main ability to look forward rather than loyalty, wisdom or ambition, especially when there is no Lord Voldemort to take down. But our society today tends to overvalue some of the other house’s qualities like smartness or worldly success and doesn’t put enough validation on bravery and moral conduct.

So even we are not going to Hogwarts, we can still follow the courage of Gryffindor and focus on our life with levelheadedness and moral conduct. It will make us a worthy Gryffindor and we might receive this intonation from nearly headless Nick, “Welcome to Gryffindor”.