With more than five hundred million copies sold worldwide, it’s safe to say that most, if not all people have at least heard of the Harry Potter Houses. In fact, some people even go so far as to list their Hogwarts House on their dating profile!
While it’s not necessarily the most scientific method of classifying one’s personality, it’s a quick, easy, and fun way to gain insight into someone’s psyche. And, since some people are adverse to personality tests, yet will easily identify what house they fit into, this can be a way to get a better look at even the most stubborn person’s personality. It can be especially enlightening if they identify themselves differently than the rest of the world might identify them...
With this in mind, let’s take a look at how J.K. Rowling has delineated people into one of four categories:
Ravenclaw people are typically very intellectually motivated. They take education and intelligence very seriously. They’re driven to accomplish their goals, though they may be the kind of person who gets so mired down in doing the research necessary to get there that they forget to actually start. They’re also perfectionists, sometimes to a fault.
Hufflepuffs are driven by kindness above all else. They’re the kind of person who cares for others when they’re sick. They’re likely very creative and want to make the world a better place and are willing to work hard to make it so.
Slytherin often gets a bad rap as ‘evil’, but they’re actually more concerned with meeting their own needs first, than screwing over other people. They’re extremely ambitious and expect great things of themselves and the people they choose to surround themselves with. They strive for greatness in everything they do and may feel cheated if they do not achieve it.
Gryffindor people tend to value bravery and perseverance. They see things as challenges to be overcome, problems to solve. They like to be admired by others, like to be the centre of attention. They’re chivalrous and like to save others from would-be distress. They’re likely to stick to time-honoured traditions and values.
As in J.K. Rowling’s Harry Potter series, studies throughout time have always come up with four basic personality types. The types identified in the books are more one-sided and do not strictly adhere to the personality types identified through scientific data, but can be roughly equated to the known personality types.
Based on other personality studies, here are the equivalences we see based on Helen Fisher’s work and the True Colours personality test:
Slytherin – Explorer – Orange
Hufflepuff – Negotiator – Blue
Ravenclaw – Director – Green
Gryffindor – Builder – Gold
As is always the case, for every strength, there is also an equivalent weakness... Let’s examine where you might find someone lacking for each of the Houses:
A Hufflepuff will likely be a ‘satisfizer’. A satisfizer is someone who seeks to make other people happy, even to their own detriment. This makes them especially prone to burn out, as their needs will remain the bottom priority until they have nothing left with which to take care of themselves.
A Slytherin may rub people the wrong way. They’re not a ‘warm and fuzzy’ person, which may make them difficult to get along with. A person in a relationship with a Slytherin may find that it’s Slytherin’s world and the rest of us just live in it – the Syltherin’s partner will likely find themselves doing all the jobs and chores their partner doesn’t like to do. They’re also likely the type least likely to want children.
A Ravenclaw is someone who lives in their head a lot. They’re the kind of person who can tell you the cubic capacity of your fridge, but fail to notice when you’re out of toilet paper. They’re likely to hold down a demanding and possibly high-powered job, so their partner may find they take on a lot of the odd household jobs that aren’t deemed important enough for their Ravenclaw partner. They may also put work ahead of family, which could leave their partner feeling neglected.
A Gryffindor is someone who always has a cause that’s near and dear to their hearts, global thinkers who want to be the people’s champion. Family is important to them and they’re going to take care of the people close to them, but they may also take on too much of other people’s burdens. They’re the kind of person who will see someone stranded at the side of the road by a flat tire and pull over to fix it, sidetracking the family’s road trip fun.
With this in mind, there are some Houses that are going to be more compatible than others.
Slytherins will likely find themselves drawn to other Slytherins. They’ll likely butt heads quite a lot with a Gryffindor. Slytherins will find a Ravenclaw partner to be very stuffy and possibly dull. A Hufflepuff partner might work for awhile, but will likely find a Slytherin lifestyle too ‘high octane’.
Gryffindors will pair best with other Gryffindors. Gryffindors will probably find a Ravenclaw partner to be too rigid and set in their ways, while a Hufflepuff partner might go along with their wishes, but eventually grow tired and burnt out.
Ravenclaws will likely find a good match with Hufflepuffs. Surprisingly, a match between two Ravenclaws is neither likely nor unlikely to succeed – they’re likely to be a good pairing, but may find that they’re like two ships in the night who never quite meet.
Finally, a pairing between two Hufflepuffs is probably going to result in endless circular conversations like this: “I don’t know, what do you want to do?”
So, the next time ABC airs its Harry Potter marathon (which, let’s be honest, is about once a month by now!), take a closer look at which House you think your partner fits into and whether it spells out a good future for the two of you...