So, unfortunately, MuggleNet has failed me and there is nothing for Miss Helga Hufflepuff. So this post will be a little shorter than usual.
I’ve always felt that Hufflepuffs were always “the other kids.” It was kinda like outcasts, which made me sad at first. But I kinda liked that all the misfits were together because they all bonded because they all didn’t belong together kind of thing. I guess that’s why I always identified with Hufflepuffs. In my family, I’m the youngest of four and there are two years between each of my sisters, and then three years between me and my one sister. So, though it’s only an extra year, I always felt like it was a lot more. Also, all of my cousins are either three or more years older (like my sisters) or 4 or more years younger. Right in the middle of everyone. So at times, it was hard to decide who I wanted to hang out with, the “cool” older kids, or the energetic younger ones. So I guess I kinda always felt awkward because I didn’t really belong in each of the other groups, but it’s nice to know that Helga Hufflepuff didn’t care if you weren’t perfect for the other houses, all that mattered was that you belonged at Hogwarts.
It always made me happy that Helga was such a strong advocator for muggle-born students. Obviously, if they only accepted pure-bloods, there wouldn’t be many students at Hogwarts, which would be rather sad. (Random thought, does Hogwarts have an account with Gringotts that allows them to pay the professors? Hmm…I’ve never thought about that before.) I think if I could meet any of the founders, I would like to meet Helga (sorry Rowena) because she always seemed so grandmotherly and nice and something about her brief descriptions always made her feel so inviting (I’d probably ask what a Hufflepuff is and why she chose a badger…).
Loyalty, Honesty, and Dedication: the traits valued by Ms. Hufflepuff. I feel like the Hufflepuffs are very loyal to the school, shown during the Battle of Hogwarts, and generally I feel like the Hufflepuffs were always very honest. Dedication is a hard one because we see so little of the Hufflepuffs. But one example is Professor Sprout who always has dirt somewhere on her, which shows just how dedicated she is to her plants.
One character I feel like belongs in Hufflepuff was Colin Creevey. I’m not really sure why, but I just do. Obviously, he was brave because he was so open about how much he admired Harry, and even more, he stayed at Hogwarts for the Battle even though he was supposed to go home because he was still underage. Poor Colin, RIP.
So, the semester is coming to a close, which is exciting and unnerving. But, before I finish this blog, I would like to know if any of you have requests before the year finishes! (Obviously I must do Salazar’s post first, but then I will try to do any of your requests that I can!)
Some more information on Helga Hufflepuff and the House of Hufflepuff!
The Sorting Hat’s words about Hufflepuff (from year 1):
You might belong in Hufflepuff,
Where they are just and loyal,
Those patient Hufflepuffs are true
And unafraid of toil;
Said Slytherin, “We’ll teach just those
Whose ancestry’s purest.”
Said Ravenclaw, “We’ll teach those whose
Intelligence is surest”
Said Gryffindor, “We’ll teach all those
With brave deeds to their name.”
Said Hufflepuff, “I’ll teach the lot
And treat them just the same.” (Year 5)
(More reasons to love Hufflepuff!)
I might be the only one who thinks this, but I think JK Rowling had a definite bias toward Gryffindor and Slytherin. She spends so much more time with the Gryffindors and Slytherins that I can’t even remember anyone who was even in any of the other houses. If there were to magically be more HP sequels, I’d hope she would give these guys a little more attention.
I always had the impression that Hufflepuff was sort of the ‘academic’ house where all the especially gifted wizards went. Very reserved, non controversial. As you mentioned with Professor Sprout, very committed to their work and always trying to do their best.
It must be really hard to be a Hufflepuff; it’s like a brand identifying you as a misfit. Still, the fact that Helena exists is awesome, because she values the misfits as much as anyone else. I wish more of the Hufflepuffs were more central to the stories; I mean, there was Cedric, but nobody else except when Harry was accused of being the heir of Slytherin. I guess there need to be normal people at Hogwarts to make it realistic, it would just be cool if they had their own stories.
I thought for the longest time that Hagrid was a Hufflepuff because of how he defended them way back in the first book when Harry was first learning about the houses. Turns out I was wrong, but I still could see Hagrid being a Hufflepuff.
Speaking of Hagrid, have you done a post on him yet? Because if you haven’t you should, he’s one of my favorite characters!