How is Dumbledore a Slytherin

[Cycloneprime]

Dumbledore has many qualities, as we all know.

He is very brave (Gryffindor)
He is very intelligent (Ravenclaw)
He is very loyal to his school and the students (Hufflepuff)

He seems to have all the qualities to be in either house. But how is he also a Slytherin?

Note: this is not a thread to discuss in which house Dumbledore went/belongs the most. It is a threat to discuss how Dumbledore could (or not) fit in Slytherin.

[Creatively Evil]

I think everyone has qualities of all the houses in them..is Dumbly pureblood? I'm not sure, because we didn't see him on the Black family tree, but again Voldemort has talked about him and has never said that he was muggle born, or half blood.

[arcanus]

He has a knack for breaking rules or disobeying surperiors (like Fudge) ... So that's something Slytherin in him

[mevam]

Dumbledore is strong in the Dark Arts, as shown by an excerpt from PS/SS:

McGonagall: I know you haven’t. But you’re different. Everyone knows you’re the only one You-Know- oh, all right, Voldemort, was frightened of.
Dumbledore: You flatter me. Voldemort had powers I will never have.
McGonagall: Only because you’re too – well – noble to use them.
So Dumbledore is certainly acting modest when he claims that he is no match against Voldemort, since he must obviously know the Dark Arts fairly well to be warranted the title of the most powerful wizard in the magical world. This is a fairly common Slytherin habit, to delve into the Dark Arts, as Snape is a perfect example of (and Voldy too!) so that might be Dumbledore's Slytherin quality.

[morgan le fay]

Note: this is not a thread to discuss in which house Dumbledore went/belongs the most. It is a threat to discuss how Dumbledore could (or not) fit in Slytherin.
i dont think he fits at all. the main characterizing trait of slytherins is that they are cunningly sly and willing to meet their goals at any means necessary. while dumbledore may be sly, particularly in the ways that he monitors harry, he is not so selfish as to overlook the needs of others in order to attain his own wishes. dumbledore is a most unselfish man. if he wanted to just get the darn prophecy issue resolved once and for all, there are many opportunities when dumbledore could have just let harry and voldemort face-off without saving harry, however ill-prepared harry may have been.

since he is a complex and mysterious character, i think its a generalization to say that dumbledore must embody characteristics of each house. its just a coincidence; i do not think that JKR purposely indended for dumbledore to exhibit all qualities of each house of his school. he is his own unique individual, although, as a model for his students, it would be expected that he should exhibit the more desireable traits that one would hope to instill in one's students.

[prettybunny]

hello I'm new
and I was wondering could somebody explain to me something.....remember when Voldermort said he never died?But Tom Riddle died and that was a younger him....so now I'm confused. Help please.

[fawksrox8908]

i think everybody exhibits qualities of each house. Dumbldore is a pureblood. i'm pretty sure. and disobeying rules is a gryffindor trait as well (just look at the trio) Slytherins are known for their cunning and i can say that Dumbledore is cunning!

[morgan le fay]

:welcome:

these days, theres almost always a thread existing for a topic you want to discuss. if you perform a Search (http://www.cosforums.com/search.php?) you can find these threads easily. :)

SPOILER WARNING: Tom Marvolo Riddle vs. Voldemort (http://www.cosforums.com/showthread.php?t=29252)
^ try this one

[auroroftheorder]

I would say that Dumbledore definitely has some Slytherin in him. Apart from what others said about his disregard for rules/superiors, there is another thing. I think that Slytherin has turned out many leaders (for the Dark side maybe) but never-the-less, the Slytherin house has turned out many powerful wizards that were leaders...they had drawn many to serve under them. While people don't really 'serve' under Dumbledore, he is a strong leader from the 'good' side.

[the kryle]

prehaps he was diffrent as a child.

[Darkillness]

He's either pureblood, changed since his youth, or is ambitious but able to control it. Ok, going to go talk to hot guy. Bye fix later. Back: Was there a quote from JKR saying he had to exhibit the traits of all houses? Cause he doesn't appear to have any Slytherin qualities with canon proof. Or like someone said, he had dabbled into the Dark Arts when he was younger but just doesn't use them now.

[Voldie_Mort]

I know how he fits in: He's Cunning.

He also spys on Harry.

[flipfloputz]

Dumbledore is very cunning and sly. He always seems to know when something evil is going down. He seems to have a nack for disobedience and likes to prove points. But, he always likes to look out for the well being of others, even Tom. So, he is also very noble.

[lewis8604]

sposted by dark illness
He's either pureblood, changed since his youth, or is ambitious but able to control it. Ok, going to go talk to hot guy. Bye fix later. Back: Was there a quote from JKR saying he had to exhibit the traits of all houses? Cause he doesn't appear to have any Slytherin qualities with canon proof. Or like someone said, he had dabbled into the Dark Arts when he was younger but just doesn't use them now.

How can you say he is pureblood. It is never mentioned and i think it would fit better if he wasn't but nobody knows like they don't know LV is. I think that it is either him or godric gryff for HBP

[Alastor D]

How can you say he is pureblood. It is never mentioned and i think it would fit better if he wasn't but nobody knows like they don't know LV is. I think that it is either him or godric gryff for HBP
I'm not sure I understand you here. If LV is short for Lord Voldemort (?), it's a well known fact that his dad was a muggle and his mum a witch.

[Albusdaughter]

As has been pointed out above that Dumbledore does exhibit some characteristics of Slytherins, as Harry does. Maybe in the past this was more pronounced. He is now overridingly a tolerant man who understands that it takes all sorts to make the world go round.

He is very old so the sharp corners have been rubbed off so to speak. Maybe in his youth he was very ambitious? We know nothing of his family beyond the fact that he had a dodgy brother who might not have been able to read and liked to practise inappropriate charms on goats! Albus could well have felt the need to prove himself when he was younger.

I have a theory that the reason he is so tolerant and gives people second chances is that someone in the past once gave him a second chance...

[SquibOnline]

I think it't Hagrid of Hemione that said that Dumbledore was in Gryffindor

[Sturgis Podmore]

Well JKR dosnt really give to much away about Dumbledores past does she. i suppose he has qualities of all the houses!!

[arox]

Lord Voldemort isn't the HBP JKR said so in her web page. Dumbledore is very cunning indeed. And the thing about second chances I think is very interesting. Never thought of that myself.

[Darkillness]

sposted by dark illness
He's either pureblood, changed since his youth, or is ambitious but able to control it. Ok, going to go talk to hot guy. Bye fix later. Back: Was there a quote from JKR saying he had to exhibit the traits of all houses? Cause he doesn't appear to have any Slytherin qualities with canon proof. Or like someone said, he had dabbled into the Dark Arts when he was younger but just doesn't use them now.

How can you say he is pureblood. It is never mentioned and i think it would fit better if he wasn't but nobody knows like they don't know LV is. I think that it is either him or godric gryff for HBP
I said either pureblood, meaning maybe, I don't know for sure. I never said he was, I was speculating.

[Morgause]

This is cool - I was just thinking about this!

The Slytherin qualities that Dumbledore has are the same ones Harry has - "resourcefulness...determination...a certain disregard for rules." (CoS, 245)

I think what makes Dumbledore such a good headmaster is that he is an almost perfect blend of all four houses. He has bravery, intelligence, humility and the qualites mentioned above. It allows him to understand and respect all of his students (and former students, for that matter).

Of course, the Griffindor in him almost always comes out on top (in my opinion), which is what makes him such a great guy. He can relate to the Slytherins in some ways, but he always does what's right.

[GodricHollow]

He's a sneaky little codger 'n all! How d'you explain all the "He knows you here Harry, he don't miss a trick does Dumbledore."?

[lewis8604]

If it was a well known fact that LV was a halfblood then there would be know way that everyone would still follow him. I mean that would be crazy if Lucius followed LV.
Sorry dark illness didn't mean to sound harsh. Dumledore does have a wizard brother and is older so he has a good chance to be pureblood

[DHH]

"I hope I'm in Gryffindor, it sounds by far the best; I hear Dumbledore himself was in it." (SS Ch. 6). Each of the houses represent qualities that are can be tragic faults. A Gryffindor's bravery can become foolishness at an extreme. Similarly, Hufflepuff is known for loyality, yet loyality can become blind faith. A desire to increase one's knowledge and wit, Ravenclaw's qualities, can when one stops another person from learning in order to remain the cleverest. Even Sytherin's qualities are admirable in moderation. Cunning and a desire to be successful are thought to be good quality. Yet, as we see often in Slytherin house, the desire to be successful can become opportunistic when one's desire is not tempered by morality.

[fillups]

well, is slytherin mainly about ambition?
i think that with ambition, obviously come cunning, and potential. i think salazar slytherin wanted people with talent and potential and to hell with all the rest...

and yes, ravenclaw looked for people with talent too (intelligence), but i think slytherin wanted the kind of potential that led to ambitions.

like the hat said, there's deffintely potential there and slytherin could help.

[LS fan aSoUE]

If Dumbledore were slytherin he would work mo towards his own suscess (ex: become MoM)