A random thought about Harry Potter (no spoilers)

I picked up "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hollows" (aka the end of the series), but I decided to reread the first six books in order, because I'd forgotten so many of the details and even supporting characters.  I'm currently just into "Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix" (aka #5), and here's something that's been troubling me:

Okay, the four Houses of Hogwarts are Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw, and Slytherin.  As everyone knows, Slytherin is for the (overly)ambitious, and it also gets more than its share of the evil-minded.  Gryffindor is for our heroes and is noted for prizing courage.  Hufflepuff is for the loyal, and Ravenclaw for the witty and clever ones.  It's also implied that the Ravenclaw students are intellectual snobs.  (I'm pretty sure I'd be in Ravenclaw . . . .)

So why is it that Hermione Granger, Ms. Top Student in Her Class, Ms. Know It All From Books, is in Gryffindor, and not Ravenclaw?  Oh sure, narratively, she's in Gryffindor because otherwise she wouldn't be as close to Harry Potter.  But doesn't she seem like she belongs in Ravenclaw?

(And on that note, is it a little stereotypical that the one major Asian character, Cho Chang, just happens to be in Ravenclaw?!?)

UPDATE: As a commenter notes, author J.K. Rowling sort of addresses my question in "Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix."  On page 399, there's the following exchange between another student and Hermione:

"How come you're not in Ravenclaw?" he demanded, staring at Hermione with something close to wonder.  "With brains like yours?"

"Well, the Sorting Hat did seriously consider putting me in Ravenclaw during my Sorting," said Hermione brightly, "but it decided on Gryffindor in the end."

Eh . . . this acknowledges the validity of my question, but it does nothing to answer it.  With Harry Potter, for example, the Sorting Hat thought about putting him in Slytherin, but Harry let the hat know in no uncertain terms that he definitely did not want to be in Slytherin.  There's no equivalent reason that Hermione would have felt such antipathy for Ravenclaw.  Now it is true that Hermione has exhibited much courage during the series, and perhaps the Sorting Hat decided that courage more than intellect was her defining character . . . but that doesn't seem quite right to me.

Comments

[Jim]

I haven't had a chance to re-read yet, but I'm pretty sure this is mentioned in either book 5 or book 6. As I recall, one of the Ravenclaws asks Hermione why she didn't get put in Ravenclaw. I think she says that the hat considered it, but favored her courage. Or possibly this was one of the situations where the hat followed the preference of the person (like it did with Harry). Unfortunately, that's all the detail I remember.

[Jim]

Whoops. I guess I should have checked the text.

On the other hand, we've certainly seen that Hermione is plenty brave, so maybe Gryffindor isn't a surprise.

[David Schraub]

This has always struck me as odd as well. But Ravenclaw has gotten the short shrift throughout the HP series; it gets far less "face time" than any other house. My theory is simply that Ravenclaw is underplayed generally because it is the only house that might compete with Gryffindor for the reader's affections (Slytherin being bad guys, and Hufflepuffs being kind of dim-witted).

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[Ky]

In the first book, didn't Hermione mention that she would rather be in Griffindor? And the will to be in a house (or not to be in a house) is precisely what placed Harry in Griffindor. So, isn't it possible that Hermione had mentioned to the Sorting hat that she wanted to be in Griffindore? Although I do see you're point, and I do agree with you, but I am simply just attemting to answer your question. Always look deep for the answers...you can usually come up with a reason eventually.

if u remember, in the book it doesnt say cho chang is asian, just saying

[Order Tadalafil]

Oh sure, narratively, she's in Gryffindor because otherwise she wouldn't be as close to Harry Potter. But doesn't she seem like she belongs in Ravenclaw? Thanks