Skip to content

MuggleNet

  • Site
    • Contact Us & FAQ
    • History
    • Meet the Team
    • MuggleNet Live!
    • Press
    • Publications
    • Special Projects
    • Volunteer with Us!
    • Year in Review
  • Podcasts
    • Alohomora!
    • Full Circle
    • LITHAPPENS
    • Potterversity
    • Promptly Potter
    • SpeakBeasty
  • Harry Potter
    • Book Quotes
    • Book Series
    • Coloring Books
    • Film Companions
    • Film Series
    • Hogwarts Library
    • Little Things
    • Music
    • Video Games
  • Fantastic Beasts
    • Book
    • Coloring Books
    • Film Companions
    • Fantastic Beasts Film Quotes
    • Film Series
    • Little Things
    • Music
    • Video Games
  • The Quibbler
    • Owl Post
    • Bathilda’s Notebook
    • The Department of MYTHteries
    • The Dirigible Plum
    • Into the Floo
    • Muggle Studies
    • The Pensieve Papers
    • The Three Broomsticks
    • April Fools’
    • The Quibbler Vault
  • The Daily Prophet
    • Book Trolley
    • Editorials
    • Event Reports
    • Exclusive Interviews
    • Features
    • Giveaways
    • Listicles
    • Merchandise Reviews
    • Movie Reviews
    • Television Reviews
    • Theater Reviews
    • Wizolympics
  • Muggle World
    • Charity
    • Exhibitions
    • J.K. Rowling
    • MinaLima
    • Quadball
    • Studio Tours
    • Theatrical Play
    • Theme Parks
    • Wizarding World Digital
  • Fans & Fun
    • Crazy Caption Contest
    • Fan Focus
    • Fandom
    • Fandom Sortings
    • Fandom Timeline
    • Fun Lists
    • Games and Trivia
    • GNOMEs
    • Potter DIY
    • Potter Weddings
    • #PotterItForward
    • Rosmerta’s Recipes
    • Song Parodies
    • Wizard Rock
    • Wizarding Wordle
  • Site
    • Contact Us & FAQ
    • History
    • Meet the Team
    • MuggleNet Live!
    • Press
    • Publications
    • Special Projects
    • Volunteer with Us!
    • Year in Review
  • Podcasts
    • Alohomora!
    • Full Circle
    • LITHAPPENS
    • Potterversity
    • Promptly Potter
    • SpeakBeasty
  • Harry Potter
    • Book Quotes
    • Book Series
    • Coloring Books
    • Film Companions
    • Film Series
    • Hogwarts Library
    • Little Things
    • Music
    • Video Games
  • Fantastic Beasts
    • Book
    • Coloring Books
    • Film Companions
    • Fantastic Beasts Film Quotes
    • Film Series
    • Little Things
    • Music
    • Video Games
  • The Quibbler
    • Owl Post
    • Bathilda’s Notebook
    • The Department of MYTHteries
    • The Dirigible Plum
    • Into the Floo
    • Muggle Studies
    • The Pensieve Papers
    • The Three Broomsticks
    • April Fools’
    • The Quibbler Vault
  • The Daily Prophet
    • Book Trolley
    • Editorials
    • Event Reports
    • Exclusive Interviews
    • Features
    • Giveaways
    • Listicles
    • Merchandise Reviews
    • Movie Reviews
    • Television Reviews
    • Theater Reviews
    • Wizolympics
  • Muggle World
    • Charity
    • Exhibitions
    • J.K. Rowling
    • MinaLima
    • Quadball
    • Studio Tours
    • Theatrical Play
    • Theme Parks
    • Wizarding World Digital
  • Fans & Fun
    • Crazy Caption Contest
    • Fan Focus
    • Fandom
    • Fandom Sortings
    • Fandom Timeline
    • Fun Lists
    • Games and Trivia
    • GNOMEs
    • Potter DIY
    • Potter Weddings
    • #PotterItForward
    • Rosmerta’s Recipes
    • Song Parodies
    • Wizard Rock
    • Wizarding Wordle
  • Features / The Daily Prophet

The Sorting Hat Deserves More Credit

by McKay S. · July 1, 2020

It’s not uncommon to hear complaints of how the movies didn’t do Ginny Weasley justice. My biggest beef, however, is with how much the Sorting Hat was cheated, especially in the films.

 

 

The Sorting Hat is probably the most enchanted object that most witches or wizards will ever meet, and we barely get a chance to know the Sorting Hat – whatever that means in regards to a hat. It essentially spends every day of every year – except for the start of term – sitting on a shelf in the headmaster’s office. If you ask me, the Hogwarts staff probably could’ve found some additional way to use such a powerful object. Instead, the Sorting Hat literally spent all year long coming up with a song to sing prior to the Sorting Ceremony each year.

 

 

How many years did the Sorting Hat create a brand new song? Every single one. How many songs did Harry (and us, the readers) hear with Harry’s inevitable obstacles and tardiness to Hogwarts? Three. How many songs did the people who only watched the movies hear? Zero.

 

 

But year after year, the Sorting Hat wrote annoyingly long songs and performed them, its pride and joy. The few times we do hear its songs in the books, they are extremely underappreciated by the Hogwarts student body.

Sings a different [song] every year… It’s got to be a pretty boring life, hasn’t it, being a hat? I suppose it spends all year making up the next one.” (GoF 178)

According to WizardingWorld.com, “The Sorting Hat is one of the cleverest enchanted objects most witches and wizards will ever meet. It literally contains the intelligence of the four founders, can speak (through a rip near its brim) and is skilled at Legilimency, which enables it to look into the wearer’s head and divine his or her capabilities or mood. It can even respond to the thoughts of the wearer.” Yet in Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, Arthur Weasley says to “never trust anything that can think for itself if you can’t see where it keeps its brain” (CoS 329). I suppose that the Sorting Hat is an exception to this rule because it seems that everyone – whether Dark wizard, headmaster, or parent – would trust it with their lives and, consequently, the lives of young children.

The one thing that the Sorting Hat does other than reading minds is writing its annual song, and nobody cares. Yes, the Sorting Hat can also hold/transport/whatever Godric Gryffindor’s sword, but nobody pays attention to that when the Chosen One is busy killing a giant snake with it after the Hat does its job.

 

 

Maybe witches and wizards are just desensitized to extremely weird and magical items because I can only imagine my shock and disbelief at seeing a mind-reading, singing hat. I mean, the Hat literally uses Legilimency to interpret new students’ thoughts. Additionally, the Hat has urged students to maintain a united front in the face of adversity and danger.

Stand together, be strong from within.” (OotP 209)

If the Harry Potter film series is ever remade, I hope that we get to see more of the Sorting Hat. I find it to be one of the most fascinating bits of magic throughout the series, and the Hat deserves all the screen time it can get.

Social:

  • Next story “Hamilton” Songs for Each Hogwarts House – Part 2
  • Previous story How I Learned to Stop Caring and Love the Gay Subtext in “Cursed Child”

MuggleNet Archive

Important Dates

July 2025

Sun, Jul 20

Jeff Rawle's birthday
Recurs yearly

Amos Diggory

Stephenie McMillan's birthday (Set decorator - RIP)
Recurs yearly

Set decorator – RIP

Mon, Jul 21

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows book
Recurs yearly

2007

Tue, Jul 22

Rhys Ifans's birthday
Recurs yearly

Xenophilius Lovegood

Wed, Jul 23

Daniel Radcliffe's birthday
Recurs yearly

Harry Potter

Nicholas Hooper's birthday (Composer)
Recurs yearly

Composer

Thu, Jul 24

Letters from Hogwarts begin to arrive at number four, Privet Drive
Recurs yearly

1991

MuggleNet podcasts are sponsored in part by Secretlab.

Thanks to its research-backed ergonomic design, including a proprietary 4-way adaptive lumbar support system, the Secretlab TITAN Evo Harry Potter Edition will comfortably support you even when you’re up to no good.

Did You Know

When Arthur Weasley takes Harry Potter to the Ministry of Magic, they must first dial a secret code into a telephone keypad. He enters the number 62442. The letters underneath those numbers on a standard mobile phone spell out the word “magic.”

Potter History

December 31, 2005 – The Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire film soundtrack makes top 10 of 2005.

Potter Quote

“Well – it’s just that you seem to be laboring under the delusion that I am going to – what is the phrase? – come quietly. I am afraid I am not going to come quietly at all, Cornelius. I have absolutely no intention of being sent to Azkaban. I could break out, of course – but what a waste of time, and frankly, I can think of a whole host of things I would rather be doing.”

MuggleNet is an unofficial Harry Potter fansite.
Please email us if you have any questions or concerns.
© 1999–2025 MuggleNet.com. All rights reserved.
Privacy Policy | COPPA Policy | Terms of Use | Feedback


MuggleNet is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program and Bookshop.org's affiliate program, affiliate advertising programs designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to amazon.com and bookshop.org.