The Gryffindor House esteems the courage, as well as the daring, temper and chivalry, thus, its members are characterized by being brave but sometimes even to the point of being reckless. The House of Gryffindor has contributed numerous members to Dumbledore's Army and the Order of the Phoenix.

There is a historic rivalry between the Houses of Gryffindor and Slytherin, rivalry dating back to medieval times when their respective founders, Godric Gryffindor and Salazar Slytherin, had serious disagreements over Slytherin's belief in purity of blood. Since then, the fights between the two Houses have been continuous.

Members of other Houses (particularly Slytherin) believe that there is a certain favoritism towards Gryffindor (for example because Harry Potter was not removed from the Three Wise Tournament when he was elected fourth champion)

However, the Houses of Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff tend to ally with Gryffindor in their rivalry with Slytherin. A clear example of this is the Second Magic War (members of Dumbledore's Army were from Gryffindor, Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw) and at the Battle of Hogwarts, while the Slytherins left school, many students from the other Houses remained at Hogwarts to fight against Voldemort and his Death Eaters.