In continuation and in response to the excellent analysis of the position of Slytherin House in the Potterverse by the_bitter_word I wish to make the point that regardless of ideological differences or how Sorting is done, its mere existence already dooms the school to internal warfare. This is best illustrated by Muzafer's Sherif work
Intergroup Conflict and Cooperation: The Robbers Cave Experiment also summarized
here. Briefly, this was an experiment in which 2 groups of 11-12 year old boys were brought to a camp site in which they first spent 5 or 6 days without knowing of the other group's presence. During this stage each group started developing a sense of group identity and internal hierarchy. Upon learning of the existence of the other group the boys asked to compete against the other group, team identity became stronger and team effort more efficient. During the second stage formal competitions between the teams were arranged as well as other friction-inducing situations (such as sharing the dining room at the same time). The two teams became aggressive and abusive towards each other to the point of food-throwing, raids on the dorm of the rival team and property damage. After a few days of that the researchers attempted to bring reconciliation between the teams. Merely sharing non-competitve fun activities did not help. It took the faking of sabotaging the water supply by outsiders (which required the joint effort of all boys to fix) and moving both teams to a new location (with more problems requiring large group effort on the way) to overcome rivalry that was instilled in just a few days.
Moreover, the boys who participated in the Robbers Cave Experiment were specifically selected to be as similar to one another as possible. All were well-adjusted, of the same age and educational level, normal physical development, no health or other impairments, all from middleclass Protestant families that were established in the area, all were living with both parents. Also, neither of the boys knew any of the others prior to the experiment.
The situation of children attending Hogwarts has to be worse in the term of House rivalry because the Sorting by the Sorting Hat is supposed to be based on differences in personality and values that the Hat detects in the children's minds. In the Robbers Cave Experiment small differences between the two teams became deliberately amplified as one team sought to assert its identity and difference from the other. Thus one team adopted a more 'masculine' identity while the other got into the habit of huddling in prayer before games. At Hogwarts the Sorting itself already capitalizes on existing differences. Once the students enter the culture of their House I expect they become even less balanced in personality, exaggerating the traits preferred by their House and attenuating those preferred by other Houses. We see as Gryffindors become bolder and more showy they also become less studious, less intellectually-inclined, less industrious. I imagine similar processes take place in the other Houses.
Most Hogwarts student had at least one parent who had attended the school in the past. Many have multiple Hogwarts alumni in their families. As a result most students arrive with preconceived notions about the Houses and House rivalries take the form of expanded clan wars.
The House identity does not stop once students graduate because alliances formed at school are carried over into adult life. Most adult wizards and witches either work in small business and have few colleagues or work at the Ministry, where various departments have a preferential attraction to members of one House. It isn't hard to imagine that the Aurors are predominantly Gryffindors, the Unspeakables predominantly Ravenclaws, the body of desk riders a mix of Hufflepuff and Slytherin with the latter seeking the pathways leading to those places they see as power tipping points (not necessarily the obvious powerful positions). Few adult wizards and witches interact with a balanced mix of alumni of all 4 Houses and very few are in position where they are required to cooperate on a daily basis with such - leading to the persistence of prejudices acquired in middle childhood throughout life.
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