Draco

[geoviki]

I have to say it was no surprise to me that Jo and I have differing views of Draco. Hell, half of my flist and I have differing views of Draco! In DH he did what Jo needed him to for her purposes - mainly to get a couple of wands in place and provide some UST in Harry's life. And she put him back on the shelf when he was done. Her call.

But...

But...

Even she gave us something in canon that I didn't even pick up on until I reread the fire scene more slowly.

First, she gives all the bad business in that scene to Crabbe, not Draco. Crabbe's the one who says they stayed behind to catch Harry and deliver him to Voldy, he's the one casting all the Unforgivables, he's the one who starts the fire. And he dismisses Draco in front of everyone, telling him: Who cares what you think? I don’t take your orders no more, Draco. You an’ your dad are finished.

In contrast, Draco's all talk (no surprise) -- how he wants his wand back, how he got in. Then he focuses on stopping Crabbe from destroying the room and killing Harry, although it's never made clear why he's doing this. He never casts a single spell, although he loses his (mother's) wand early on, so he didn't have much opportunity. Then the Fiendfyre is let loose and everyone runs:

Malfoy grabbed the Stunned Goyle and dragged him along....

Wow. He didn't just run full-tilt toward the door, as we would expect a selfish coward to do. Instead, he runs while dragging a stunned and, we already know, ginormous guy. Not at all easy. Or predictible. Not the action of someone looking out for number 1.

The fire worsens, Harry hears a thin, piteous human scream from amidst the terrible commotion, the thunder of devouring flame, and he turns to see:

Malfoy with his arms around the unconscious Goyle, the pair of them perched on a fragile tower of charred desks, and Harry dived. Malfoy saw him coming and raised one arm, but even as Harry grasped it he knew at once that it was no good. Goyle was too heavy and Malfoy’s hand, covered in sweat, slid instantly out of Harry’s –

So he's carried Goyle somehow to this precarious island in a sea of flame, and here comes Draco's one chance to be saved...and he doesn't let go of Goyle. He doesn't abandon Goyle to save himself in what might be his only chance to live.

Ron and Hermione make it possible to save both of them, and what's the first thing out of Draco's mouth when they're safe:

"C-Crabbe," choked Malfoy as soon as he could speak. "C-Crabbe…"

I don't think Jo planned to have us all think Draco's the coolest thing since the iPhone. I'm just saying she doesn't condemn him as much as we think, and that there's still a lot of wiggle room for us Draco fans to work in.

What say you?

Comments

[bethbethbeth.livejournal.com]

Speaking as a non-Draco fan, I say yes!

(and wouldn't you know it? My first serious fic idea is a Harry/Draco *g*)

[bethbethbeth.livejournal.com]

Also? I don't, for a minute, think he didn't recognize Harry, Hermione, and Ron...but he certainly delayed his identification of them as long as he possibly could.

[rogue-sheep.livejournal.com]

I think that she's always thought of him as a spoiled brat who didn't realize what he was getting into. When he saw just how serious the war really was, he changed his mind very quickly but was too scared of Voldemort to join the Light. This scene, however, shows me that he is more than just a frightened teenager who's just trying to survive, and that makes me extremely happy.

[bloodyrose82.livejournal.com]

I don't usually like jumping in on other people's comments, but I had to reply here.

When he saw just how serious the war really was, he changed his mind very quickly but was too scared of Voldemort to join the Light.

I can't really agree with this statement. I don't think he changed his mind about anything in regards to war position. Draco has always been full of a load of hot air, but while I don't think he realised what being on Voldemort's side meant (did he even have a choice?), I don't think he would have made an active decision to join the side of the light either.

Defaulted there, perhaps, to save his own skin, but there is a difference, however slight it may appear, between that and choosing a side based on his moral values.

No matter what was going on towards the end, Draco always was, and always will be a Slytherin, and while I think he is perfectly capable of giving a shit about other people (like his friends, as geoviki talks about here), I don't think he would ever truly be under the illusion that he was doing it for 'higher moral reasons'.

I think that saying he was too scared of Voldemort to join the Light is perhaps a bit of a leap too. He was scared, certainly, of what would happen because of Voldemort, but again, I think the subtle distinction is that he was scared of what would happen to HIMSELF and his FAMILY because of Voldemort, not the concept of Voldemort in general. Hence why he was happy to throw around the theory for most of his schooldays - it suited HIS purpose to.

I think the difference with Draco, as compared to someone like Harry, is that in these circumstances, while Harry makes an active decison to DO something, or to take a stance, Draco is the polar opposite (and I don't think one has to be considered good, and the other bad). His concern isn't over doing what is right, in regards to a Greater Good (TM). His concern rests with his own world.

It just so happens the two don't always have to be mutually exclusive.

Apologies, Geoviki. *looks sheepish*

[bloodyrose82.livejournal.com]

Thank Christ someone else agrees. Jesus, we all know that he's still Draco (meaning he will never be ye olde Gryffindor hero - Slytherin hero is perhaps something I should consider making an essay post about), but the point is that he's an evolved Draco. He has learned from what happened in HBP and he's developed an awareness just like everyone else.

Hell, Ron (who walks out on his friends yet again)gets forgiven and heralded as the King, and yet Draco, who very clearly wants to protect those HE cares about, gets called a 2d baddy. Yet again.

Anyway, my point? I've been ranting on about the merits of canon Draco (not to be confused with the leather-wearing go-go boy of fandom) to anyone who listens for about a zillion years, and for some reason, people still seem to write him off at the end of the series.

It is beyond frustrating. He was possibly the single most influential student in Harry's school career, and I don't care what anyone else says: the boy did good.

*packs soapbox away*

[geoviki.livejournal.com]

I read your Draco post - good job :-)

(although I like fanon Draco, too, because...because I think I had to have something to fill all those non-canon Draco moments in my head.)

[anjenue.livejournal.com]

I was SO HAPPY with the way she treated Draco in this book. First of all, I think I love that she never redeemed him. He's not all sunshine and daisies and fighting the good fight and all of that - he's still on his own side, as is shown by the way he tries to reason with that one DE - more on that later. And then, one of my FAVOURITE bits is the fact that earlier on, Lucius shoved everyone out of his way in order to get to the door, but Draco DOESN'T. I love all of the Malfoys in this book, but the thing that really struck me about that is that Draco is NOT his father, and that's never been clearer for me than it was when I saw the Fiendfyre scene.

Draco is very much a Slytherin. He looks out for himself, plays the middle ground, and is very...diplomatic about things - the way he fudges about Harry & co (and god, how BRAVE was that?), the way he tries to negotiate out of things, the way he might claim sides but never actually does anything one way or the other... He's a boy who's realised he's in over his head, and while in comparison to Harry, he might seem like a weak little snivelly brat, he's SMART in realising that he can't handle what he's gotten himself into. He's making the best of a very bad situation that wasn't really his choice to begin with - it was Lucius', and while he did support what his father was doing, he never actually UNDERSTOOD it until now. Yeah, he's not a hero, but he's a smart kid, smart enough to know that Voldemort will FUCK HIM UP if he tries any heroics, and he's all out for the well-being of his family and his friends, and not just the selfish twat Harry took him for. That's my favourite part - it's not that Draco redeems himself, it's that Harry finally sees what's really going on, and why he does what he does. There's more to Draco than the bastard bully.

[bloodyrose82.livejournal.com]

I will try to stop commenting on this thread...promise. I just wanted to pick out something touched upon here.

Draco blagging his way around whether he knew it was the trio. I agree, it was brave. In a Slytherin context. :D I think he did it, not so much because he gave a crap whether they lived, but he definitely cared about whether they lived FOR HIM. He'd have to be a bit of a dunderhead not to realise his best chance of survival was Harry surviving, by the time he reached this point.

Which is exactly why I'm pissed the whole four houses thing wasn't really touched upon. You can be brave AND a Slytherin, intelligent AND a Hufflepuff, cunning AND a Gryfindor.

*shakes fist*

[rexluscus.livejournal.com]

I totally agree. And I'm no Draco fan. Since HBP, Draco it seems to me has done the best he can while being trapped. He and his parents know that if they make one false move, they're fucked, and so Draco goes along with everything, but he clearly doesn't want to sell out Harry and company at the mansion, and everything he does as a Death Eater is reluctant, even a little subversive. He never musters up the nerve to defy them, but his whole family is at stake, not just himself. And his concern for his friends in that scene stood out to me too. As did his refraining from doing Harry any actual violence. I think he's someone who's grown up being taught to think a certain way, but isn't fundamentally a bad person. When he's confronted with the consequences of the things he's been taught, he's appalled. And I think that's what we're meant to take away from that little nod in the epilogue.

Again, I'm no H/D shipper, but even *I* boggled at the wand thing. :)

[geoviki.livejournal.com]

She really wrote him into a bad situation, and I think he did his Slytherin best to just survive. I thought the thing with Goyle was so distinct, though, and I nearly missed it the first time through, because I was racing to finish the darned book!

[awaywithpixie.livejournal.com]

Thanks for the non wankery and non hysterical thoughts on Draco. I must go back and re-read that scene carefully.

But yes, he *does* have some redeeming quality, as we had all hoped.

*pushes the Draco/Goyle plot bunnies far, far away*

[geoviki.livejournal.com]

One of my favorite fanfics is scoradh's Draco/Goyle fic, Though the Night Yield No Glimmer (http://rainspots.livejournal.com/5775.html). Awesomecakes!

[rhiannonmr.livejournal.com]

Cruising friends-friends here. I don't like Draco much. Made no secret of it, at all in the past. But Draco in this book is clearly a Draco who has faced some things and decided, evil overlord minioning is so not his thing. I actually liked him in this book. And no he wasn't just looking out for number 1. He did some hard growing up and it came out here.

[geoviki.livejournal.com]

I think I became a bigtime Draco fan after reading some wonderful fanfic with him featured. I think the last 2 books went a long way in explaining what was motivating him, and like you said, he did some hard growing up.

[fiona-fawkes.livejournal.com]

I have nothing remotely coherent to respond with, as it is way past my bedtime. All I can say is that you made my little Draco-pwned heart flutter.

[geoviki.livejournal.com]

:-)

We shall squee in person together very soon!

[furiosity.livejournal.com]

Upon my first read, I squeed like a mofo. Upon my second read, I spent most of the Draco scenes feeling smug and saying "I totally called all of this after OotP. >:D" *hangs head* lol full of self, I know.

ALSO, DRACO IS TOTALLY HARRY'S BITCH FOR LIFE. TWICE. >.> *will never tire of saying this*

[geoviki.livejournal.com]

Our little boy...all growed up!

[waterbird.livejournal.com]

Yes! Draco trying to rescue his friend from that burning room, not letting go, it showed that he is capable of loving and being concerned about and risking himself for someone other than himself or his parents. I loved that scene so much.

[lemonade8.livejournal.com]

Yep, even after his 'friend' had been dismissive and hateful to him, he wanted him saved. I thought that was one of the most touching parts.

[lagreyeyes.livejournal.com]

I read that fire scene slowly at the time, just to absorb, so I did pick up on all its implications. And, yes, I agree with you.

But what really stays with me is the grasping of the hands. In one way or another, I think Draco was hoping for that ever since the rejection by Harry in the first book. That initial lack of a handshake really had an impact on him.

Then again, it could just be my mind's flight of fancy. :)

[bloodyrose82.livejournal.com]

Nuh huh. I'm with you all the way on this. I think it was deliberate. It was pretty much the first thing I wrote in my reaction post.

I think that while neither of the boys saw it as anything other than Draco needed saving and Harry's the one who does the saving round there, we as the audience were supposed to take away the symbolism that Harry accepts Draco's choices and his reasons ON HIS OWN TERMS rather than staying with his predefined, narrow view that there was only one way to see the world.

In that sense, I think JK achieved her goal of Harry viewing people as something more than their sterotype. The trouble was, she had made Draco important as a character in his own right, rather than a representative/figurehead for an entire house, as he was supposed to be. Therefore where Harry sees Draco as a fully-faceted human, we don't take away the greater implication that Slytherin would house good chidren.

[lagreyeyes.livejournal.com]

And I really think the overall theme in DH is "family", whether comprised of friends or blood kin.

Do you know, just yesterday for the first time I heard Joe Cocker doing a cover of The Band's "Cripple Creek" and it was fantastic. (But then, Cocker often does covers that are better than the originals.) I never knew he covered the Screamin' Jay Hawkins song.

[geoviki.livejournal.com]

I found a site that had covers of this song, and I picked it up to add to my collection. The singers range from Van Morrison to David Gilmour to Pete Townshend to Bryan Ferry to CCR to The Animals to Marilyn Manson!

But this one's excellent. Except I can't hear Joe without thinking of John Belushi.

[icarusancalion.livejournal.com]

"C-Crabbe," choked Malfoy as soon as he could speak. "C-Crabbe…"

I noticed that in the reading and thought, "Oh, Draco's really loyal to his friends." Just as broken up as Harry would be over losing one of his friends.

Deep down, he's rather a sweet kid. His issue with Harry is competitiveness, Hermione it's his pure-blood bigotry, and with Ron it's... competitiveness again, given his dad and Ron's dad brawl like children. All of that's from his family. But Draco himself? Good as gold. Or brass, at least.

(It's reflected in his family as well. As soon as it's "fight the Dark Lord's battle or save your son" there was never any question. I'm looking forward to the movie, when we see the Malfoys sweep in scoop up Draco, heedless of the fact that they're surrounded by the other side.

Icarus

[geoviki.livejournal.com]

I think people who race through the book get one (bad) impression of Draco that's dispelled by careful reading. I was glad when Draco showed he was more than that Malfoy brat; what surprised me most was Lucius in this book.

[amanuensis1.livejournal.com]

Heh heh, beautiful. Glad you pointed this out!

[geoviki.livejournal.com]

The more I think about this scene, the more I love it!

[norton-gale.livejournal.com]

The evidence is definitely piling up in favor of at least a partial redemption for Draco. As happy as I may have been if JKR had overtly redeemed him and had him join forces with Harry (if it was Draco who killed the snake instead of Neville, for instance), it would have probably rung false. I love how his motivation is kept ambiguous even through the epilogue, and that JKR left it up to readers to piece these little hints together to construct his character.

[geoviki.livejournal.com]

I wonder how many "average" readers will take the time to pick up the many, many subtle clues, though. I saw someone doing a one-word reaction poll to a bunch of characters, and about half of Draco's list said stuff like: coward, cruel, useless... Even after Book 7. I think that's careless reading.

[ex-ella-bane358.livejournal.com]

Thanks for writing this up. :) I love how Jo wrote Draco.

[geoviki.livejournal.com]

She finally let him free to be himself. Of course, I wish there had been more more more of him, but still...

[ceilidh]

(here via ella_bane)

I didn't really care for Draco before, but that scene in the RoR made me actually kind of like him. :D

[geoviki.livejournal.com]

He's definitely got potential! Harry just hated him for so many years that he couldn't see the subtlties of Slytherin behaviour. Well, plus they did do some nasty things to each other over the years.

[heidi8.livejournal.com]

I agree!

(sorry no time for more substance as am off to kids' bday party)

[geoviki.livejournal.com]

Understood! Because I'm supposed to be packing for Prophecy, myself.

[emmagrant01.livejournal.com]

Yes, absolutely. I have a lot to say about Draco in DH, and I've been mulling over making a big post about it. I love this sort of analysis!

I've seen some posts pretty much condemning the Malfoy family, and I think they actually came a long way toward redemption in the book. None of them were two-dimensional villains in DH, as you've demonstrated with this scene. The fact that Draco shows some loyalty and care for friends we were never sure in canon he really even liked is very cool. :-)

[geoviki.livejournal.com]

scrtkpr and furiosity have a great discussion going about this in S's LJ. If you, unlike me, have time before packing to read it. I got halfway through and it was all thinky and good.

[jedirita.livejournal.com]

I thought Draco was made of awesome in the book. True, he didn't have one Big Heroic Redemption, but there were all kinds of little things showing how he is no longer a Voldemort supporter. He may not exactly be a Good Guy, but he's definitely not a Bad Guy.

I haven't reread that chapter yet, but your description here confirms my initial impression: that he wanted his wand, not Harry (erm, except in the prurient sense), and how he saved Goyle's life.

[geoviki.livejournal.com]

There really was a lot happening in that scene, so the subtle stuff's easy to miss. And yes, I really agree: he's not good or bad, just Slytherin.

[scrtkpr.livejournal.com]

I agree! I thought it was huge that he didn't abandon Goyle.

If you're interested, I started a discussion on Draco's motivations here which resulted in some really insightful replies as well as one ridiculously long debate.

[geoviki.livejournal.com]

Wow! That's a great discussion, and I got through about half of it, but right now I'm supposed to be packing, so I bookmarked it for later. Because it's really a good exchange.

[sulky-rhino.livejournal.com]

I agree! That last scene with Crabbe and Goyle... We always thought they were just his "minions" (and it almost seems as if they thought so too), but he really did care for them. :/

[geoviki.livejournal.com]

Very much so! That's because ol' Harry thought they were minions. He had a blind spot when it came to Draco, because he wanted to jump his bones of that handshake thing.

[luci0logy.livejournal.com]

This scene was discussed in some detail at the H/D panel I co-hosted with dragon_charmer last weekend. The nuts and bolts being that we could interpret Draco as being more than the self-centered coward many folks had took him for in previous books, that there is a heart somewhere behind that sneering facade, he can demonstate some form of loyalty to those he once treated as minions, and he can be brave when push comes to shove.

Go, Draco!

[geoviki.livejournal.com]

Yay! I wish I could have been there, but maybe it'll come up at Prophecy too. Isn't it nice to have cons right when the book's all fresh in our hearts?

[ellie-nor.livejournal.com]

::nods:: I think it's particularly sad, because of this, that Draco is seen as separate from Slytherin house in DH. He's epitomising the Sorting Hat's description of Slytherin house:

Or perhaps in Slytherin you'll find your real friends

The fundamental difference between Slytherin and Gryffindor for me is that Slytherins' love will always put survival of family and friends (and self) first, whereas Gryffindors' love will sacrifice anyone and anything 'for the greater good'. Both are necessary, but I know which one I prefer to have around me in the day-to-day.

[geoviki.livejournal.com]

That's one of the regrets I have about this book, which I really liked for the most part: the way she failed to follow up on the idea she brought up in book 4(?) that Slytherins as a house were more than the "House of Evil". Like it was pointed out, above, when Ron bailed, no one condemned him forever, so why can't Draco get the same treatment? Well, we know because it's Harry's POV. But still!