Part II of Everything About Narcissa Malfoy

[lucky_kari]

No: HPFGUIDX 31886

Narcissa's name is a good clue to her character. You'd expect such a 
woman to be vain, self-centred, proud, and attractive, as was 
Narcissus in Greek mythology. All of which seem to hold here. 

The name has also lead some to speculate on a possible relationship to 
the Evans family. Narcissa is a flower name, as are Lily and Petunia. 
On the other hand, this is not unusual. Many of JKR's female 
characters bear flower names. 

It is not even possible to determine whether Narcissa is English, or 
attended Hogwarts, though both seem likely. Draco tells Harry in 
PS/SS, that all his family have been in Slytherin, but it is not 
improbable that he is referring to the Malfoys through the 
generations. If Narcissa attended Hogwarts, however, she was 
undoubtably a Slytherin, or Draco wouldn't be so cocky about his 
chances of getting in.

Is Narcissa a death-eater? She does not hang back from the action. In 
GoF, she is accused by Harry of taking part in tossing about Mr. 
Roberts and his family. To which, Draco replies, "Well... if [my 
parents] were, I wouldn't be likely to tell you, would I, Potter?" 
Draco's being alone in this scene further suggests that she is out 
there with the rest of them.

Furthermore, when Ron first tells Harry about the Malfoys, he says, 
"I've heard of his family. They were some of the first to come back to 
our side after You-Know-Who disappeared. Said they'd been bewitched. 
My Dad doesn't believe it. He says Malfoy's father didn't need an 
excuse to go over to the Dark Side." 

Ron refers to the Malfoys as "they", suggesting that, even in the 
public eye, Narcissa was involved. It is possible that Lucius had 
other relatives, but would they act like a unit, as suggested in this 
paragraph? Interestingly enough, though, Ron immediately switches from 
"they" to "Malfoy's father." Even if Narcissa is involved, she's 
clearly a subordinate player. 

On first glance, Narcissa does not seem to be a part of the Death 
Eater gathering at the end of GoF, a gathering that seems to be an 
all-male affair. However, we do know that there was a space for Mrs. 
Lestrange, and Narcissa could, in fact, have been by Lucius's side, 
silent under her hood. 

Was Narcissa a part of the "plot" in CoS. The word "plot" would 
normally indicate that more than one person was involved in it. 
There's nothing with which to even attempt an answer. 

Is Narcissa really narcisstic(sp?)? After all, she seems to be 
obsessed with giving Draco everything he wants. She must be behind the 
sweets Draco gets every morning. A very good example of her extreme 
efforts on behalf of her son can be found in PS/SS.

"My father's next door buying my books and my mother's up the street 
looking at wands."

Ollivander's being the place to go, Draco will have to go there to get 
his own wand, one would think. It is plain Lucius is checking up on 
what Dumbledore is indoctrinating the kids with this year, but what is 
Narcissa doing? Flip to Harry's experience at Ollivander's. He's 
measured "shoulder to finger, then wrist to elbow, shoulder to floor, 
knee to armpit, and round his head." A few sentences later, the tape 
measure is sizing up the space "between his nostrils." Ollivander 
takes the measurements and starts picking out suitable candidates. Did 
Narcissa come in with the measurements already done, and made 
Ollivander lay out all the possibilities for Draco's convenience? 

Draco's continued belief that he can bully his father into anything, 
a belief not upheld by anything we see of Lucius Malfoy, could have 
more to do with Narcissa's compliance with Draco's every whim. Draco, 
though, worships his father, not his mother, and is always writing to 
him. 

Draco is definitely a point of contention between Lucius and Narcissa. 
 We have Draco's report of the argument over whether to send Draco to 
Hogwarts or Durmstrang, an argument Narcissa won. What does this say 
about her power in the Malfoy household? And why did she hold out for 
Hogwarts? Draco says that she didn't want him so far away, but is that 
just what he heard? How much difference does it make if Draco is in 
Hogwarts, or the other side of the world, since he's completely out of 
their lives? Was it a matter of a owl-borne treats getting cold, or 
worry that Durmstrang would be too rough a life for her son? Or does 
she actually prefer Dumbledore to Karkaroff? 

In PS/SS, Draco taunts Harry about people whose families don't want 
them at Christmas, but in CoS, there is Draco at Hogwarts for 
Christmas. No explanation is offered. Looking at Narcissa's treatment 
of Draco, this could hardly have been her choice. Did Lucius get his 
way here? 

The most puzzling reference to Narcissa is Lucius's introduction of 
her to Fudge at the Quiddith Cup. "I don't think you've met my wife 
Narcissa?" Lucius's closeness to Fudge, close enough to be told of the 
TriWizard Tournament must have either been of a very recent date, or 
Lucius has been keeping his wife (pardon the expression) locked up in 
the cupboard? :) 

Eileen