FF: Draco's Crimes & Misdemeanors

Mon Feb 3 23:01:20 UTC 2003

No: HPFGUIDX 51559

--- In HPforGrownups at yahoogroups.com, "heiditandy" <heidit at n...> 
wrote:
I have a hard time determining that someone 14 years - and
> younger, as Draco was in many of the examples you give below, is 
evil
> without said CHILD actually killing someone in cold blood, or at 
least
> trying to 
 Then again, I'm also
> not sure that one has to cross the line into evil to be "redeemed", 
but
> that's a post for another time. 
> 
> Here's the question, which I pose to the list in general: 
> 
> Do insults by an 11 year old smack of evil? 

Well, to me Draco's only redeeming quality is that he is still a 
child. I have some hope that he will change, but not much. I will be 
very glad to be proven wrong, though.

Now, I'll try to explain why I can't stand this child and try to be 
coherent.Do insults of 11 (or 12 year old in CoS) smack of evil? 
Well, they could be. Let's leave alone his insults of Harry and Ron 
and just focuse on his "nice words", which he throwns at Hermione's 
face.

I have way too many unpleasant flashbacks, when I read about his 
hatred of "mudbloods". As a jew, who grew up in former Soviet Union, 
I had racial slurs thrown in my face quite often. Actually, not as 
often as some of my friends had, because I have blonde hair and blue 
eyes, so I guess I don't have "typical" jewish appearance (Does such 
even exist?).
So, yeah these insults strike me as evil. I've seen some grown-up 
Dracos, who proclaimed on the streeets, wrote in the newspapers that 
all problems in the republics of the former Soviet Union are because 
of "mudbloods" (oops - because of jews).
I followed closely the discussion on this list whether Draco is a 
racist. I did not trust myself to post back then yet, but I can't 
call him anything else except "racist". I think that being given a 
chance he will stop talking and start acting (killing muggle-borns). 
Again, I'll be happy to be proven wrong.

> Further, reporting a classmate to the teachers can be a tacky, mean,
> silly or cruel thing to do - but if the student has *actually* done
> something wrong, well, then the reporter can't personally do 
anything
> about it - but the teachers certainly can! If Harry hadn't been in 
the
> wrong, on some level, by being out after hours with Norbert, 
Professor
> McG wouldn't've taken points. How is being a tattletale evil?

No, being only a tattletale is not evil in my book, but since I 
already don't have any sympathy for him and I do think that Harry and 
Co break the rules for very right reasons more often than not, the 
fact that Draco spies on them does not make me like him more.  

> You've picked the losing side, Potter. I warned you! I told you you
> ought to choose your company more carefully, remember? When we met 
on
> the train, first day at Hogwarts? I told you not to hang around with
> riffraff like this! Too late now, Potter! They'll be the first to 
go,
> now the Dark Lord's back! Mudbloods and Muggle-lovers first! Well -
> second - Diggory was the f-"
> 
> What in this little speech is untrue? Let's parse it, briefly:
> 
> First bit  - he's being dismissive, true. But is this sentence 
evil? Or
> is he actually showing himself in agreement with them about Rita? Is
> this a clue that she's misquoted him too?
> 
> Second bit - Again, is this sentence evil? Or is he asking them,
> possibly unkindly, why they seem to be in denial about the great 
risk
> that all three of them are in - Harry because he's Harry, and 
Hermione
> and Ron because they're his friends, moreso than for any reason. 
And if
> he's asking them, is it *just possible* that he is simply curious?
> 
> Third bit - and probably one of the more non-SHIP-debated sections 
of
> GoF... What is he saying that is a definite lie? He thinks Harry's 
side
> will lose - if he was perfectly chipper about this, why does he say
> "warned"? To taunt? Oh, possibly. But is it definite? Isn't it 
possible
> - just a little bit possible - that he's again *warning* Harry, Ron 
and
> Hermione of the threat that truly comes to them from the Dark's 
corner?
> Perhaps he is - but also, perhaps, he has to be guarded in how he 
warns
> them, because he's not alone - Crabbe and Goyle are with him, and 
it's
> entirely possible that they tell Lucius what Draco says and does. 
And it
> seems to be common knowledge that Voldemort's targets last time were
> muggle-born wizards and witches and those who supported Muggles - 
so to
> say that Mudbloods and Muggle-lovers will be the first ones that
> Voldemort will go after is, well, true. 
> 
> If you look at it as a warning - badly and quite gittishly given - 
the
> import of it changes - without requiring the reader to actually 
change
> their take on Harry, Ron and Hermione's reaction to his speech. In 
other
> words, he could be honestly warning them - he wasn't threatening to 
do
> *anything* to them at that moment, no matter how you read canon (his
> wand was not out) - and the trio's reaction could be quite
> reasonable-at-the-time. 

I am sorry, I did not understand your argument about Draco's speech 
on the train being a warning. Because he genuinely believes in what 
he is saying? In my book it makes even worse provocation. I think he 
wanted to humiliate and gloat at them, not warn, but of course  you 
could be right.

Alla

P.S. I loved your fanfic, by the way. I love some Dracos from 
fanfics, but I feel the absolute opposite about canon Draco.