Draco and Lucius (was: Harry and starvation)

[Geoff Bannister]

No: HPFGUIDX 123932


--- In HPforGrownups at yahoogroups.com, Magda Grantwich 
<mgrantwich at y...> wrote:

Magda:
> Yes, they're definitely different; personally I think Lucius' best
> moment in the series comes in COS when they're in Borgin's shop and
> he shoots down all Draco's whining complaints with the practiced 
ease
> of a man who's heard it all (too many times) before.  
> 
> Notice that Draco often quotes Lucius as "my father says....".  Not
> "my father told me that...."  Sounds to me like Draco spends a lot 
of
> time around the manor listening in on Lucius' conversations from
> hiding places.  Does he go back to Hogwarts and brag to Snape about
> everything he knows?  Bet you anything he does.
            
Geoff:
Way back, I wrote in message 83661 -

<quote>           
"I have very mixed feelings about Draco. Once, I considered him to be
an absolute pain in the backside but I sometimes find myself
harbouring more then a little bit of sympathy for him; who couldn't,
with a father like Lucius?! He obviously wanted, for some reason or
another, to befriend Harry right at the beginning but managed to mess
this up in no uncertain terms because of his arrogant approach and
that has coloured their relationship ever since. (Perhaps I have read
too much fanfic lately in which he manages to reach a rapprochement
with Harry, Ron and Hermione in one way or another.)"
</quote>

I think there is little love as such in the Malfoy household. Draco 
has only had his father going on at him about Mudbloods being scum 
and Death Eaters being wonderful; it's not surprising that the guy 
has hangups!

An interesting point came back to me after reading Magda's comment 
above about Malfoy's references to his father. It has been commented 
on that there seems to be only one place in the whole of the books 
where he refers to Lucius as "Dad". It happens when he confronts 
Harry in the Entrance Hall at the end of OOTP.

'"You think you're such a big man, Potter," said Malfoy, advancing 
now, Crabbe and Goyle flanking him. "You wait. I'll have you. You 
can't land my father in prison -"
"I thought I just had," said Harry.
"The Dementors have left Azkaban," said Malfoy quietly. "Dad and the 
others will be out in no time..."'

(OOTP "The Second War begins" p.750 UK edition)

That is most interesting. He always refers to his father almost 
distantly as "my father" but here, suddenly, "Dad" pops out which is 
most un-Draco-ish. As Mr.Ollivander would say, "Curious". I wonder 
what our tame psychologists can make of that?