Draco and Daddy (was: Why did Draco do it?)

[justcarol67]

No: HPFGUIDX 125435


Betsy wrote:
> 
> > Draco is not pampered by his parents.  When he is introduced, he's
been left alone in a shop while his parents split up to get the other
shopping errands done (including buying his wand, which I thought was
an Ollivander no-no). <snip>
> 
Eustace_Scrubb responded:
<snip>
> A minor comment about the Malfoys' shopping trip:  Draco tells Harry
that "mother's up the street looking at wands," but it's open to
interpretation whether she's _buying_ his wand.  She may be doing some
pre-screening for him, or maybe she's looking for a new wand for
herself...we don't know.  I agree that Ollivander wouldn't approve of
Draco's mother choosing his wand for him.  Also, this could be a way
of indicating that the Malfoys don't really feel that parental
oversight of the fitting for mere school robes is worth their time. 
Checking into the quintessential magic appliance--the wand--would be
much more important. <snip>

Carol adds:
I think Eustace's explanation is reasonable. Surely the Malfoys would
never let their son have a wand that wasn't exactly right for him.
OTOh, Mrs. Malfoy probably assumed that only a handsome, expensive
wand would be suitable for her son. So, to use Eustace's term, she
"pre-screened" wands that seemed acceptable to her taste and budget,
possibly trying out some of them herself on the (probably flawed)
assumption that if they worked well for her, they'd work well for him.
Then draco, who *is* somewhat pampered by his mother if not by his
father (and is also apparently somewhat lazy if his "lazy drawl" is
any indication), would have fewer wands to go through before making
his choice. But I can't see Ollivander under any circumstances letting
a parent choose a wand for a child--unless he was deliberately trying
to undermine that child. And somehow I don't think Ollivander would do
that.

Carol