Draco and Intent: Re: Snape and Harry’s Sadism (was: Lack of re-examination)

[jkoney65]

No: HPFGUIDX 186688

--- In HPforGrownups at yahoogroups.com, "horridporrid03" <horridporrid03 at ...> wrote:
>
>> > >>jkoney replies:
> > That I don't understand. You don't feel the need to understand the story as it was meant to be told?
> 
> Betsy Hp:
> For myself I can say I like to get an idea of how the story was meant to be told, but I reserve the right to disagree.  Does that make sense?  

jkoney:
I can agree with that. I still don't agree with the fact that none of the Malfoy's were sent to prison for at least some punishment.

 
> > >> jkoney:
> > > > Some people liked Draco in the early books. There was nothing good about him at all in those scenes. <snip>
> 
> Betsy Hp:
> Oh, not true!  As someone who grew up with "Malory Towers" (a "school-days" series) Draco seemed prime to become Harry's best friend. Everything about our first scene with him screamed "learning moment to come".  So that's an example of my personal experience trumping what the author was trying to get across.

jkoney:
Aren't you then ignoring what was written? If not at that point, which I didn't read as generously as you did, what about the train scene? Draco insults Ron and then threatens Harry about meeting the same end as his parents. I definitely think the author is trying to say that these two aren't going to be friends.


> Betsy Hp
> snip>
> 
> Then there was Hagrid's impossible to condone "Slytherins are all bad" statement.  ("Oh, there's a moral hidden in that one," thought I.)  And there was the fact that when he had the ammunition to get Harry kicked out of school (the hidden dragon plot), Draco chose not to use it.  It seemed so obvious he was still wanting to be friends, that he and Harry thought the same way (dragons are cool!), and that, like with Hermione and the troll, all it needed was one good adventure for the two boys to realize they really weren't that different.

jkoney:
You thought he still wanted to be friends with Harry? 


> 
> Now obviously, seven books later, I *completely* misread where JKR was taking Draco.  Just as obviously, JKR completely failed to give me the proper impression of the boy.
> 
> Betsy Hp
>
jkoney:
JKR has Draco threaten Harry: "I'd be carful if I were you , Potter."
"Unless youre a bit politer you'll go the same way as your parents. They didn't know what was good for them, either."

To me that was the gauntlet being thrown down. I'm not sure she could have been much more direct about how we were supposed to view Draco.