The Redemption of Draco Malfoy: a Theory

[ivyblossom]

I was rereading the sorting hat song, and I know a few others have been pointing this out as well:

And at last there came a morning
When Old Slytherin departed
And though the fighting then died out
He left us quite downhearted.
And never since the founders four
Were whittled down to three
Have the houses been united
As they once were meant to be.

Sure it's a history lesson. But it's followed by a warning:

The warning history shows,
For our Hogwarts is in danger
From external, deadly foes
And we must unite inside her
Or we'll crumble from within
I have told you, I have warned you...

I'm inclined to believe that the Sorting Hat is generally right about such things, so I will pay close attention to these predictions.

I think the warning itself is directed at Harry. The first time through I read the song pretty literally. Yes, Hogwarts has to unite against an external foe. But the second time I read through, it seems to me that what's being addressed there is Dumbledore's Army. No wonder we got Luna and Zacharias added in this book; we needed a Ravenclaw and a Hufflepuff so that the DA isn't just made up of Gryffindors. We even need Cho for that reason. So now the DA consists entirely of the three traditional houses, minus the fourth, just as the Sorting Hat said had happened in history. Sure, there's less fighting, but a school divided against itself cannot stand, isn't that right? And it's the Slytherins who side against the DA with Umbridge, it's the Slytherins who threaten it's existence. Harry (and the others, Slytherins included) did not heed the hat's warning; Harry is spinning his wheels because he will fail in the end unless he leans on the skills, strength and knowledge of the Slytherins. That's what the hat says.

This isn't just an issue in OoTP, of course. In PS, Draco comes to Harry and says, "I'll help you get the right connections." In OoTP, Draco is again pointing out that "it's not what you know, it's who you know." The concept of connections is obviously very important to him; and that is in fact what he offered to Harry in first year, the one thing he considers his greatest asset.

But surely Draco Malfoy was not honestly trying to be friends with Harry in PS. His father is a Death Eater, his mother is sympathetic to their cause, as is most of her family. How could Draco possibly even consider actually being friendly with Harry?

Well, as we know from CoS in particular, Draco isn't really in the know most of the time. His father doesn't trust him with actual Death Eater knowledge; Draco doesn't know who the heir of Slytherin is in CoS and clearly doesn't know that his father slipped Riddle's diary into Ginny's cauldron. In fact, Draco seems to be unaware of the Tom Riddle's story and history, and his summation of the Chamber of Secrets myth is pretty incomplete. He knows just about as much as any child in the wizarding world.

Yes, Draco's father is a Death Eater, but remember that not all children follow in the footsteps of their fathers. "Like father, like son," is not one of the themes of OoTP. Sirius' family were Voldemort supporters, but he's not. James was a cruel bully, just like Draco. Harry is not. Arthur Weasley is prepared to give his life for the Order, but Percy has betrayed them all. Genetic history doesn't always repeat itself, and that fact seems to be driven home pretty hard in this book.

But yes, Draco adores his father, and joins in on the Umbridge side. Remember of course that Umbridge is Ministry, not Death Eater, and Draco sure does value his Ministry connections. How close is Draco to the Death Eaters? He can't see the Thestrals, and therefore has never seen anyone die. In spite of being a jerk (like Sirius, like James), Draco is at present an innocent. His father is obviously a Death Eater, and a high ranking one, but Draco has been pretty carefully protected from all of that. He has the beliefs but not the knowledge nor the affiliation. My suspicion is that Lucius doesn't entirely trust his son yet, and I think he's right not to. Draco is liable to blab if it will help him jockey for position at school, and he is just a kid.

To wit: my suggestion is that it's entirely possible that Draco doesn't need to be redeemed yet, because he has not yet fallen; also, that he will fall, and that he will be redeemed through Harry.

What if Draco meant to be Harry's friend in PS? In sympbolic terms, this is like ancient history about to be overturned and repaired, a great Hogwarts victory; Slytherin offers a truce, but Gryffindor doesn't accept it. Draco offers his hand in friendship and Harry refuses it. If they houses do not unite, Hogwarts will crumble. From PS onward, Harry has been actively rejecting all things Slytherin. "There wasn't a wizard that went bad that wasn't in Slytherin," right? Not so, not so. We already know that's a lie, but Harry hasn't stopped to consider that yet. Harry's prejudice against Slytherins runs so high he can't even see how ridiculous it's become.

So why did Draco get no character development in this book?

Because he can't develop yet. Consider: if we got a full backstory on Draco, I suspect he would become extremely sympathetic, much like Snape. Though he might not want to admit it later, Harry takes Snape's side emotionally in that moment he witnesses between Snape, Sirius, and James, and so do we. It gets harder to hate someone blindly when you can see their point. It's hard to know in your heart that you can't trust someone when you can sense their humanity.

If JKR wants to complete this historical/character/hogwarts arc the Sorting Hat is suggesting by forcing Harry to break down his own prejudice against Slytherins and ask for Draco's help or collaboration in the future, she cannot develop Draco's character at this time. If the plot is heading toward a point where Gryffindor and Slytherin resolve their differences, which it certainly appears as though it might be, she cannot redeem Draco now. In fact, Harry has to hate Draco even more in book 6. At the end of OoTP JKR gives Draco a million more reasons to hate Harry, which will make things even more difficult for Harry when the time comes. I expect to see Draco lashing out at Harry as much as possible in book 6, being vicious, cruel, and possibly even downright evil. I expect Draco to turn as evil as he can at school, to look as much like the enemy as possible. I think he has his own reasons for that, and I'm starting to feel pretty certain that, in the end, we will know all about them.

It seems to me that in a narrative arc like the one I'm proposing, the author would need to make sure that the reader hates Draco as much as Harry does. We cannot get a backstory on Draco and still hate him utterly and truly, therefore we need to keep a distance from him. We should not be able to see secondary reasons for his actions just yet, we cannot get the impression that possibly Harry needs Draco's help, or that he would ever get it. For Harry's act of reaching out to a Slytherin to be properly heroic, he needs to be sacrificing something, it needs to look like a mortal risk. Risks are what Gryffindors are supposed to do best, are they not?

Perhaps in Slytherin
You'll make your real friends,
Those cunning folk use any means
To achieve their ends.

What will Draco have to do to make Harry's quest succeed? And what will Harry have to do to win Draco's trust?

Comments

[hya-cynth.livejournal.com]

bravo! *claps*

[mark356.livejournal.com]

Wow. Just when I think that everything that is possible to be said about OoTP H/D has been said in the list of twenty-nine scenes that mention Draco or his obsession and your fabulous essay a few days ago, you write another one! You really should put these up on your website. Good point about Draco still being an innocent. It's interesting to think that a backstory on Draco and H/D would unite the whole series again.

a comment with a draco icon, too!

[illiterate.livejournal.com]

Fine family fun; two thumbs up!

[andrush.livejournal.com]

You make my brain ache in the good way. And you actually make me want to finish my book.

*loves*

[morganmuffle]

Your essays are really very well thought out. Thank you for setting your thoughts out so clearly, it's really helping me sort out my own.

The Sorting Hat song did make me think of finding a way for Slytherin to come back in. I can see that if Draco is going to be a symbol of Slytherin he needs to be unsympathetic and that Harry needs to take a risk as a Gryffindor but I'm trying to decide if the evidence points to Harry asking for Draco's help or vice versa.

The other interesting point about the song is the fact that Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff were such good friends, there is no real alliance between these two in the books, maybe this is something for the last 2 books...

[vileseagulls.livejournal.com]

there is no real alliance between these two in the books

Isn't there? They have no animosity between them, and neither seems to affiliate with Gryffindor or Slytherin. We also don't know very much at all about them, and only know a couple of characters from each. There is the possibility of an alliance existing there.

Also, the history we're focusing on is Gryffindor/Slytherin. They are the ones with the drama and angst - Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff just got on in the background. I'm not sure there needs to be an alliance, because they were never at odds - friends, with no necessity of anything else. An alliance implies fighting against something - they have no mutual enemy, unless you count Slytherin, and then you have the whole school allied.

[perclexed.livejournal.com]

Ivy? I just adore you. I do. I love reading your posts about HP, because they always bring another angle that I haven't considered into the mix. I'm ever-so-glad I found your LJ via the MR thing. ::much nub!::

*nods furiously*

[rosiefangs.livejournal.com]

even if i had thought of all those things, i couldn't have written them :)

[no-remorse.livejournal.com]

I think the problem with Draco's offer of friendship in PS was that it was conditional. 'Be friends with the people I want you to be friends with or else...' And funnily enough, if friendship is ever going to be offered from the Gryffindor side, it will be as conditional - 'Support Dumbledore, although he has never given you a reason besides the political ones, turn against your parents (in some cases, not in all) or else...'

Which I think is not completely 'right' either. Especially if you use the word "friends" and not "allies". If friendship between Slytherin and Gryffindor is really offered in the future (and I hope it will) then it would have be without conditions... well, at least in a perfect world.

I think the Slytherins might be excellent allies (if convinced that being a Death Eater is an unhealthy career choice), but I am doubtful that any of the non-Blaise Zabini (Slytherins we don't know anything about yet (like Luna until OotP)) have a real chance to become friends with the Gryffindors. Redeemed!Draco in canon, yes. Best Mates with Harry!Draco in canon however is difficult to pull off.

Although after OotP I wonder if there is anything what Rowling cannot pull off... besides Disco!Voldemort, mind you.

[suaine.livejournal.com]

You are my hero. You are my goddess. Now, finally, it makes sense that Rowling didn't follow up on the Sorting Hat song in this book. Yay for Slytherin :)

[kokopoko.livejournal.com]

Wow!

[hedonisticated.livejournal.com]

This was wonderful! You said everything I wished I could lol

[arcly.livejournal.com]

*cheers and whoops*

[yourpoison.livejournal.com]

best. icon. ever.!
or, for awhile now >:D
heeeee~:) we all do, harry, we all do >

[cleverthylacine]

Unfortunately, Didodikali sent me this today, excerpts from a recent JKR question/answer reading thing she did...

presentation in Albert Hall!! Highlights
(remarks in quotes are from JKR):

"[I'm worried about all the children dressing up as
Draco] ... You're all getting far too fond of Draco ... the dark is coming."

Re Snape, when it's remarked that in book 5 he seems
like he might not be such a bad guy: "You shouldn't think he's
*too* nice; he's worth keeping an eye on, old Severus."

This really bugs me. I'm gonna be pissed if this means that Draco is never even going to have any character development other than born evil, stayed evil, died evil.

Of course it could mean that Draco is going to die, too. :(

This is why I don't pay too much close attention to the interviews now that I know my fics are all AU. It's just depressing. I loved OOTP and it wasn't nearly as scary as the interviews made out so I try not to think of it.

Azalais :)

[ivyblossom.livejournal.com]

"[I'm worried about all the children dressing up as
Draco] ... You're all getting far too fond of Draco ... the dark is coming."

First...WAAHHH! Second, yeah, I mean. I figure that. I figure he will go very, very bad before the end. Perhaps he'll hook up with Voldemort in lieu of his father and kill someone. Could happen. Could try to take out Harry. Definitely bad things to come, but I still think the arc is incomplete without doing something with that character. If Harry can't save one little boy he's known since he was 11, what hope do we have?

I mean, even a deathbed apology is a form of redemption, like Star Wars, man. I mean, I disagree with some fandom crit that says Draco should have been redeemed, like, yesterday, and I accept that he will get worse before he can (possibly) get better.

Well, if he goes evil, I hope he goes TRULY evil. Beautifully evil, and not a paper-pushing evil like Percy.

[titanic-days.livejournal.com]

Marry me?

[ivyblossom.livejournal.com]

Yeah, okay. :D

[pro-caelio.livejournal.com]

If J.K. Rowling's intent is indeed to unite the four Houses through Harry and Draco, do you think that Draco's actions will ultimately become justified or merely explained? Will he be "redeemed" in the way that Snape is, meaning that he is technically on the side of Good, or will he be redeemed in the sense of actually re-thinking his prejudices and becoming a Good Person?

I seem to recall reading an interview in which Rowling stated that Draco would not fight alongside Harry. While this obviously does not preclude the possibility of Draco assisting Harry or the Order in some other non-active role, do you think it is likely that Draco will assist Harry at all? For what it's worth, my own opinion is that the most likely and most optimistic scenario would be for Draco to take a path of neutrality, in which he does not fight against Voldemort but does not fight with him either. This would also be a nice lead in for some hot Harry/Draco slash action in fan fiction after the series is done, as well.

I definitely wouldn't mind that.

[slinkhard.livejournal.com]

I believe the question asked was more specific, so that Harry and Draco wouldn't fight Voldemort together. But then Ron and Hermione haven't fought Voldemort with Harry - the final fight Harry will have to fight alone.
JK also said on the subject of Draco:
Well Harry rebuffs him because Malfoy is being so rude about Hagrid and about Ron who Harry likes so much and it’s at that point that Malfoy turns against him. Because Malfoy is, ------- yet again this is so frustrating, I can’t tell you everything I could tell you because it would ruin future books for you.

AND to the question: "Do you think that anyone in real life is truly evil like Draco Malfoy and Voldemort?"

"My instinct is to say that probably not, but I can' t answer that question without ruining the series for you.

[ixchelmala.livejournal.com]

*smirks*

Just keep it coming Ivy, it's all good!

[debellatrix.livejournal.com]

And not to mention that Harry must realize that if he had gone to Snape immediately, he could have avoided Sirius’s death.

[sistermagpie.livejournal.com]

This is so the way the book seems to want to go to me too--though those little quotes completely annoy me. We're getting too attached to Draco? I wish it would rub off on her!!!

Anyway, so, um, I totally agree. And have been thinking about my own thoughts on who Draco is all day, despite suspecting JKR has not given it the same thought.:-)

I completely believe that the only true way to make the points JKR seems to want in this book is to redeem Slytherin through Draco. He doesn't need to become a great guy but he does need to join Slytherin to Hogwarts once again. It has to be the kid that Harry hates the most, it should be a kid as a representative of the new generation. It should be Draco too because he is part of that family. He and Harry are already both closer than they think. They are both part of Sirius' family.

[yourpoison.livejournal.com]

*cries* wah... i'm having an "i wish i could buy the world a coke" moment.... i wish we could have a draco-lovers convention or slumber party or wake or something after book 7, where we console or celebrate or ... well, you know. all this faith. all this idealism.....

*burns candle*

[sheron]

Great! I totally agree! Plus, I was thinking that JKR devoted most of the fifth book to development of Harry. Wouldn't it almost detract from his development if we had to focus on Draco as well? We get Harry fleshed out more, Ron and other Gryffindors and finally get glimpses into lives of Ravenclaws and Hufflepuffs. I think Slytherins would be the next step. Not to mention that Harry's world is constantly expanding as he grows up, and JKR can't be making huge jumps from zero awareness to full awareness that Slytherins are people too -- she needs to show progression. And I think this progression has started in this book, with the Sorting Hat's song. But. Er. You said it so much better than me.

glomp

[aenea3.livejournal.com]

Your view on the sorting hat's song and what it could mean for the (hopeful) future of Draco's character development is incredible. My worries for our poor Draco who we love so much have been lessened reading your post. Let's all hope JKR takes some pity on the poor bastard's character.

aenea

[kylandra.livejournal.com]

One of the things that's bothered me since the first time I read the books is the House rivalry stuff. I mean, the whole point of these books, with the way Voldemort and the Death Eaters are set up like parallels to Hitler, seems to be that prejudice is a bad and dangerous thing. And yet, the entire House system seems to foster such prejudice, especially in regards to Slytherin.

The Sorting Hat song gave me a lot of hope that Rowling would be addressing this, and the sympathy created for Snape with the pensieve scene seemed to confirm it. But when, by the end of the book, it was the same old 'Slytherins are horrible' situation, I was starting to get frustrated.

The reasons you've outlined for why Rowling can't build too much sympathy for Draco (presuming that Draco will be a vehicle for this inter-House reconciliation/cooperation) makes sense. I can see why it would be a good idea to delay the cooperation further, which I wasn't seeing before.

For what it's worth, I think that Draco's offer of friendship was as sincere as any he's ever given, as sincere as we can expect from someone with his background. Relationships in Draco's world, like you mentioned, are all about connections, about being beneficial. At least, given the information we have about him; though Harry's POV leaves a lot unexplored, Draco doesn't seem to have what most people would consider "real friends". I think that Draco was offering Harry the most sincere relationship he can conceive of: let's respect each other and help further each other in status.

Yes, Draco's father is a Death Eater, but remember that not all children follow in the footsteps of their fathers. "Like father, like son," is not one of the themes of OoTP. Sirius' family were Voldemort supporters, but he's not. James was a cruel bully, just like Draco. Harry is not. Arthur Weasley is prepared to give his life for the Order, but Percy has betrayed them all. Genetic history doesn't always repeat itself, and that fact seems to be driven home pretty hard in this book.

But yes, Draco adores his father, and joins in on the Umbridge side. Remember of course that Umbridge is Ministry, not Death Eater, and Draco sure does value his Ministry connections. How close is Draco to the Death Eaters? He can't see the Thestrals, and therefore has never seen anyone die. In spite of being a jerk (like Sirius, like James), Draco is at present an innocent. His father is obviously a Death Eater, and a high ranking one, but Draco has been pretty carefully protected from all of that. He has the beliefs but not the knowledge nor the affiliation. My suspicion is that Lucius doesn't entirely trust his son yet, and I think he's right not to. Draco is liable to blab if it will help him jockey for position at school, and he is just a kid.

WORD. Word, word, word. This is one thing that always ticks me off about some people's perceptions of Draco. He's not a Death Eater, he's not torturing people or killing people, he's a kid. Yes, he's an asshole, and yes he has beliefs that make me want to smack him around, but that does NOT put him in the same company as his father, Voldemort or Bellatrix. It doesn't even necessarily mean he absolutely has to end up like them.

And besides, if Draco's going to go evil I want him to do it and grab power for himself, not by following Voldemort. Draco for Dark Lord 2008, baby!

[sistermagpie.livejournal.com]

Just wanted to say I totally agree Draco was offering sincere friendship. I don't think he even thought about friendships being connections or his father's background. He grew up in post-Voldemort world given his imagination I suspect he could easily picture the two of them being friends as crazy as it seems to us. Well, to some. I could see it too.

[kerri]

Oh, Ivy - I bow to your supreme ability to bring out and say so clearly what I am struggling to put my finger on.

I think that this is *so*, so possible. Despite what JKR says. I love her dearly, but I really am hoping that Draco won't turn out to be one of those characters that never strays from the mold they were cast in. The only worry I have is that this song *will* be about Harry hooking up with Slytherins - but that Draco won't be involved, that he will remain an example of a child of the "Dark Side". Why? Because I think it would be truly tragic to lose this opportunity that is available to do *so* much with a character.

But we won't know until the next book, or perhaps the last page of the last book - so until then I'll cling to essays like this one. :D

[justapresence.livejournal.com]

I never considered thinking about Draco this way, as I've always been blind and thought of him as the devil. But I'm glad I read this, and you are so good at explaining things. *adds to memories for later*

[ethereal-madman.livejournal.com]

wow, I mean, phew, who would have thought that such a small part of the book as the sorting hats new song could have meant so much.
I think I'm going off to read that entire chapter again.

[donnafantastico.livejournal.com]

You have no idea who I am, but would you mind terribly if I added this entry to my LJ Memories??? This is brilliant and is exactly what I've been trying to tell people for months, but naturally they never listen to me. Beh.

Anyway, fantastic entry! I'm so glad I stumbled upon this during my Night O'Pertual Boredom and lurking through other people's friend's lists. *shame*

[ivyblossom.livejournal.com]

LOL Hey, feel free! Mi casa est su casa! :)