viewing posts filed under #hp meta
Anonymous said:
From a doylist perspective, when it comes Harry committing sectumsempra I guess that even if JKR wrote that scene herself-she most likely still didn't want Harry to come off as unlikable for almost murdering someone? So she wrote his first kiss with Ginny in that same chapter to not only take away the main focus of the crime, but to also elevate Hinny as something positive that happened after something horrific? To get readers excited that "omg, Harry and Ginny finally kissed! They're the final pairing!" inside of going “did Harry just kill Draco???”
From a watsonian view though it just seems like Harry's running away from what he did and is using Ginny as a form of escape. Given that he kisses her immediately after that "incident" which is just..... such a weird choice for JKR to decide that that chapter is when Hinny will have their first kiss and not in a chapter more uplifting/romantic. Ironically, even as a child I always thought that the sectumsempra scene took attention away from Hinny’s first kiss and not the other way around. With my kid brain only wanting confirmation from Snape & Nurse Poppy on whether Draco was actually dead.
Yes exactly. It’s also weird framing because before the kiss we see Ginny come to Harry’s defense when everyone else is mad at him. But like. She just completely brushes off what he did in a way that feels very hero worshippy. I mean. She says it’s lucky Harry had something good up his sleeve.
And yes, Harry definitely had the right to defend himself against an Unforgivable being used by a probable Death Eater (and it’s weird that he’s so upset that Draco got hurt as a result) and it’s not his fault that he didn’t know what the spell did. But Harry would never have used the spell if he knew what it did. And he feels horrible. His true friends are able to stand up to him when he is wrong. And Ginny in boo 5 did this too. She calls him out several times. It’s why their dynamic in book 5 feels much better and more equal. Here though she’s just more like a fangirl.
So it comes across as him running away from his problems to someone who he doesn’t really like that much but who will take his mind of things and just be uncritically adoring of him…and who he has feelings of lust for. Like after the kiss he’s not excited to talk to her. He’s excited to take her off to somewhere private for unspecified romantic activities (since it’s YA).
And the fact that Harry’s brain goes “hmm. I need to stop thinking about Draco (for Reasons even tho I just discovered that I was 100% right about him but apparently him being a Death Eater isn’t worth investigating if he might get hurt)…what can even slightly fill the hole in my life? … I know. A girlfriend” is insane. If this was a drarry fic I’d say it was too unsubtle.
Sometimes I read book 6 and I have to pinch myself. Because some of the drarry is just too blatant to be canon. Right???
Draco Malfoy starts changing into his robes and Harry gets so distracted that he doesn't notice a potentially hostile person swinging a large object at his head.
I don't even know what to do with this information. This is a real thing. That happens in the real actual canon. It's printed in the book. It exists.
Not to mention that this is part of the same scene where a small gasp and a brief sight of part of a shoe are all it takes for Draco to recognize Harry. They are. So, so obsessed with each other.
myownishveer said:
‘Look, it’s none of your business what I’m doing, Crabbe, you and Goyle just do as you’re told and keep a lookout!’ ‘I tell my friends what I’m up to, if I want them to keep a lookout for me,’ Harry said, just loud enough for Malfoy to hear him.[HBP]
I'm REALLY sorry but harry lowkey likes to tease draco just as draco liked. Where is their bully–victim dynamic? Like he is almost WHISPERING(like draco used to do).Plus if he just wanted to investigate and find out, he would'n've talked(as he tells he hates him so much).That's why i feel he even lowkey misses their fights because draco doesn't talk to him at all.
(Also don't forget about how he can't focus in this part because can't stop thinking about him and dodges hermione and ron, too)
PLEASEEEEEE talk about it in detail thanks
No but this scene is so interesting because the only reason Draco even realizes Harry is there is because Harry interrupts him. If he just wanted to eavesdrop he could’ve stayed quiet. But he can’t. He has to engage. He can’t stop himself. Which directly parallels how in the earlier books it’s always Draco who is eavesdropping on Harry’s conversation and then butting in to try to get his attention. I don’t think Harry is consciously aware of his desire for Draco’s attention in book 6, but it’s really striking how as soon as Draco starts ignoring him Harry notices and seems bothered by it. If he just wanted to investigate Draco there’d be no reason for him to interject here.
Not to mention he loses interest in Quidditch as soon as it stops being relevant to his rivalry with Draco and Draco stops caring.
The fact that Draco Malfoy is canonically unable to cast a Patronus because he doesn’t have a happy enough memory to use for it is a MAJOR detail. He may be spoiled and doted on at home, and his mom clearly would do anything for him, but any kid with NO memories happy enough to conjure a Patronus whatsoever, is definitely not a kid with parents who are 100% warm and loving. I think this is a big reason why Lucius being full-on abusive is a common trope in fanfiction. There’s plenty of stuff in canon to contradict that - and yet Draco’s lack of Patronus isn’t exactly a point in Lucius’, or Narcissa’s, favor.
this isn’t in the books, it’s from the FAQ on jkr’s old site (source), and there it’s explained differently. but i like this reading, because i find the idea of draco having had a perfect, happy childhood terribly dull, even if it’s supported by the text. a sprinkling of pathos never fails to make things more compelling
darkcrowprincess said:
How voldmort treats Snape also makes me think of how voldmort when he found out about the two children the prophecy was about, hpw he chose the half blood child like him. I don't know what it means but it gives me something to think about. 🤔
Yep. Except even more-so. Harry’s mother is muggleborn, not actually a muggle, and if his parents had lived Harry would have grown up very integrated into the magical community and with a lot of wealth and basically lived a live comparable to that of any well-off pureblood child, even if his blood status would be looked down on by some traditionalists.
Snape on the other hand is the child of a muggle father and a witch mother who appears to be the victim of abuse just as Merope was (tho Merope’s abuse was at the hands of her father and brother, not Tom Sr.). His parents have a deeply troubled relationship. He didn’t have an involved parental figure, grew up in poverty, and experienced social ostracization. He understands the muggle world but is an outsider there, and also isn’t part of the pureblood elite. He’s extremely talented at and interested in magic. They are VERY similar.
And Voldemort definitely favors Snape in a way he doesn’t favor any of his other Death Eaters. He seems to enjoy interacting with him to some extent (and Snape is smart enough to follow what Riddle is saying and not fall for his sometimes cruel verbal traps the way Bellatrix does) and he never tries to degrade or humiliate him as he does with his other followers - even Bellatrix. He seems to genuinely admire Snape and never shows signs of contempt towards him. Snape also knows how to handle him - he understands that Tom doesn’t tend to appreciate or respect too much groveling - and Snape is able to manipulate him into believing he can be trusted.
Tom also gives Snape a chance to come back late and explain himself, rather than killing him on sight. He actually apologizes for killing him and expresses regret - the only time he ever does so - and seems unwilling/unable to use the killing curse on him. He also goes to great lengths to seek an alternative to killing Snape - and seems eager for Snape to know this fact, and to understand. Additionally, the whole book series happens because Snape asks Voldemort to spare Lily’s life…and he listens. And goes to great lengths to try to honor the request - even arguing with her. Yes, he ultimately kills her, but the fact that he truly would have let her go if she took him up on his offer is extraordinary. We don’t see him interacting with or treating any of his other Death Eaters in this way. Snape is different.
It’s a small, easy to forget but incredibly important detail that Draco befriended Moaning Myrtle.
Think about it. Draco Malfoy - Slytherin pureblood raised to be a blood supremacist Death Eater who threw the “Mudblood” slur around left and right as a child - grew so close with the ghost of a Muggle-born witch who was killed by his master that they exchanged all their secrets and she was his only true confidant in sixth year. He let her see a side of him that nobody else saw; he let her see that he is sensitive, and people bully him too, and he allowed himself to cry in front of her multiple times.
All of this is canon.
That unlikely friendship alone almost certainly contributed to his change in loyalties and loss of faith in Voldemort’s cause. Her being a ghost forced him to look past her blood status and - quite literally - see her soul. She helped open his eyes to how little a person’s blood status actually matters.
It’s absolutely ridiculous that JKR introduced this crucial, in many ways groundbreaking detail … and then totally brushed it off. A huge basis for a full redemption for Draco in Deathly Hallows was already established by this unlikely friendship, but of course, it went nowhere, because she just wouldn’t dwell on any positive plot point or character development for Draco that she herself came up with and put into canon.
Deconstructing Harry: The boy we meet in Philosopher's Stone to the man in Deathly Hallows
I have often seen fans talk about how nebulous Harry is as a character, especially in the earlier books. They can't make sense of who he is as a character and other more colourful, more actualized personalities take over our attention from any traits Harry might display. Harry becomes more defined for a lot of people OOTP onwards where he displays traits that sometimes make him unbearable or unlikable.
Harry, as we are introduced in PS, has a very little sense of self. He is narratively self deprecating or plays down his presence or skills, not that he is aware he has any. He grew up without any presence of him displayed in the house - no photos, no idea about his parents or what they look like or what really happened to them and discouraged from asking questions. Harry as we meet him is neglected, rootless about his identity and longs for escape. For him, every day is a battle against Dudley, who bullies him or Vernon, thus setting a worldview that never truly goes away: him vs adults. But just because Harry doesn't attach traits or values to self, does not mean he does not have it.
It's an effective narrative tool though - for Harry to be our eyes of the world. Only in later re-readings can we get a grasp of the traits that become more pronounced as books go on. Also, it's not surprising that Harry develops a better sense of self when he is removed from an abusive home.
Let me begin with this:
1. Harry is a fighter
One of the things that struck me in later re-readings is that how much of a fighter Harry is, from the very beginning. He will not lie down and take abuse. The narrative presents it as no big deal, because Harry doesn't assign any importance to it - it's every day life for him.
-Verbal standing up-
See his reaction to Uncle Vernon and the letter fiasco. He stands up for himself, even if it falls on deaf ears. "I want my letter - as it is mine!". Later on, in the same book, a completely befuddled 11 year old Harry stands up to Snape too, but in a politer way: "I think Hermione knows the answer. Why don't you try her?". He gets less polite with Snape as books go on. Harry's humor is something he employs liberally with Dudley when standing up to him - "The poor toilet's never had anything as horrible as your head down it - it might be sick" and we see this trait manifest into the sass we all know and love.
- Fight or flight-
He is remarkably good at "fighting himself out of tight corners" as Snape put it. And although Snape attributes it to luck and more talented friends, he is onto something about Harry's ability to worm out of tight corners. He lives moment to moment in a dangerous situation - relying on his nerve, very fast reflexes and athleticism. He is also able to notice things in an environment that will get him out of a quick pinch. You see this clearly in Department of Mysteries in Book 5 where he comes up with the idea to smash shelves, the mad idea to escape on a dragon, the ministry escape where he manipulates Runcorn's image (as he noticed how people were reacting to him) to create chaos and get the Muggleborns and the trio out, Chamber of Secrets when he instinctively understood the diary is the source of power and stabbed it.
Where does the athleticism and ability to spot dangerous situation come from? This boy has spent a decade cheeking Dudley and running away from his gang, spotting when he needs to get out of the way as "long experience had told him to be out of Uncle Vernon's arms reach" or "ducking when Aunt Petunia aimed a frying pan at his head". The instinct to see a dangerous situation develops over the course of the books in his adventures - to the point Harry unconsciously brings out his wand in Tottenham road without thinking too much about it. He is almost always wary and less quick to lower his wand.
When hiding/ escaping is not an option, Harry is not above physical fighting - despite how small and skinny he is in Book 1. Both he and Dudley fight for a chance to listen at the door when letter first arrives for Harry. Dudley wins the fight. Later on, Harry jumps Uncle Vernon from behind and hangs on to his neck to get his letter. He even does the same thing to the troll in the same book. ( Then over the course of series, we see him beat up Sirius in Book 3, Malfoy in Book 5, strangle Mundungus in Book 6 - all of these are related to his fury over the dead, so different context. But still).
- Manipulation/ Cunning-
11 year old Harry even tries sneakily - waking up early to get his letter (unfortunately didn't work). The other sneaky methods he has employed throughout the series is - not telling Dursleys at end of PS that he is not allowed magic at home, threatens Dudley with it in COS, not telling them Sirius is innocent to play up the threat of a murderous godfather to keep them accountable, and also the smooth way he negotiates with Uncle Vernon for Hogsmeade letter. ("Well it will be hard work, pretending to aunt Marge that I go to St Whatsits" ,"Knocking the stuffing out of me won't make Aunt Marge forget what I could tell her"). He similarly displays his negotiation and playing to what he knows about people with Slughorn in Book 6, Pettigrew in Book 7.
The scene with Slughorn is disturbing, with Harry coercing a drunk Slughorn to give up his memory. You can argue that this is the influence of Felix Felicis, but I think the potion acted more as facilitation. The disturbing way Harry brings up his mother's murder to unnerve Slughorn is his own doing. ("Voldemort stepped over my father's body towards mum" "I forgot - you liked her, didn't you?"). Again, in a life threatening situation, Harry plays to Pettigrew's latent guilt: "You are going to kill me? After I saved your life? You owe me Wormtail!"
2. Relational justice over abstract justice
Harry's concept of justice is relational and based on his high empathy for the underdog. He notices power dynamic in a situation and empathises with the victim. This is in contrast to Hermione, who has more abstract, bigger picture view of justice. It's no wonder that Hermione is the one who is the most political of the three.
His high empathy for the underdog and needing to stand up for them is because he feels responsiblility that no one should go through what he went through. He stands up for Neville in PS and encourages him to stand up for himself. When he sees his father bullying Snape, it is not about an abstract "this is wrong behavior". Harry goes further: "Harry knew what it felt like to be taunted among a circle of onlookers" , Harry focuses on young Snape's mismatched clothes because he himself knows what it's like to wear clothes that are not yours or ones that make you look ridiculous. His empathy extends to Voldemort too - understanding why he may not want to go back to his orphanage and desire to be in Hogwarts, wondering why Merope wouldn't stay alive for her son, his fixation with Voldemort's maimed soul in King's Cross chapter and later asking Voldemort to feel remorse (" I have seen what you will become otherwise"). Even his reaction to Dobby in COS - "Can't anyone help you? Can't I?" when Dobby talks about his slavery. Hermione is usually seeing the bigger picture, Harry sees the individual.
3. Pathological mistrust of adults
He is less likely of the trio to take an adult at their words or be assured by them when they say they are taking care of things. He has learnt, from a very young age, that he is always expected to take care of himself. And the times he does take things to adult, they consistently disappoint him - by patronising him or acting like he is a child, neither of which he has tolerance for or appreciates. This is why he takes to Sirius and Lupin, who exhibit neither of these communication patterns. In some ways, Mr Weasley too.
Umbridge's abuse of him for him is framed as a battle of wills between her and him, as if he is an equal. And he loses if he complains - "not giving her a satisfaction of knowing she got to me". Harry's worldview has always been - adult vs him.
His inability to trust adults even extends to the ability of adults he likes to look after themselves. While Sirius is understandably a wreck in OOTP, he has by and large followed Dumbledore's orders. This doesn't register with Harry (Ron points it out: "Sirius listens to Dumbledore even though he doesn't like what he hears") and Harry's fears about Sirius, excaberated by Sirius's tendency for recklessness, comes to play.
He even showed similar distrust in Lupin's judgement in taking a potion from Snape in POA ("Harry felt the urge to knock the goblet out of Lupin's hands" and tries to hint at Lupin that Snape will "do anything" for DADA job). And he shows this once again with the most magically powerful wizard he knows - Dumbledore. ("if I tell you to abandon me and save yourself, you must do so". Dumbledore has to insist on this before Harry nods reluctantly. It's also Dumbledore's wording, but this is a wizard Harry feels safe with almost entirely because of his power - and yet Harry cannot obey an order like this without reluctance). It's not about Harry's own ability to take care of them - he just innately cannot leave people to it.
4. Humor as a value and coping mechanism
Harry has an established coping mechanism by the time we are introduced to him - quip in the face of danger/ dark humor. There are repeated instances of Harry amusing himself with snarky comments in his head when things are really bad for him. Like in PS, when they are in the hut, Harry wonders if the roof will fall in and then thought that if it did fall in, he might be warmer. In the earlier books (before his growth), he seems to value Ron over Hermione simply because he is more "fun". Harry enjoys being around funny people like Ron, Weasley twins, later Ginny simply because there is some dark stuff happening with him and he needs "fun" people for semblance of normalcy, escape. In fact, this desire is so strong, he attaches it to his romantic relationships: Ginny is a "blissful oblivion" and times with her are "something out of someone else's life". His relationship with Cho failed because her coping mechanism is discussing her trauma and Harry's is escaping it.
-dealing with conflict with people he likes, small digression-
A part of his growing up in later books includes valuing Hermione as much he values Ron and we see it in display in HBP, where he is more willing to stand up for her to Ron (something he kind of did more quietly before in POA - "can't you give her a break?" ) and also get confrontational with her instead of using Ron as a buffer between them to fend off her more boisterous/ bossy tendencies. ("let him make up his mind" "skip the lecture" "don't nag" - Ron took the heat in earlier books. In HBP, Harry is more willing to be irritable with her in a day-to-day interaction - "I hope you enjoy yourself" he tells Hermione when she states her intention to investigate Half Blood Prince. Or when she tests the book - "Finished? Or do you want to see if it does backflips?" "Do you have rub it in Hermione, how do you think I feel now?" at the end of HBP. ) In OOTP, his best method to deal with her when she bothers him was lying, avoiding her nagging and if that doesn't work, explode and treat her to display of his temper. There is more to explore here, of course - even with regard to how he deals with Mrs Weasley in Book 4, 5 and the difference of him hugging her in Book 7.
5. Fascination with the dead/ a passive death wish
Harry feels remarkably little sense of betrayal knowing that he was set up to die by Dumbledore. His self sacrificing streak is rooted in his love, yes, but I also think Harry is a little bit too fascinated by death, not surprising considering most people he loved are dead. Him wanting the resurrection stone in DH, him obsessively spending time at Mirror of Erised (to the point he feels feverish and Ron thinking he looks strange) until Dumbledore stops him, him almost wanting to fail to learn a Patronus because he wants to hear his parents voice, the hearing of whispering voices in the Veil in OOTP which only Luna could hear apart from him, the scene at the grave where he almost wishes he was "lying under the snow" with his parents, the possession scene in the book of OOTP has him wishing to die so he can be with Sirius. You can almost argue the Harry has, in many moments, shown raw desire of death. In fact, him choosing to let go of the stone and not go looking for it is a big character decision for him.
I also want to address Harry's temper and how that develops over course of series, the implications of understanding the people he loved and put on pedestal are flawed - but I am afraid this post is already way too long. So I will leave that for some time later.
For the record, “DON’T KILL HIM!” - Draco’s yell when Harry is being attacked, caps lock and all - is not the kind of thing an ordinary bully screams when someone they despise is in danger, it’s more like the kind of thing that … you know … a person in love screams when the object of their affections is in danger. That’s just a fact.
Also, this is the most upset we EVER see Draco get and the only time we see him completely lose control himself like this.
I can't get over how downright bizarre the Sectumsempra scene and its aftermath are from a non-drarry perspective. Like, truly without drarry there is just no way to make sense of it.
Let us assume for a moment that Harry has no special or complicated feelings for Draco at all and just dislikes him and views him as an enemy. Furthermore, he suspects Draco of being a Death Eater so much that he follows him around constantly and also gets hit in the head because he gets so distracted while watching him change. And finally he catches Draco saying some incredibly sketchy and incriminating things. And then Draco ATTACKS him. And THEN Draco tries to use an extremely illegal and extremely dark spell on him. A spell that Harry already has very traumatic experience with.
And this is the same Harry Potter who killed Quirrel at age 11, never felt bad about it, and earlier in book 6 even noted that he still believes Quirrel deserved what he got. The same Harry who took Lockhart hostage and made him walk first into a Basilisk's lair so he'd be eaten instead of Harry or Ron. The same Harry who in book 5 was fully prepared to curse a Death Eater whose brain had been regressed to that of a baby because he was an enemy. The same Harry who in book 7 was willing to stun Death Eaters even knowing that this would likely lead to them falling to their deaths.
So this Harry in a desperate act of self defense uses an unknown spell and ends up seriously injuring Draco - an enemy who he feels nothing but dislike for and who just attacked him - and then he feels so crushingly bad for hurting Draco that he has a panic attack on the spot, never reports Draco's suspicious words or use of an illegal spell even though that 100% would've gotten him expelled and jailed, and then completely stops trying to follow him or interrupt his plans??!! What?
No way. If Harry's feelings for Draco are more complicated than simple dislike. If, despite every reason he has to hate him, he can never bring himself to hate Draco and indeed feels drawn to him in a way he doesn't fully understand or want to acknowledge. If they are deeply intertwined and drawn to each other like loadstones. If despite all the odds there is an unspoken affection between them deeper than loyalties or logic that makes them always watch each other and always understand each other and always save each other, then it makes sense.
But as written? Utterly bizarre. And even crazier when you remember that JKR also maintains that Draco is just a simple villain with no complexity or redeeming features.
This whole sequence makes ZERO sense from a Doylist perspective. From a Watsonian perspective though drarry is canon.
As a seasoned Draco Malfoy stan, I appreciate and enjoy reading too much into every single one of his book appearances but if I was forced, gun to my head, to pick just one as my favorite I'd probably go with the astronomy tower scene in HBP.
Draco and Dumbledore's conversation is truly a standout gem like few others in the books and any Malfoy scholar worth their salt ought to be well-versed in it; it's a veritable keystone moment for Draco's character development as it offers a glimpse into his inner workings like nothing else does, not to mention the much needed nuance and depth it adds to his characterisation. I felt like it was my civic duty to contribute to the Malfoy studies curriculum with a deeper look into Draco's Big Moment so I went ahead and produced this,