Draco's Weakness

Discussion of The Burrow article Draco's Weakness (www.mugglenet.com/editorials/theburrow/edit-rebeccaw.shtml) by Rebecca W.

Good editorial! I think it's important that we as readers not mistake "kindness" for a "weakness," however Draco might do so. Also, how do we account for Draco's conscience? He hasn't seemed to have had one in the first five books, or else he's been marvelously adept at repressing or ignoring it (Occlumency and compartmentalization). I'm most interested to see the light that Ms. Rowling will shed in the seventh book on Draco's inner struggles; upon that lightning-struck tower was he struggling with fear, conscience, honor, greed, or some mixture of them all?

Interesting choice to view Draco's traits from his own point of view, calling "weaknesses" what we might see as strengths (at least in the case of kindness). I don't think you make a very good case for the 3 weaknesses though. Draco might not have killed Dumbledore, but he did endanger the lives of 2 students with his half-***** plots. That was hardly kind. If his reluctance to kill Dumbledore was due to his kindness, he must have just a very small smidgen left.
As for cowardly and dependent, you actually wrap the two of them up together: Draco is dependent, therefore he is cowardly. But there are other ways to interpret his reliance on friends: how about as common sense? If friends can help, why not use them?
Though this means Malfoy has now failed and faces almost certain death by Voldemort, there is also good news -- he has saved himself from being a murderer.
I have my doubts about this. Narcissa obviously thought that Draco's life would be spared as long as the task was completed, even if Snape had to finish it himself. She should have a pretty good clue, since both her husband and sister are death eaters.

VERY GOOD AND WELL WRITTEN AND I HOPE THAT DRACO DOES REDEEM HIMSELF AND REALISES THAT HE IS NOT WEAK AT ALL.:tu: I HOPE HE COMES OVER TO THE GOOD SIDE AND HELPS HARRY. THEY WILL NEVER TRULY BE FRIENDS BUT AT LEAST THEY MIGHT LIKE LUPIN AND SNAPE COME TO SOME COME OF UNDERSTANDING.

I thought your editorial did a good job looking into Draco. I think that he is dependant *because* he is a coward. He is afraid to work alone (unlike Voldemort!) and so gathers his cronies around him to support him; but at the same time, he doesn't trust them, so he ultimately *is* alone (very much like Voldemort). Harry has his friends too, who support him - but he trusts them, they work together and are stronger for it. And that is a big difference right there between good and evil, in just about any series.
I'm not sure I would characterize Draco's failed attempts to kill Dumbledore as "kindness" though. Its something, something threatening to break through - I'm just not sure what exactly, not yet. It will be interesting to see what path Draco takes in the final book; given his huge failure on the tower, will he push harder toward the Dark Arts, or redeem himself (which we all know we want!)?
~Gina :)

Oh, and in reply to the post from Ginnyshex - i think that the Unbreakable Vow between Snape and Narcissa regarding Draco might still be in play. Didn't he vow to protect Draco? So if Voldemort comes after the boy for failing to kill Dumbledore, won't Snape be obligated to protect Draco?
I don't have the book right now so I don't know if I am interpreting that right. If so, it could make for a very interesting plot twist in book seven. If so, Snape might be on the right side after all.
~Gina (again) :)

When I read HBP I had the lingering feeling that Draco wasn't entirely evil, or at least not evil enough to be a Death Eater. This editorial does a good job of describing what went through my mind after I finished the book and the reasons why Draco wasn't able to kill Dumbledore. I think in order to believe that Draco can redeem himself you have to see his actions from his standpoint. First of all, just look at where he comes from, a whole family of Death Eaters. Naturally, he would be influenced by their prejudice long before he can make his own judgments. Also, we have to keep in mind that the task of killing Dumbledore was appointed to him, for all we know Draco may have not wanted to do it, plus Voldemort threatened to kill him and his family if it wasn’t performed. He was afraid, and fear was what made him act, I don't think it was his desire to kill or to be a glorified servant of Voldemort. As we saw from the scene where he cries in Mrytle's bathroom, he's just a boy trying to figure things out. I think there's more room for sympathy now that Draco has shown that he's not a killer.

Good editorial! I too hope that Draco redeems himself, because we see in HBP that Draco was just hiding his true self all this time. Something I noticed, after I read this book, that I used to call him Malfoy, but now I call him Draco.

Yay for Draco hopefully redeeming hisself!!!! I loved the editorial, one slight flaw though. "Cowardice". In books like 1-5 ya, he's pretty much a cowardd no nice way to put it, but not in book 6. People say he's a coward in book 6 & I really don't see it. He & his family are threatend with death if he doesn't kill Dumbledore. Ends up about to kill Dumbledore, Dumbledore offers him help & protection, Draco can't kill him. How is that cowardice? Cause he couldn't do it? No, if you were in his position would you do anything different?! Hmm, man I'm suppose to kill offers me & my family help & protection from the most evil wizard of all time....the smart thing to do is take Dumbledores help! It's not being a coward, it's being smart & not a murderer! Sorry, just my two cents.

Cowardess, dependence, those two are similar and I can certainly see those as some of Draco's weaknesses. Kindness, sorry, no.
Draco has never been kind, nor has he been taught to be kind; I doubt he even knows HOW to be kind.

But... I do think something else is there. Indecision, perhaps? This would tie in to the dependence and cowardess. THere isn't a lot of evidence to support that except for the tower-scene, though.

I don't believe that a "third" weakness is sympathy or pity or understanding or anything that the good people would look at as a strength.

Ignorance, that is certainly a weakness Draco has, but it's not quite what I"m looking for... Hmmm....

This was a very interesting editorial, while still hitting some very good points. You have listed Malfoy's weaknesses, yet still left one very important one out--Harry.

I believe that Harry is one if not the biggest weakness of Malfoys of all. This is because you have never seen Malfoys face Harry alone once. Just like you stated he has never been seen without one of his little groupies. But I disagree one time, just one time he has faced someone alone. I can't remember who though. But with Harry its a different story, it is almost as if he has not even attempted to face Harry alone--I will say this once more MALFOY FEARS HARRY POTTER!!!

I also believe that if the other Death eaters has not come to Malfoy's aid he wouldn't have put a scratch on Dumbledore. That is why I totally agree with you when you say that one of Draco's weaknesses is kindness.

Um...oh yeah, you also stated that, well quoted that Dumbledore said to Malfoy that he was not a murderer and I completely believe Dumbledore. Dumbledore was a great man, if you think so too you should check out "In Dumbledores Honor", it brought me to tears.

I didn't think that i would write something this long but I did. Oh well-- But before i go does anyone hate Snape as much as I do.:tu:

I agree, Draco really isn't evil- annoying insults to Harry and acting insolent can hardly qualify as evil. A jerk yes, but not evil. Being pushed into being a death eater by threats of killing his family shows his weakness for not standing up for himself, and actually shows that he loves his family to some extent. And the fact that Draco Malfoy has been crying in the girl's bathroom's REALLY shows that he is human and not all evil.

Another place that it shows Draco Malfoy isn't evil is the hesitation when Dumbeldore tells him that he can be hidden in the 'good side', he's really thinking and considering this idea.

However, although it is possible that Draco Malfoy to be redeemed, I think he will be murdered for his own cowardice and weakness, a tragic ending to a character that was shoved his whole life in a situation that he didn't feel comfortable with, hiding his thoughts behind arrogance and insults afraid to show his true colors, which indeed brought on his 'weakness' and probably his own downfall.

back up one moment how in all of the Harry Potter world is kindness a trait/weakness of Draco? You have obviously clearly deleted text which shows that Draco is not only not kind but not backed up your claim with any concrete proof evidence.
Draco didn't kill Dumbledore because he's a coward and got distracted, sure he probably didn't want to kill Dumbledore, but that doesn't indicate kindness it indicates innocence and possible goodness. all in all i do want Draco to be redeemed and live even though i despise hius guts, but to say he is kind is rediculous.

Interesting article! Draco has many layers.
I think that it is also worthwhile to note that Draco essentially is a pleaser. He is the heir to a long line of purebloods whose similarity to the Nazi party is astounding! He is his father's boy and, as such, there is much expected of him by the other death eaters and Voldemort supporters as he comes of age. It is likely that his community assumes that he will equal if not supercede Lucius in his loyalty and usefullness to the dark cause. Draco is the bright star of the next generation of Voldemort supporters. He seems eager to demonstrate his importance as an individual. He doesn't seem so much evil as desperate to be recognized. One wonders if his true dislike of Harry lies in that Harry upstages Draco in celebrity and fame, two things that Draco seems to equate with importance. Draco is after-all a "pure-blood" and a wealthy one at that! In his imaginatin he should be deffererd to before someone like Harry is defferred to. Therefore, the reader whitnesses series after series of attempts by Malfoy to "dethrone" Harry whether that be at Quidditch or Potions. Any mar on harry's image is a valadation of Malfoy's importance. It actaully seems not to be about "the cause" with Malfoy but simply is own sense of self. In turn, if his actions satisfy his parents and their supporters then he feels inflated and not so upstaged by Harry. He loves to do thing that will earn him the praise of those of the same sympathies. He rarely does anything to be silently evil...it's always something that gives him bragging rights or raises his level of importance (Ie...turning in Hagrid to his father and the ministry...turning in Harry to McGonnegal...throwing in his towel with Voldemort which will eventually raise him to a level above Harry in importance if he has thrown in with the winning side...he will also be the boy who defeated Dumbledore)Furthermore it is worth considering that it was just a coincidence that he ws born into a family of death eaters, being that if he "happened" to be born into a family of Dumbledore supporters one gets the feeling that he would have been just as eager to please his "James and Lilly Potter-ish" parents and Dumbledore. In other words...the bad does not stem so much from Draco as it does from the circumstances surrounding his birth and rearing. He was bread to be bad. And he is a natural authority pleaser.

Yes this article was interesting. I don't totally get the whole kindness bit though. I'm a bit lost there. Draco was just stuck in a bad situation. He at first loved this new role he was given. A chance to prove himself to the Dark Lord. To make his parents and himself proud. I think at first he wasn't think about the consequences, however as the job started to prove more and more difficult he started to analyze the situation. He saw the outcome of this if the task wasn't done. His feeble attempts to try and curse and poison Dumbledore. He started to really think then. He really felt scared then, and we can see that in the breakdown that he got in Moaning Murtle's bathroom. And he couldn't find it in himself to kill Dumbledore, cause no matter how evil and mean Draco was, he definetly wasn't a killer. Which he had seen. He's definetly had lalot to think about. I do feel however at the beginning of book 7he'll still have his same persona and little by little it'll change throughout the book. I think he might actually be angry at Snape for killing Dumbledore when it wasn't his job. Maybe, maybe not.

Great Editorial! It definately brings out another side to Draco, because we all know him as an evil person always trying to make Harry's life miserable. Since the last book is approaching, I think it would be good to give many of the characters that we have come to loathe and despise, a chance to redeem themselves, including Malfoy, or maybe even Snape. And also, Malfoy is only a teenager, who has been burdened with things that he shouldn't really have to deal with at his age. If he grew up in a different environment, I think that he wouldn't be in the same situation that he is in right at the end of HBP, where he attempts to kill Dumbledore and fails. There it shows that he isn't really the Draco Malfoy that he everyone thinks he is.

This is what I think is going to happen

Draco will betray the Death Eaters because he only joined because he was threatened by Voldermort. In HBP Draco was lowering his wand because Dumbledore was going to offer him help I believe he would accept Dumbledores offer if the other Death Eaters didn't intrude. Malfoy wouln't have killed Dumbledore he was afraid.

IN number 7 my estimation is Harry is going to be the 7th Horcruxes on the account of Gordric Gryfinndors Treasure. Harry will kill vodermort and then will ask Malfoy to kill him with the killing curse so Voldermort can't live through Harry as the 7th Horcruxes. Malfoy then kills him to redeem himself.

Thats is my estimation