authorial intent

[lotesse]

Adding to the discussion that's been linked by metafandom, just one thing:

If an author's intent is not made clear by the text, that's her problem, not ours. And we don't have to listen to any explanations. If JK wrote Draco as a little psychopath, that would be one thing. But obviously she didn't. She may think that she did. But hundreds of fen find him sympathetic. I don't love him myself, but it seem to me that for the story to develop properly he can't just be a demon from hell. It's not the Way of Stories. And so I have a hard time believing him to be the source of all evil. If that upsets JK, her problem again. I feel that way because to a certain extent she failed as a writer.

Writing is all about communication. A writer is one who communicates through words, and a storyteller is one who communicates through stories. And if JKR didn't tell the story she meant to, it's not my problem.

Comments

[hyel.livejournal.com]

I actually think she did manage to paint him as - well, not the source of all evil, but a right little shit. It's just that fangirls love blond hair and pointy chins and completely recreated him. That's okay! I recreate characters when I write them, snip here and there and make an image I can better adore. Nothing wrong with that, but, as said, I don't think it's a question of the author's failing in this case.

[lotesse]

Of course fanon!Malfoy exists! But I do think that JK's Malfoy is problematic, mainly because he's written as a cardboard cut-out of a childhood nemesis. He's not realistic in the slightest. He just remains pathetic and puerile and does not resopnd logically to the things happening around him. JK's put too much into setting up the James-Snape dynamic (bullying is bad!) to be able to have Draco stay the way he is, IMO. In OotP, for example, Harry does that great bit where he's sympathizing with Snape after peeking in the Pensieve, and then launches right into Malfoy. He even thinks something along the lines of "How awful! But maybe if it was Malfoy...". I just don't see how JK can leave that sort of mental inconsistency. Both Harry and Draco need to grow up, and I can't help but feel that it can only happen if Draco is shown to be a wee bit more complex than "Malfoy Bad. Urgh."

[hyel.livejournal.com]

I don't think that's inconsistent. Harry finds out his dad's a bully, and he knows from his dealings with Draco how that's a Very Bad Thing. He angsts because he doesn't know how to accept dad wasn't perfect, he's confused, but at least he can still be sure that Draco's a git and Draco he's not in any way obligated to make excuses for. He can't hate his dad, but he can hate Draco, and thus safely exercise his moral ideas in an uncomplicated scenario of Draco's a git, let's hurt Draco. Of course if he starts thinking about how his behaviour towards Draco might be comparable to his dad's behaviour that's back into the ow brain hurts area, but didn't he sort of resolve that - decide that what he does to Malfoy isn't the same thing, because he doesn't bother Malfoy if Malfoy doesn't bother him or his friends first? James and Sirius just humiliated Snape because they were bored. That's the sort of thing Malfoy does, not Harry.

And, well, the series isn't over yet. Malfoy might change in some direction. *thinks* The way I've seen it go for boys like him is that if they're bullies and "cool" in junior high, they're losers in senior. Doesn't work in this context, though, since the stages aren't separated...

[lotesse]

Right. It's perfectly explicable inconsistency. But I think that the problem comes in when JK starts to sound like she doesn't see it that way. If Harry realizes his own errors in judgement and manages to grow past the "Draco is a git" mentality, I'll be perfectly happy. But when fen say that, JK seems to usually retort "you justb like tom felton" or somesuch. And that troubles me.

No one is saying that Harry has to be morally perfect right now. All that I'm worried about is the hints that the author truly believes that he already is.

[hyel.livejournal.com]

But Draco IS a git. And Harry is a better person than his dad was, or than Draco is, because he realises the difference between reacting to provocation or protecting your friends and going after someone just because he's there and you're bored. I mean, Draco doesn't see anything wrong with hurting others to gain prestige or for fun, or doesn't care if it's wrong, and James saw nothing wrong with hurting someone who is unpleasant to gain prestige or for fun... Well, basically, if Draco finds Ron, Neville and those others unpleasant, then he's not doing anything worse than James was, or rather, James was doing the exact same thing Draco is. Harry thinks they're both wrong, and I think he's right. He forgives his dad and Sirius, I think, because they're not like that anymore. If Draco stopped being a git, Harry would probably forgive him too. But he'd have to stop first.

[(Anonymous)]

Harry is a better person than his dad was, or than Draco is, because he realises the difference between reacting to provocation or protecting your friends and going after someone just because he's there and you're bored.

Heh. Guess you got served by HBP, what with Harry hexing people in the halls and all, huh?

[lotesse]

Yo. no sassing my girl. Year, I disagree with her too, but still. Not on.