Draco Malfoy Character Analysis in Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban

Harry's archenemy at Hogwarts. Malfoy is a Slytherin student in the same year as Harry. He comes from a wealthy family that used to support Voldemort while Voldemort was in power, and his father, Lucius Malfoy, continues to enjoy power at the Ministry of Magic despite his past. Malfoy is self-important and does whatever he can to annoy or taunt Harry, Ron, and Hermione, and delights when the trio gets in trouble. Malfoy demonstrates his maliciousness most when, after ignoring Hagrid's instructions and insulting the hippogriff Buckbeak, Buckbeak strikes him. Malfoy plays up his injuries and is vocally supportive of the ensuing trial with the Committee for the Disposal of Dangerous Creatures, which his father controls. He also uses his "injuries" to manipulate Quidditch games, and he takes every opportunity to torment Harry about the dementors.

Draco Malfoy Quotes in Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban

The Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban quotes below are all either spoken by Draco Malfoy or refer to Draco Malfoy. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:

). Note: all page numbers and citation info for the quotes below refer to the Scholastic edition of Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban published in 2001.

"We're witnesses," said Harry. "You said hippogriffs attack if you insult them. It's Malfoy's problem that he wasn't listening. We'll tell Dumbledore what really happened."

"Yeah, don't worry, Hagrid, we'll back you up," said Ron.

Related Characters: (speaker), (speaker), , ,

Page Number and Citation: 121

Explanation and Analysis:

Draco Malfoy Character Timeline in Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban

The timeline below shows where the character Draco Malfoy appears in Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.

...Crookshanks finally settles in an empty seat and watches Ron intently. An hour later, Draco Malfoy and his cronies, Crabbe and Goyle, stop by the compartment to ridicule Ron, but they... (full context)

...side of the gate. To make things worse, when he gets out of the carriage, Malfoy maliciously asks if Harry actually fainted. He stops, however, when Lupin asks if there's a... (full context)

At breakfast the next morning, Malfoy performs a mock swooning fit. The Slytherins all laugh and Pansy Parkinson yells at Harry... (full context)

...then leads the students to a paddock. When he asks them to open their books, Malfoy coldly asks how. Harry sees that most of the class's books are tied shut and... (full context)

...seems less confident after this and walks away to fetch the creatures for the lesson. Malfoy loudly says that his father is going to be upset when he learns Hagrid is... (full context)

...on the ground again, Hagrid sets up the rest of the class with the hippogriffs. Malfoy, Crabbe, and Goyle work with Buckbeak. Buckbeak bows to Malfoy but when Malfoy calls him... (full context)

Hagrid carries Malfoy towards the castle as the rest of the class disbands. Harry assures Hermione that Malfoy... (full context)

...about the attack and says it's all his fault. Hermione and Harry assure him that Malfoy did this to himself—he wasn't listening to directions. Hagrid pulls Harry and Ron into a... (full context)

Malfoy remains in the hospital wing until Thursday morning, when he comes to Potions halfway through... (full context)

Seamus asks Harry if he's heard—there's been a sighting of Sirius Black nearby. Malfoy gives Harry a mean look, asks Harry if he's planning on catching Black, and says... (full context)

...even put aside their argument over Crookshanks to promise to bring Harry candy from Honeydukes. Malfoy taunts Harry about the dementors as Harry walks Ron and Hermione to the door and... (full context)

...first Quidditch match, Oliver tells the team that they won't play Slytherin as planned since Malfoy is still "injured." They'll play Hufflepuff instead. He's worried because their new captain and Seeker,... (full context)

Harry is relieved to get back to normal life on Monday, though Malfoy taunts Harry by imitating Harry falling off during the match and, during Potions, he mimes... (full context)

...that he knows who's responsible, he wants revenge. Hermione looks panicked as Harry says that Malfoy has known about this all along, but Ron points out that Malfoy would love it... (full context)

...to put up a good defense, but Hagrid cries that the Committee members are Lucius Malfoy's cronies and Dumbledore is too busy to help. Harry can't bring himself to mention Black,... (full context)

...Penelope bet ten Galleons on the game, and he doesn't have the money to lose. Malfoy tries to taunt Harry about the Firebolt having a parachute, but the Gryffindors turn him... (full context)

...didn't feel anything, Lupin explains that the dementors weren't real and leads him to where Malfoy, Crabbe, Goyle, and the Slytherin Quidditch captain are struggling to crawl out of black robes.... (full context)

...one of the most severely haunted buildings in Britain. Suddenly, they hear voices and see Malfoy, Crabbe, and Goyle approaching. Malfoy is talking about Buckbeak's hearing and when he sees Ron,... (full context)

Harry races back to Honeydukes and hopes that nobody will believe Malfoy. He decides to leave the cloak in the tunnel and just as he closes up... (full context)

...tears and reads that Buckbeak's execution date hasn't been decided yet. Hermione says that Lucius Malfoy scared the Committee into it, and Ron promises to help with Buckbeak's appeal. At this,... (full context)

Responsibility, Morality, and Time Theme Icon

...day after class, Hagrid cries. As the trio walks up to the castle, they see Malfoy, Crabbe, and Goyle inside the castle doors, laughing at Hagrid. Hermione slaps Malfoy across the... (full context)

...of penalties and Gryffindor's lead grows. Harry sees the Snitch and races for it, but Malfoy grabs the Firebolt's tail and slows Harry down. Several Slytherin players converge on Angelina, so... (full context)

...they can't decide to kill Buckbeak without a fair appeal, but Harry suspects that Lucius Malfoy had a hand in this, especially given that Malfoy has started making comments about Buckbeak's... (full context)

Over the next few days, rumors fly about how Sirius and Buckbeak escaped. Malfoy is furious, while Percy spouts off about what he'll do once he gets a job... (full context)