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Inspired by these 2 questions: Did Draco Malfoy Demonstrate Any Level of Redemption By the End of the HP Series? and What kind of man did Draco Malfoy become?

In the Epilogue, Draco married Astoria Greengrass and had a son, Scorpius Malfoy. During that scene at the King's Cross Station, Draco greeted Harry and Ginny. I'm convinced that Draco doesn't hate or doesn't have resentment towards Harry. Does Harry know that Draco was redeemed and doesn't want to be a Death Eater anymore?

Gallifreyan
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The Witch King of Angmar
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    Malfoy didn't really have any option when it came to being a Death Eater or not since the movement was disbanded. It's entirely debatable whether or not he showed any remorse at all. If he did, the only snippet we have of Harry on which to judge his alleged response is the epilogue. Which doesn't contain any insights on Harry's reaction. Basically, I think this question's based on a false premise and is unanswerable. :[ – The Dark Lord Jun 15 '17 at 21:43
  • @TheDarkLord You say that, but one of the quotes that came to my mind was from 6, "He despised Malfoy still for his infatuation with the Dark Arts, but now the tiniest drop of pity mingled with his dislike. Where, Harry wondered, was Malfoy now, and what was Voldemort making him do under threat of killing him and his parents?" Obviously that's before the events of the last book, but again in 7 we have the scene where Harry watches Malfoy being forced to torture Rowle. Then, as you say, there's the epilogue, and the fact that they save him twice, – Au101 Jun 15 '17 at 23:37
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    and the fact that nobody minds them being in the Great Hall after the battle. Obviously there's also The Play Which Must Not Be Named, if you wanna go down that godforsaken road. I actually don't think it's a bad question, but it's hard to answer. All those things are things you could work with, but I can't make an answer out of them myself and I'm not touching the sin of Thorne – Au101 Jun 15 '17 at 23:39
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    @Au101 What play? There is no play. Yeah, Harry felt sorry for Draco at various points. But the question is asking about redemption. – The Dark Lord Jun 16 '17 at 02:15
  • @TheDarkLord Sure, but he felt sorry for him for a reason. He felt sorry for him, for instance, because he thought he was being manipulated and forced on pain of death to do things he didn't want to do. I think there's material here that you could work with. I'm not sure I can produce an answer and maybe you're right and nobody will be able to, but I don't feel it's a false premise or close worthy myself – Au101 Jun 16 '17 at 02:20
  • "Redeemed". You keep using that word. I do not think it means what you think it means. – DavidS Jun 22 '17 at 11:08
  • @TheDarkLord Presumably Cursed Child? – Pryftan Jun 10 '18 at 23:09
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    @Au101 Love the pun. The play... you must be referring to Cursed Child? Amusing way to refer to it. – Pryftan Jun 10 '18 at 23:10

1 Answers1

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Yes.

Before Voldemort's death

Harry has a vision through Voldemort's eyes of Draco being forced to torture Rowle.

“More, Rowle, or shall we end it and feed you to Nagini? Lord Voldemort is not sure that he will forgive this time. . . . You called me back for this, to tell me that Harry Potter has escaped again? Draco, give Rowle another taste of our displeasure. . . . Do it, or feel my wrath yourself!”

A log fell in the fire: Flames reared, their light darting across a terrified, pointed white face — with a sense of emerging from deep water, Harry drew heaving breaths and opened his eyes.

He was spread-eagled on the cold black marble floor, his nose inches from one of the silver serpent tails that supported the large bathtub. He sat up. Malfoy’s gaunt, petrified face seemed branded on the inside of his eyes. Harry felt sickened by what he had seen, by the use to which Draco was now being put by Voldemort.

*Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Chapter 9, A Place to Hide

Clearly, Harry is horrified by what Voldemort's doing to Draco. He feels sickened by the use to which Draco was being put by Voldemort. Why would he feel sick? He knew Draco wasn't happy becoming a Death Eater.

After Voldemort's death

The Death Eaters were rounded up and put into Azkaban. Seeing that Harry became an Auror and Draco didn't go to jail for being a temporary Death Eater, we can put two and two together and say that Harry knew Draco was redeemed.

[...] as the morning drew on, that the Imperiused up and down the country had come back to themselves, that Death Eaters were fleeing or else being captured, [...]

*Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Chapter 36, The Flaw in the Plan

Draco also appears in the Epilogue at King's Cross to send off his son to Hogwarts. He acknowledges Harry, who in turn doesn't go and punch Draco in the face.

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Voronwé
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  • Who is rowle? What book are you referring to? – The Witch King of Angmar Jun 21 '17 at 16:34
  • Both quotes are from Deathly Hallows. Here's Thorfinn Rowle's Wikia page. – Voronwé Jun 22 '17 at 09:29
  • What page is that in the deathly Hallows – The Witch King of Angmar Jun 22 '17 at 09:35
  • Edited it in my answer, we may have different publishers of the book, but mine is Bloomsbury (New Edition): Page 140 and 609 – Voronwé Jun 22 '17 at 09:38
  • People keep saying "redeemed". Malfoy did absolutely nothing to earn any "redemption" - all he did was refuse to outright murder Harry during the Battle Of Hogwarts, in which he was still working for Voldemort. The use of the word "redeemed" is completely inappropriate here - it implies some action or intent to make up for his past crimes, and Malfoy does no such thing, nor indicate any desire to do so. – DavidS Jun 22 '17 at 11:06
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    DavidS, Disagreed. – The Witch King of Angmar Jun 26 '17 at 18:19
  • @DavidS Not positively identifying the trio including the Mudblood - as he called Hermione repeatedly and even docks points simply because of that fact - Hermione as any kind of redemption? He could have said yes; and although he confronts the trio in The Room of Hidden Things he doesn’t seem bent on hurting them. You can argue that he only did it because The Dark Lord was to kill Harry but what about the others? And need I remind you that Severus can use this conveniently when he wants to protect Harry? – Pryftan Jun 10 '18 at 23:20
  • @DavidS Also Rowling wrote that he wasn’t capable of murder and this confused him as his father had no problem with this type of violence. And he certainly didn’t enjoy being forced to torture Rowle &c. The fact he probably wouldn’t have cared if Harry were to be killed years earlier should say something too. Doesn’t mean he’s a nice person but there’s something still there. Oh and he loves his family. That’s significant. Call it what you want but you can’t take these facts away if you care about canon. – Pryftan Jun 10 '18 at 23:24
  • @Pryftan Your mileage may very on this, of course, but in my opinion not enjoying torturing people and not actively participating in fascist behaviour, hardly makes you a good, or even mediocre person. Malfoy had no trouble supporting Voldemort's regime of cruelty and intolerance in principle, he just couldn't handle the reality of it when he was forced to participate. Certainly makes him better than the sadistic maniacs he hung around, but that doesn't strike me as a particularly high bar. – DavidS Jun 11 '18 at 10:32
  • @DavidS Fact is he wasn't the same person at all by the end of the seventh book; he was a better person. Now that doesn't mean he was necessarily a great person or a kind person - Rowling states otherwise in fact - but to go from a racist bigot who feels right at home with his father's Death Eater activity to someone who not only saves Harry but the blood traitor Ron and the Mudblood Hermione? That's a huge change seeing as how he used to love bullying them. Sure he interfered in the Battle of Hogwarts but even that was out of love for his family, trying to restore his standing. For a bit.. – Pryftan Jun 12 '18 at 18:48
  • @Pryftan I appreciate that he changed, but my original objection is to the term "redeemed". The fact that him not killing the victims of his racism (while still actively working for Voldemort) is used as evidence of his moral growth just indicates to me that the bar has been set incredibly low, and in my eyes doesn't "redeem" him. Contrast this with Regulus (very similar - young, grand family, joins Voldemort to seem impressive) who realised what he was doing was wrong and sacrifices his own life to help stop V. To me, that earns the phrase "redeemed", while Malfoys (in)actions do not. – DavidS Jun 13 '18 at 11:28
  • @DavidS I understood your objection. But not only are there more than one definition of the word but it's also a highly debatable and even contentious debate on what redeeming oneself can be. Either way call it as you wish and I can call it as I wish; it's more of an opinion and that means fact is less important. And of course...the site will be whining about chatting soon so I'll just drop out. I don't view it the same way you do and that's quite all right (not that I think he truly had his heart in working for Voldemort; there's working for and working for - but this too is opinion). – Pryftan Jun 15 '18 at 00:40