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Article Title: Scorpius Malfoy

Associated WikiProject:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:WikiProject_Novels/Harry_Potter_task_force

Description

Scorpius Malfoy is a character in the Harry Potter book series by J.K.Rowling and a lead figure in the play of the same universe – The Cursed Child – written by J.K.Rowling, Jack Thorn and John Tiffany in 2016. He is the only son of Draco Malfoy and grandson of Lucius Malfoy in the Harry Potter universe, both prominent figures who represented the opposing force to Harry Potter in the book’s stories. In the play “The Cursed Child,” Scorpius Malfoy goes on a quest with Harry Potter’s son, Albus Potter, to locate a magical time-turner, before becoming lost in time as a result. (re write) The play features original Harry Potter characters and has been certified as “canon” by author J.K. Rowling herself.

Title of Sections

·     Character background

·     History of the Malfoy name

o  Reference in Harry Potter

·     Events of The Cursed Child

o  Alliances and relationships (or connections to the text??)

§ Scorpius and Draco Malfoy

§ Albus Potter and Harry Potter

·     Significance to wider cannon

Sources

The Harry Potter series of books and The Cursed Child script

Rowling J.K., 2007, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Bloomsbury, London.

Thorne J., 2016, Harry Potter and the Cursed Child, based on an original new story by J. K. Rowling, John Tiffany & Jack Thorne, Little, Brown, London

The greatest way to ensure verifiability is to take information directly from the primary source, that is, the Harry Potter books themselves. In such a popular book and film series, the difficulty when searching for secondary sources is to make sure they aren’t derived from fans’ predictions or imaginations, or from my own personal opinions or beliefs on the subject. Information will be backed up by the source material to ensure its objectivity and authenticity. The difficulty will be in the specificity of details – J.K.Rowling constructed such an elaborate universe and story that information must be fact checked. All relevant information that is unobjectifiable fact will be referenced from this source.

Associated Wikipedia pages

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Draco_Malfoy#Epilogue

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harry_Potter_and_the_Cursed_Child

In the above Wikiproject and the Wikipedia page for Draco Malfoy, the name Scorpius Malfoy is hyperlinked, although it redirects to the Draco Malfoy page; specifically a sub-heading called “Portrayal” in which there is 259 words that details the portrayal of Draco Malfoy in film and theatre. The name Scorpius Malfoy is mentioned four times, each as a name reference and nothing more besides his existence as Draco’s son. While Scorpius Malfoy is only mentioned very briefly in the epilogue of the Harry Potter series, it is his existence that signals much about the character Draco. In addition, and perhaps most importantly, Scorpius is the lead character in the popular Harry Potter play “The Cursed Child” that is playing internationally. Additionally, in the Wikipedia page about the play, the name Scorpius appears 33 times. All information gathered on Wikipedia is proven to be accurate and fact checked, and for this reason cross-checking between pages is acceptable and effective.

Interview with J.K Rowling (Source: Youtube)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T7Xpcls3v0E

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7BdVHWz1DPU

The way to ensure this will be to fact check with the book itself or interviews with author J.K Rowling, as she represents the most knowledgeable and verifiable information possible, being the creator of the fictional universe itself. Both links are short excerpts of a larger video interview with J.K. Rowling upon the release of the final Harry Potter film. While, for characters more central to the Harry Potter books, information in book and film adaptation may contradict, (just as many film adaptations take certain liberties with character and plot) this is not an issue here, as Scorpius Malfoy is only mentioned by name in the film adaptation. The reasons for the inclusion of this first interview is to provide background name on not only the creation of the series, but provide depth to Scorpius’ background, which will be a subheading in the final article.

Buzzfeed News interview with original Scorpius Malfoy actor in London, Anthony Boyle.

Buzzfeednews.com. (2020). Meet The Unlikely Hero Of “Harry Potter And The Cursed Child”. [online] Available at: https://www.buzzfeednews.com/article/louispeitzman/harry-potter-cursed-child-anthony-boyle-scorpius-malfoy

Essentially, I chose this article as a starting reference due to its focus on the character Scorpius Malfoy specifically, which will be useful to broaden my knowledge of existing research on the subject, and by result provide an objective and all-encompassing article. Additionally, the article provides a unique perspective of the actor Anthony Boyle himself, and how the character was shaped beyond the writing. The article also provides an insight into how a book series is translated to the stage and how this shapes/ changes the existing Harry Potter characters.

Wizarding World (previously known as Pottermore.com)

Wizardingworld.com. (2020). Wizarding World - the official home of Harry Potter. [online] Available at: https://www.wizardingworld.com/

The reason that information from a third party Harry Potter site can be used in this instance is because it features original writing from J.K.Rowling herself, including unreleased information and details that broaden the scope of the universe and the characters within it. The extensive character profiles and history of the school and dark arts will prove especially useful in relation to my page on Scorpius Malfoy. The website is very clear in distinguishing writing by the author and fans/ other editors.

Justification

Scorpius Malfoy’s connection to the Harry Potter genre itself defines its notability. The series is beloved – being the highest grossing book series except the Bible and 50 Shades of Grey – and maintains fans internationally. Because of the sheer scope of the imagined universe, the number of fans with intricate and detailed knowledge and passion is extensive. Many characters considered more minor than Scorpius Malfoy already exist in their own Wikipedia article; not to mention how Scorpius’ blood line is incredibly important to the series as a whole.

Having seen “The Cursed Child” myself, the importance of a degree of Harry Potter knowledge - including its main characters – is incredibly valuable. As the leading figure of “The Cursed Child,” a Wikipedia page of Scorpius Malfoy will detail his role within the “Harry Potter” universe – both book and play - informing new and old readers of the beloved series by clarifying the character’s origins, events he is involved in and connection to characters.

To ensure the article’s verifiability, there are a few key sources that will not be used or referenced for the sake of research. One, which would have been beneficially to providing a background and synopsis of the play and Scorpius’ involvement, as well as reception to his character, is reviews of the play “The Cursed Child.” It is simply too risky to reference specific opinion pieces – yet articles that report on the general reception of the play, such as the Buzzfeed News article with Anthony Boyle is verifiable as it takes a personal approach to the actor himself, and discusses his character’s origins and place in the story. Additionally, while there are many websites and fan sites available online, including a “Harry Potter Wiki -” a platform for posting opinions, theories and fanfiction (fan writing based on a specific universe) – these will not be used as tools for my research, as the information provided is not verifiable itself.