Harry Potter, Cursed Child and the Problematic Depiction of Women
By Lacy Baugher
Ginny once again stuck listening to Harry’s problems. (Photo: Official Site/Manuel Harlan)
Ginny Weasley Potter
Despite the fact that Ginny Weasley is a classic Potterverse character, she is little more than a glorified extra for much of Cursed Child. She is Harry’s wife and Albus’ mother, and her primary functions in the story are related to them. (Don’t ask about her other kids; they don’t matter, apparently.)
Ginny’s main function consists of asking Harry questions, listening to him whine, and consoling him about his parenting choices. She also occasionally gets to glare at him for being a terrible father, for variety’s sake. Ostensibly, Ginny is an editor at the Daily Prophet, but we don’t really get to see her doing anything related to that. And her feisty personality from the books is largely missing.
Howver, Ginny does get one of the play’s most (accidentally, perhaps) interesting scenes. At one point when Scorpius and Albus are missing, Draco and Ginny end up having a fight about their children. During all of this, it’s revealed that Ginny too has struggled with living in the shadow of Harry, Ron and Hermione, that she was almost a Slytherin, and that she understands Draco’s perspective in a way the others don’t. Of course this scene basically goes nowhere and is never referenced again. But it’s the sort of twenty-years-on character development this play should be exploring.
Next: Delphi is a such a disappointing female villain.