Do you have to want to hurt someone for the cruciatus curse to work?

Question

OK so the scene where Harry sees Voldemort making Draco tutur Rowel brings a few questions to my mind.

he felt the rage that did not belong to him posses his soul, saw a long room, only light by fire light, and the grate blond Death Eater on the floor,screaming and writhing, and a slighter figure standing over him, wand outstretched, while Harry spoke in a high, cold, merciless voice. "More, Rowel, or shall we end it and feed you to Nagini? Lord Voldemort is not sure he will forgive you this time...You called me back for this, to tell me Harry Potter has escaped again? Draco, give Rowel 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-

I remember in the Order of the Phoenix Harry tries to do the cruciatus curse on Bellatrix, it doesn't work. She say this is because Harry doesn't mean it, he doesn't want to hurt he enough. If she's right about that (I'm sure she is) I don't see how Draco is managing to make to make Rowel writhe and scream, because it is clear he doesn't want to be doing it.

Also Harry was actually angry at Bellatrix and if his anger at her killing his godfather won't work... well you get my drift.

I know Draco is probably better at magic, but I feel Bellatrix is right, you really have to want them to hurt for it to work.

Next thing, Voldemort's having Draco do it why? Is he doing to upset Lucius, because that and lot of effort to go to, seeing as Voldemort is angry and he'd probably do a better job himself. Or is he trying to train himself a new soldier, I mean the other ones are getting old.

Answer 1

A simple answer to your title question is "yes... but." To perform the Cruciatus Curse the caster must mean to enjoy the pain he/she is about to inflict on his/her victim, not just out of righteous anger or merely as a punitive measure. It takes a special kind of hatred to really enjoy torturing people. However, this does not mean that the spell won't work at all if the caster lacks the right motivation. It just will not work to the full potential. Notice that Bellatrix was not totally unfazed by Harry's curse:

Hatred rose in Harry such as he had never known before. He flung himself out from behind the fountain and bellowed “Crucio!” Bellatrix screamed. The spell had knocked her off her feet, but she did not writhe and shriek with pain as Neville had — she was already on her feet again, breathless, no longer laughing.

She became serious after it was used against her because it had some effect, though not the full effect.

Draco may have been terrified because of Voldemort's anger. By the description of Rowle's reaction to the curse, Draco was well up to it, because of his own sense of self-preservation, if not for really enjoying torturing someone.

As for Voldemort upsetting Lucius, a leader does not need extra reason to delegate tasks to his/her followers.