So, in Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone (or Sorcerer’s Stone). We see Draco Malfoy attempt to befriend Harry. Even as he does so, he declares that some families are 'better than others', and offers to help Harry identify the better ones.
So, there's a few reasons this is out of character:
- Draco's talking about 'better' families refers to magical heritage (we see this lined out more explicitly later in the series). Harry's mother is a Muggle-born witch, so technically Harry wouldn't be Muggle-born, but his completely magic lineage only goes back one generation.
- Harry's parents fought against Voldemort alongside Dumbledore and the Order of the Phoenix. Part of the reason to do this was to protect Muggles, Squibs and Muggle-born wizards. So his family would definitely be described as blood traitors.
- Draco's parents are Death Eaters, they support Voldemort and apparently don't feel the need to hide this fact from Draco. Harry was responsible for the downfall of Voldemort, making him Malfoy enemy number one.
So, that's lots of reasons for instant enmity and yet Draco makes an attempt to befriend Harry, along with a lot of pure-blood ideology. This seems really out of character. Imagine the older Malfoys learning of this friendship.
Is there anything which explains this unusual action?
(Note: I did wonder about Harry's house being a reason against this, but the attempted befriending takes place before their sorting.)