The reason for Voldemort

Voldemort, whose real name was Tom Riddle, is the main antagonist of the saga. Harry Potter, a perfect villain who spreads terror and darkness wherever he goes. He is the antithesis of Harry in terms of roles, but if we delve deeper into him, we will quickly realize that they are not so different. It’s like Voldemort can’t exist without Harry, and at the same time, Harry doesn’t exist without Voldemort; They are opposites, but like the poles of magnets, it is impossible to separate them, they are the two sides of a coin: there is no hero without a villain and there is no villain without a hero.

Furthermore, in this case, we find ourselves faced with certain peculiarities, certain circumstances that make us wonder what would have happened if things had been different for both of us. What if Voldemort had grown up in a happy home? What if he had discovered what love is? Was evil born with him or is it the result of a series of circumstances?

Throughout the saga, we discover the past of the Dark Lord, of this character who is much more than “the bad guy.” In the movies, not much is revealed about his past, but it is in the books, where JK Rowling devotes entire episodes to memories of her life before she became “He Who Must Not Be Named.”

This character has aroused so much fascination among fans of Harry Potter which even has its own moviean Italian production made by fans under the title of Voldemort: the origin of the heir.

There are many things that the saga hides Harry Potter and there are many things we could say about Voldemort. In this article, I am going to try to collect some important data to delve into his personality, the reason for this character and his evil..

Influences

JK Rowling studied French and Classical Philology, she did not have an easy life – neither financially nor personally – until she achieved success thanks to Harry Potter. In the saga, Rowling has captured her classic influences: names of spells and characters, mythological beings… Everything seems to be impregnated with the mark left by his knowledge of Greco-Latin culture, but also by his personal experiences. Thus, on more than one occasion, she has confessed that characters, like Hermione, are inspired by her.

It is also no coincidence that Harry’s birthday is the same day as his, nor is it a coincidence that the dementors absorb the soul just as his depression did. In the case of Voldemort, Rowling herself indicated that his name comes from French: vol de mort (flight of death) and acknowledged having been inspired by the figure of Adolf Hitler.

If we stop to think about it, both believed in the existence of a superior race. Voldemort wants to exterminate everyone who is not “pure blood”, that is, the son of wizards. He defends that the “mudbloods” (children of muggles) should disappear and not have access to Hogwarts. In other words, for both, purity is important and there is an inferior race that must be exterminated because it is the origin of the world’s evils.

It is striking that Voldemort, in reality, is not pure blood either, since his father was muggle; Like Hitler, he was of Jewish descent. Perhaps an inferiority complex, fear of rejection and lust for power led both to commit totally atrocious and irrational acts.. At the same time, Voldemort was a brilliant young man, who had a great future as a wizard; Hitler, for his part, had a great taste in painting.

Another similarity with our history is found in the existence of two magical wars.: The first, in which Voldemort and his Death Eaters killed many people, including Harry’s parents, was a war that they lost and for which Voldemort had to disappear. In the second, the end of an era occurs, the end of Voldemort and his followers. Germany lost both world wars, as did the Death Eaters.

Voldermot’s rise occurs little by little and from the shadows, until, finally, he manages to control the entire Ministry of Magic (the equivalent of our political system).

Harry would come to put an end to this time of terror and darkness, as if it were a Jesus Christ. The influences of The Bible It is also present in the saga: the figure of the snake as a symbol of evil and temptation is also linked to Voldemort, who would be the personification of evil, and Harry the savior, the chosen one (with prophecy included) capable of giving his life for save us all.

Voldemort’s past

Voldemort was an orphaned child, the result of his mother cheating on his father. A child born without love, who grew up without the warmth of a home. His maternal family was descended from Salazar Slytherin (founder of Slytherin house and faithful defender of blood purity). Like his ancestor, all members of the family were able to speak Parseltongue (snake language).

This obsession with purity led the family to years and years of inbreeding, of marriages between relatives that caused Merope Gaunt (Voldemort’s mother) and her family to live in extreme poverty and suffer from some type of intellectual disability. Merope was mistreated by her father and brother, they abused her psychologically and called her squib (person who is the daughter of magicians incapable of practicing magic).

Merope’s father and brother were imprisoned in Azkaban and when she was free, her magic finally began to flourish. Merope fell in love with a wealthy man muggle named Tom Riddle Sr., and decided to cast a spell on him to marry her and get pregnant.

Merope thought that perhaps Riddle had fallen in love with her and could end the spell. However, Riddle abandoned her. Merope gave birth in an orphanage and died after giving birth, the little one Tom Riddle grew up without knowing love or his family. It wasn’t until a few years later, when Dumbleodore came looking for him, that he discovered he was a wizard and could develop his skills at Hogwarts.

At Hogwarts, He stood out as one of the best magicians of all time, but his desire for power and his passion for the dark arts made him become the most feared dark magician.. Like Harry, Voldemort was an orphan, he grew up alone and without the love of his parents; Hogwarts was his salvation.

There is a strong connection between both characters that goes beyond their antagonistic relationship, they are not that different, but the main difference is that Voldemort never managed to love, He never managed to have a true friendship, he was cruel even to his most loyal followers. Being so similar, it is worth wondering why each one chose to face life in such a different way, if Voldemort was bad by nature or the result of his experiences, if his hatred towards Muggles was real or motivated by the abandonment of his father and the shame he felt for his past.

Both Harry and Voldemort had to face deep loneliness in their childhood, to abandonment and lack of affection. However, faced with a very similar situation, each one decided to do it their own way.

Rowling draws us a character full of trauma, a feeling of abandonment, self-conscious and much deeper than it may seem at first. A complex character who reminds us of the importance of childhood and the consequences that abandonment can have on a person, something that does not justify his evil, but does help us get a little closer to the reason for it.