Finishing Voldemort

[davewitley]

No: HPFGUIDX 38065

This post is also, in a tangential sort of way, a response to Philip 
Nel's and Luke's questions of yesterday, at least it touches on some 
literary parallels and, given that I know very little about it, 
archetypal literature.  (I wonder if an explanation of the term is 
required?)

Pippin wrote:

> Anton Chekhov is supposed to have said that if you hang a gun 
on the wall in the first act, it must fire in the third. If that 
sword [Gryffindor's] doesn't prove to be Voldemort's bane, I'll eat 
my laptop.

That is very appealing, but it somehow puts the symbol before the 
substance.  In the books, Voldemort is the personification of evil 
(Dumbledore has made plain in PS that he is not the essence of evil), 
so the first question is, what will eventually be done about him?

I think it could be argued that, for want of a better phrase, the 
resolution of the Voldemort problem will define what the series is 
seen to be about in retrospect.

Killing him is one answer, but not the only one.  Even if he is 
killed, it won't necessarily be in a duel with Harry, as frequently 
seems to be assumed, even though three out of four books have ended 
thus.  Other plausible possibilities, with literary/RL parallels are:

suicide (eg Hitler);
being dissolved in his own evil, or caught in his own trap (think 
Willow);
having his essence magically undone at a remote location (Sauron is 
the most familiar example, but it's fairly common in literature);
repenting (usually conveniently followed by death, though IMO this is 
not absolutely necessary - think Darth Vader, or the apostle Paul);
being absorbed by good into a higher unity for which his contribution 
is necessary (Wizard of Earthsea).

Implausible (IMO) possibilities are:

the WW reaches a political compromise with V;
V goes his way and the rest of the WW go theirs - a true postmodern 
ending;
he carries on as shadow in the forest;
he wins that duel;
Harry and friends realise 'there is only power, and those too weak to 
seek it';
war unending (Manicheanism made flesh);
V is shunted off into a parallel universe more suited to his 
temperament (sort of like Andre Norton's Witch World);
everybody dies (Shakespeare);
he is transfigured into a baby and time-turned back to 1927, Little 
Hangleton, to endlessly repeat the cycle (this means he is not really 
a descendent of Salazar Slytherin; Harry Harrison's Stainless Steel 
Rat Saves the World, Grounhog Day).

Many of the above endings could involve Gryffindor's sword.  Each one 
would imply a different message about the place and destination of 
evil in the world.

David