Relative evil of Voldemort & The One Ring (was: Re: Death and Justice)

[dicentra63]

No: HPFGUIDX 37014

--- In HPforGrownups at y..., John Walton <john at w...> wrote:
> talondg wrote:
 
> > 
> > The Gollum -> Wormtail analogy falls down on this point. Gollum is
> > swept along under the influence of the Ring. He resists from time to
> > time, but the Ring is stronger than him, and ultimately lays claim to
> > him.
> 
> Hang on. Surely Lord Voldemort is just as evil as the Ring in
> _The_Lord_of_the_Rings_. A case could certainly be made, using
examples of
> Wormtail's snivelling and wimpiness, that Wormtail is at least as "swept
> along" as Gollum. Moreover, the Ring is an impersonal object, though
it does
> involve Sauron; however, one cannot see Sauron when one is not
wearing it.
> In comparison, and particularly during Voldemort's reign, and to an
extent
> in the GOF-and-beyond of canon, Wormtail is under the control of
Voldemort
> as much as Quirrell ever was.

I don't know about that.  What compelled Pettigrew to go find
Voldemort after the Shack incident?  He didn't have to, you know.  He
could have gone back into hiding or run off to Siberia (skirting
Albania, of course).  The compulsion metaphor in the Potterverse is
the Imperio curse, and there's no way Voldemort could have cast that
spell on Peter while he was unable to hold a wand.  There isn't any
indication that Voldemort can compel people the way the Ring can.  No,
Quirrell fell under Voldemort's control when Voldemort was able to
physically possess him, or at least when he was in close proximity to
him, and I doubt Quirrell went kicking and screaming.  Voldemort
entices people with increased power (which he actually gives them) and
people choose or reject it.

Yikes!  I just thought of something.  What if the time comes when
Harry needs some extra power to save his friends and Voldemort or a DE
is there to give it to him and he's sorely tempted to accept that
power "for a good cause"?  Could this fall under "doing what's right
instead of doing what's easy"?  It's a classic temptation.


--Dicentra, who neatly steers clear of the N word, thereby
perpetuating the discussion