Voldemort's name

[Mina-Clare Moseley]

No: HPFGUIDX 82007

Kagome Shikon Seeker writes:

>When DD encounters LV at the end of OoP, he calls him "Tom".  I thought that
>was interesting; I thought it equally interesting that the only two people
>around were Harry - who already knew the information - and Bellatrix, who
>was pinned by a statue trying to kill her, so presumably was too busy to
>worry about such a triviality.  But as it's unlikely that DD and LV have had
>direct face-to-face contact in the past (or probably one of them would be
>dead now), DD's slip up may not have occurred before that instance.
>(Assuming it was a slip up, which it may not have been.)


There are a few points in your post that I have to disagree with. I 
think that Dumbledore and Voldemort had to have some sort of fight in 
the past.

When you think about it, Tom Riddle as a sixteen-year-old, thought of 
Dumbledore as nothing more than the Transfigurations Professor. If he 
were a famous dark wizard fighter at that time, I'm sure he would 
have commented on it.

Second, Voldemort is *incredibly* arrogant. He believes he is the 
most powerful wizard to ever exist. The only wizard he fears at all 
is Dumbledore (and now Harry). I think the only way Voldemort could 
let his fear take precedence over his arrogance is if they had fought 
to a standstill.

If I may also pose a theory that you might find interesting: As a 
young Dark Lord, Tom Riddle/Voldemort decides to face off against 
Dumbledore. If Dumbledore were really as powerful as he is made out 
to be, I don't think arrogant young Voldie would let this opportunity 
go by. Tom/Voldie fights Dumbledore and *loses*. Dumbledore, being 
magnanimous as he is, lets him go with a warning. This would give 
Voldemort reason to fear Dumbledore and would help explain why 
Dumbledore fights so tirelessly to defeat Voldemort-- he feels guilty.

As to why Dumbledore calls Voldemort "Tom", I cannot at all believe 
this is a slip-up. Calling Voldemort "Tom" demeans him. He has fought 
for the past fifty years to shed himself of this name. It is the name 
of his Muggle father, who abandoned his mother. Voldemort can't stand 
the name. Calling Voldemort "Tom" takes away his power, on a mental 
level.

~Mina-Clare