LV never loved anyone

[delwynmarch]

No: HPFGUIDX 110283


When asked :
"Has Voldemort or Tom Riddle ever cared for or loved anyone?"

JKR answered :
"Now, that's a cracking question to end with—very good. No, never.
[Laughter.] If he had, he couldn't possibly be what he is. You will
find out a lot more about that. It is a good question, because it
leads us rather neatly to Half Blood Prince, "

That answer mildly shocked me : how can someone have *never* loved ?!
I know Tom was an orphan so obviously he had no family to love, but he
could still have loved other people : a friend, a caretaker, a pet, or
even an imaginary memory of his mom, anything. Harry found people to
love as soon as he entered the WW, no matter how deprived of love he
was during his childhood. But Tom never loved anyone. I find that hard
to imagine, especially since JKR said some time ago that in her books
nobody was ever born evil. So Tom was born normal, but he never cared
for anyone ? Weird.

As an aside : can one truly *choose* hate and evil if they've never
experienced love and goodness ?
And : wouldn't the fact that Tom never cared for anyone indicate a
major mental disease (not unexpected considering the circumstances) ?

And what's that business about the fact that Tom/LV never loved anyone
leading neatly to HBP ???

Del