LV never loved anyone

[tonks_op]

No: HPFGUIDX 110329

> Misty:
> > I am not a psychologist, but I know that there are cases where 
> > certain children, not bonding at an early age, lose that ability, 
> > and as a result never really learn to love others. I wondered why
> > Harry wasn't like that, but I think it might have to do with the 
> > personality type as it is not a universal thing.  

> Valky:
> I have heard of this phenomenon too. I was under an impression 
> however that it more specifically applied to children who had no 
> bonding experience in frailest infancy during the first year of 
> their lives and ones who were openly or directly rejected by one 
> or both of their blood parents. Clearly this does not apply to 
> Harry, as he was in a loving home for 15 months prioir to his 
> parents' death. 


Hello:

I am a mental health professional, and would like to address the 
issue of the childhood of both Harry and Voldemort.  If a child like 
Voldemort is left in an orphanage at a very early age and he only 
gets food and clothing, but very little contact with another caring 
human being he will not have the ability to bond with others. There 
is a certain time when it has to happen. If he is placed in a loving 
home after a couple of years in a totally unloving and uncaring 
environment, he will never be able to bond with anyone no matter how 
loving his new parents may be.  He will not have the capacity for 
empathy.  It is our ability to bond that enables us to have empathy 
and our ability to have empathy that enables us to have compassion 
and mercy on others.  The people capable of the most heinous crimes 
are often people like Voldemort. When they are still children they 
are given the diagnosis of Conduct Disorder.  If they do not change 
their behavior by the time they are 18 the diagnosis is changed to 
Antisocial Personality Disorder. It used to be called Sociopath or 
Psychopath. 

As to Harry.  He had a loving mother for the most important time of 
his life.  Even if placed in a unloving home, he would have some 
emotional problems perhaps, but he would be able to bond and care 
for others.  But there is a question that I too ask myself about 
Harry.  How is it that he is so good?  Now the Dursleys were not 
all that bad. He could have fared much worse. They must have done 
something right. But certainly the first year or so of his life made 
a big difference in how he would turn out later.  That is why we 
have something called "infant mental health" now.  Sounds weird, but 
it is very important to teach parents how to care for their children 
very early in life.

Now to the question.  Given the circumstances of his childhood is 
Voldemort responsible for his actions?  Yes.  Even if he feels no 
love or compassion for others he knows the difference between right 
and wrong and in that way is responsible. But to some extent so are 
we as a society. So is the family of his mother who did not take him 
in
 We are all in some way responsible for the evil in the world, 
even if we do not do it directly.

"tonks_op"