Moral, Immoral, and Amoral

[vmonte]

No: HPFGUIDX 139194

vmonte:
"You are saying that Voldemort really isn't concerned about right or 
wrong but lives on base instincts--someone without a conscience?"

Del:
Absolutely! That's a simple but pretty accurate description of
psychopaths/sociopaths: they literally have no conscience. Morally
speaking, they never went beyond the infant/toddler stage, because
they are unable to feel empathy and compassion. They are stuck at the
"me" stage, because they can't put themselves in the shoes of anyone
else. They have adult brains and bodies, but morally they are little
more than babies. And just like babies, they are totally devoted to
satisfying their own needs and desires, without caring one bit about
what it does to other people.

Of course, that's a general description, and a simplified one too.
It's the way the real experts describe it in online explanations for
non-experts like me :-) 

But this description perfectly explains LV's actions, IMO. It fits him
to a T. And JKR did call LV a psychopath in one of her interviews.

But as I said, I am NOT an expert in that field, so I could very well
be pretty wrong about it :-)

vmonte again:
You know Del your way makes more sense.  It kind of goes along with 
JKR's thoughts that Snape is more culpable because he was loved.
 
If Snape is immoral then he is choosing to do wrong, where as LV  
doesn't have a conscience. If Harry is a horcrux and LV takes back 
his soul piece he may get the conscience he lacks. 
 
Dumbledore tells Harry that putting a horcrux into a living creature 
is not a good idea because the horcrux can be influenced by it's 
host. If Lily has been protecting Harry all these years then perhaps 
she has transformed LV's soul piece. Maybe this is the way to destroy 
LV. 
 
We already know that LV is incapable of going into Harry's head do to 
the love that is there. Can you imagine what a "love horcrux" will do 
to him?

He still needs to pay for his crimes though. Maybe he will take 
another bad person down with him.

Vivian