CHAPDISC: DH35, KING'S CROSS

[potioncat]

No: HPFGUIDX 185160

 
> Geoff:
> 
> Back in GOF, when Wormtail brought the remnants of Voldemort 
> to the cauldron in the graveyard to be restored, the 
> description made me personally think of a foetus or something 
> similar - out in the open, grotesque, rather unpleasant to 
> view and effectively helpless.

Potioncat:
That was my reaction too. And I think it's what generated the 
theories that perhaps Bertha Jorkins had been used to concieve the 
foetus. 

> Geoff:
> The "baby" at King's Cross railway station produces the same 
> reactions in me. This is not really a baby; it is a soul that 
> because of its own actions has reduced itself to the status 
> of an unborn child. 

Potioncat:
Hard to separate the image of innocence from the baby, even an ugly 
one. Was Tom Riddle's soul always stunted? If so, did he ever have a 
choice in life? Or, has his soul regressed as it was corrupted. I 
seem to recall someone suggesting LV was a big baby--having deadly 
tantrums. Perhaps that childish (not child-like) behavior reflected 
his soul.

But, why did JKR go out of her way to make Riddle's soul in such an 
image when Harry's and DD's seems very much like they are in life. Of 
course, theirs hadn't been as damaged in life.

> Geoff:
> Like you, I have problems as a Christian deciding what happens 
> to the unsaved soul and it seems that this may be a facet 
> of JKR's thoughts on the same topic.

Potioncat:
JKR has said she wrestles with aspects of her faith. And this one is 
a biggy! I have the hardest times explaining it all to my answer 
seeking 14-year-old. Heaven knows I don't have the answers!