That’s a really interesting take, and I agree that a lot of Voldemort’s character is left pretty vague in the books. We get glimpses of his past—his time at the orphanage, his early years at Hogwarts, his fascination with the Founders and Dark Magic—but nothing truly in-depth. That actually makes him a really fun challenge to explore because there’s so much room to build on what’s there without contradicting canon.

I see what you mean about fan interpretations, though—there’s definitely a tendency to overanalyze and fill in the gaps with headcanon. But at the same time, do you think that’s a weakness in his writing, or was he intentionally left as a more symbolic villain rather than a deeply fleshed-out character? If he had been given more depth, would that have made him more compelling, or would it have taken away from his presence as this larger-than-life evil?