[Tom] Riddle Me this: The origin story of a pick me

Summary

Critical Magic Theory: An Analytical Harry Potter Podcast
Episode: [Tom] Riddle Me this: The Origin Story of a Pick Me
Host: Prof. Julian Wamble
Release Date: March 6, 2025

---

Introduction

In this compelling episode of Critical Magic Theory, Professor Julian Wamble delves deep into the psyche of one of Harry Potter’s most infamous characters: Tom Riddle Jr., who ultimately becomes Lord Voldemort. Instead of simply labeling him as evil, Prof. Wamble invites listeners to explore the nuanced facets of Tom Riddle’s character, examining both his positive attributes and darker tendencies to uncover the true "magic" behind his transformation.

---

Tom Riddle's Identity and Transformation into Voldemort

Prof. Wamble begins by clarifying a common misconception: Tom Riddle is often mistakenly referred to as "Tom Riddle Jr.," a title that would traditionally pass down his father's full name, which he does not. He emphasizes the power dynamics behind Voldemort's name-shunning behavior:

Prof. Wamble [02:20]: "Fear of a name only increases fear itself."

This sets the stage for an exploration of how Riddle’s obsession with his identity and legacy propels his descent into darkness.

---

Psychological Analysis: Psychopathy and Antisocial Personality Disorder

A significant portion of the discussion centers on whether Tom Riddle qualifies as a psychopath. Drawing insights from Dr. Adidjit Mustafa, a clinical psychologist, Prof. Wamble argues convincingly that Voldemort exhibits clear signs of Antisocial Personality Disorder (ASPD):

Prof. Wamble [25:12]: "With ASPD, there's a version that starts in childhood with conduct disorder... Children with conduct disorder who don't have magic may hurt small animals or smaller children... Once he realized he could make magic happen, he took his abilities to a terrifying level."

He further discusses how Riddle's charm and cunning allow him to manipulate others without remorse, aligning with psychopathic traits.

---

Slytherin Traits and Riddle's Ambition

Prof. Wamble explores the question, "Is Tom Riddle a good Slytherin?" based on listener responses. While a majority believe he embodies the qualities of a good Slytherin, Prof. Wamble introduces a critical perspective:

Prof. Wamble [40:36]: "Ambition is the calling card and blah, blah, blah. But at the end of the day, you also have to be good at ambition."

He critiques Riddle's lack of meticulous planning and his overreliance on ego, arguing that true Slytherin prowess lies in sustainable ambition rather than mere goal-setting.

---

Villainy: Is Tom Riddle a Villain?

The episode tackles whether Tom Riddle Jr. is inherently a villain. Prof. Wamble acknowledges the complexities in separating Riddle’s actions from his background but ultimately leans towards affirming his villainous nature:

Prof. Wamble [50:14]: "Tom Riddle Jr. is someone who simply wants to prove to themselves and to everyone else, like, hey, I'm amazing. Hashtag, pick me."

He examines instances of Riddle’s cruelty and manipulation, both before and during his time at Hogwarts, underscoring his calculated approach to instilling fear and gaining power.

---

Victimhood: Is Tom Riddle a Victim?

A contentious topic addressed is whether Tom Riddle Jr. should be viewed as a victim of his circumstances. Prof. Wamble presents a balanced view, acknowledging factors like his abusive upbringing and genetic predispositions:

Prof. Wamble [60:11]: "His childhood contributed greatly... but most people who lose their mother to childbirth, who grow up in orphanages, do not go on to become serial killers."

He concludes that while external factors influenced his behavior, they do not excuse his actions, maintaining that Riddle’s antisocial tendencies were deeply ingrained and fundamental to his character.

---

Conclusions

Prof. Wamble wraps up the episode by reflecting on Tom Riddle’s incessant need for external validation and his inability to reconcile his identity within the wizarding world. This perpetual quest for recognition and superiority fuels his descent into becoming Voldemort, illustrating a profound psychological unraveling rooted in both nature and nurture.

Prof. Wamble [78:57]: "There is a baseline that is meaningful and we can't ignore it for the sake of trying to absolve him of some of the choices that he makes."

---

Notable Quotes

• Prof. Wamble [02:20]: "Fear of a name only increases fear itself."

• Prof. Wamble [25:12]: "With ASPD, there's a version that starts in childhood with conduct disorder..."

• Prof. Wamble [40:36]: "Ambition is the calling card and blah, blah, blah. But at the end of the day, you also have to be good at ambition."

• Prof. Wamble [50:14]: "Tom Riddle Jr. is someone who simply wants to prove to themselves and to everyone else, like, hey, I'm amazing. Hashtag, pick me."

• Prof. Wamble [60:11]: "His childhood contributed greatly... but most people who lose their mother to childbirth, who grow up in orphanages, do not go on to become serial killers."

• Prof. Wamble [78:57]: "There is a baseline that is meaningful and we can't ignore it for the sake of trying to absolve him of some of the choices that he makes."

---

Final Thoughts

This episode of Critical Magic Theory offers a profound psychological and sociological analysis of Tom Riddle Jr., presenting him as a complex character shaped by both inherent traits and external circumstances. Prof. Wamble's approach encourages listeners to critically examine popular characters beyond surface-level perceptions, fostering a deeper understanding of the intricate dynamics that define true magic within the Wizarding World.

---

Stay Connected:
For more insights and discussions, join the post-episode chats on Patreon and explore additional content at criticalmagictheory.com.

Transcript

[Shipstation Ad]

Life can be chaotic. If you're running a retail business, don't let disorganized order fulfillment add to the chaos. Use Shipstation instead. With Shipstation, you never have to worry about shipping and fulfillment again. Whether you're running a business out of your garage or you have multiple warehouses, shipstation is ideal for every phase of your business's growth. Save time with one login for all your stores and by automating repetitive tasks. Plus, you'll save money with the best shipping rates from global carriers. Shipstation's industry leading features help you deliver a better customer experience. They'll get accurate and faster shipments along with automated tracking updates with your branding. And with up to 88% off UPS and USPS rates and up to 90% off FedEx rates, Shipstation is the fastest and most affordable way to ship. Calm the chaos. Switch to ShipStation today. Start a free trial at shipstation.com audio. That's shipstation.com/audio.

[Ryan Seacrest]

Hello, it is Ryan. And we could all use an extra bright spot in our day, couldn't we? Just to make up for things like sitting in traffic, doing the dishes, counting your steps, you know, all the mundane stuff. That is why I'm such a big fan of Chumba Casino. Chumba Casino has all your favorite social casino style games that you can play for free, anytime, anywhere with daily bonuses that should brighten your day a little. Actually, a lot. So sign up [e-mail] that's chumbacasino.com no purchase necessary.

[Chumba Casino Ad]

BGW prohibited by law. See terms and conditions 18+.

[Professor Julian Womble]

Welcome to Critical Magic Theory, where we deconstruct the wizarding World of Harry Potter. Because loving something doesn't mean we can't be critical of it. I'm Professor Julian Womble and today, today we are beginning with one of two episodes on the one and only Tom Riddle. And we are going to be talking about Tom Riddle Jr. And y'all, I know that he's actually not a junior because that means that he would have taken his father's full name and he didn't. Right. Because he has his grandfather's name as his middle name.

[Podcast Host]

So he's not actually a junior.

[Professor Julian Womble]

But I also know that calling him Tom Riddle Jr. Would have made Lord Voldemort absolutely apoplectic. And there's something important about that. There's a power in that. Because fear of a name only increases fear itself.

[Podcast Host]

And we're not afraid.

[Professor Julian Womble]

We're not scared. Here, over here. Okay, we're not scared. At Critical Magic Theory we are deep diving into this person, and we're going to start this journey by looking at Tom Riddle. Like, literally Tom Riddle. Like when he was just a student at Hogwarts, when we meet him, particularly in Half Blood Prince, and we get to learn who he is as a character, what he believes, and how he arrives at the place that ultimately turns into Voldemort. Right? Like, how does he get there? Y'all really brought it. And I'm so excited to do this because I'm excited to kind of dive into the younger version of Voldemort. I think that there's a lot for us to unpack. I think there's a lot for us to look at and investigate. That kind of will help us think about how we understand this particular character, how he fits into the broader wizarding world, and how we can then kind of compare and contrast who he was prior to the nose job and who he was after the nose job. Right.

[Podcast Host]

Because that's really how I document this person.

[Professor Julian Womble]

Pre nose job, post nose job. And I just think that there is something really important about kind of bifurcating these two moments in his life so that we can really better understand him. Have you ever wondered whether Tom Riddle is actually a psychopath? Or how his upbringing and lack of biological family played a part in who he becomes? Or whether he suffers from Imposter Syndrome? Y'all, we are getting into every bit of it today, and we're getting into every bit of it in the next episode. So just buckle up, batten down the hatches. Because we are diving into the most evil of characters in these books that we get to know, and we're going to really figure out what makes him tick. Rita. Skeeter did a whole tell on. On Dumbledore. This is our version of that for Voldemort. And I cannot. I love a good villain. I love a good villain, and I love a villain with a backstory. Not so that we can exonerate him of his crimes, but rather because we can better understand who this person is and, like, how they arrived at where they are. But before we do, I told you.

[Podcast Host]

These intros are not going to be.

[Professor Julian Womble]

As long as they were before. All right, so you were stretching, you were preparing, you were rolling your shoulders.

[Podcast Host]

You were getting your calves right, you.

[Professor Julian Womble]

Were doing all of that. Because it's time for us to bop along to the theme song, y'all. And if you weren't preparing, you have three, you have two, you have one.

[Podcast Host]

Let's bop. We need to talk about Harry Potter.

[Professor Julian Womble]

Y'all, I hope you danced. You know it's good for you. You know it's important. And I just don't know what more I need to say to convince you of these facts. You need to be bopping along in these uncertain times with the price of eggs being what they are.

[Podcast Host]

Huh?

[Professor Julian Womble]

We need to be bopping as much.

[Podcast Host]

As we can, y'all. I just want to formally apologize for the delay. I know I normally drop episodes on Wednesdays, and I've been so good about it, but I was in Rome for a few days, which was unbelievable. I loved it so much. If any of you are in Rome, like, I'm jealous of you. If you've been to Rome and spent a considerable amount of time there, I'm jealous of you. I'm already planning on going back. I loved it so much. However, also simultaneously, I flew in and was like, I'll finish the episode and have it up on time. That didn't happen. Okay? 10 hours is a long time on a flight, especially when you don't love flying. And, like, the people who were hosts who were hosting me, they kept me busy. Okay? I was trudging through the city, okay? On foot, 20,000 steps, killing it. Cardio for days. Loved it. Amazing. Just, like, it was fantastic. And the food. Okay, I can't say enough about the food, but you all have distracted me. You're sidetracking me. I'm apologizing because of all of that. The episode was a little bit delayed, and I just want you to know that I know, and I don't want you to think this is gonna become a regular thing, because it isn't. This was an extraneous circumstance that happened, and I actually have no regrets because. And if it means that we don't get the episode to drop on the day that it normally does, that's cool. But anyways, here it is, y'all. The chaos is coming. You're not. You are not ready for it. And so I just want you to know that I know. And now you know, and now we all know together. And isn't that what Community is about?

[Professor Julian Womble]

I want to take this time to welcome those of you who have just arrived with us for the first time. Perhaps those of you who are coming back. Back. Those of you who might have taken a break, welcome. Welcome to everyone. I am so excited that we're here, y'all. We are in it with the Half Bloods. We are starting off with chaos, because that's what we do here. Your names have been pulled out of the Goblet of Chaos. And we are in the Half Blood tournament and we are starting off strong. We are starting off with absurdity. Okay? So welcome to everyone who is here for that. I also want to take a moment to thank those of you who joined in on the post episode chat on the Prof. Response for our kind of, what would we call it, a Pure Blood wrap up. It was a lot of fun, y'all. It was chaos. Speaking of the Goblet of Chaos, that was chaotic. Many of us were apoplectic. Okay, that's a word that I love using, so I might use it a little bit. A lot. A little bit a lot. But many of us were upset about the realities of who won Best Parent in the Pure Blood Showdown episode. Many of us were not pleased with my take on on whether or not the person who got best son was deserving. If you haven't listened to that episode, I highly invite you to go listen to the Pureblood Showdown episode and then the Prof. Response episode because the people were not pleased with me and they were not pleased with the results. And y'all, you know how that thrills me. And so thank you to those of you who participated in that, who for both episodes. Right. And who contributed to what became an episode. That was me in some ways, defending myself, but also me really providing what I hope was some nuance for our understanding of what it meant to be.

[Podcast Host]

A good parent and how we understand.

[Professor Julian Womble]

Who is and who's not. And speaking of Patreon, I want to invite those of you who are interested in joining into these conversations to join us on Patreon patreon.com criticalmagictheory you can join for free. And you can join into the post episode chats. We have a question of the week. This particular question of the week is asking in what ways do we think that Albus Dumbledore would have been different if his sister Ariana had never been attacked by those Muggles? And the conversation is popping off right now. If that's something that interests you and you're not already a part of that community, please feel free to jump on. Answer the question. If you are part of the community, and that's a question that tickles your fancy, please feel free to join us in that conversation. It's a good one. And if you are someone who wants to get more, if you are someone who wants to get extra content, early.

[Podcast Host]

Releases of the episodes, if you want to get ad free episodes, it's all.

[Professor Julian Womble]

There for you on the Patreon, okay, you can be an outstanding owl. You can be a deep diver, you can be a chronic overthinker. All of those things are available to you, and I highly invite you to check them out if that is something that you are interested in. Because, y'all, it's good stuff, all right? And I have time now, and I can do bonus episodes. And so I'm thinking we'll do two bonus episodes a month, because that just gives me something that I can work with. And so if that's something that interests you and or you have ideas about what kind of bonus episodes you would like, please feel free to let me know. Speaking of chronic overthinkers, we need to take a moment to thank the new ones, the ones who have just joined our ranks. All right, a special thank you to Bel, to Courtney, and to Grace. I'm so grateful to you all, and I want you to know that your financial contribution goes a long way to keep this podcast going, and it does not go unnoticed and it does not go unappreciated. And if you are a chronic overthinker and you want to join us for our monthly meetup, I will be sending out a doodle soon.

[Podcast Host]

By soon, I mean, like this week.

[Professor Julian Womble]

To get us ready for our March meetup. The last one we had in last month was incredible. And y'all, if you need to get on in on it, you need to get in on it because it is so, so, so good. We had an amazing, amazing conversation about the wizarding world and the mindset they're in. So if you are one, join us. And of course, I want to point out, and some people have been asking about merch. We do have merch. We do have it. Some of you already know. Some of you have been buying it up, and we love that for you. There are tote bags, there are T shirts, there are mugs, which apparently are very good mugs. There are beanies, there are all kinds of things. Hoodies. It's all there. You can find [e-mail] and if you go and you click the merch button, it will take you directly to the merch site. And it's all there for you. So if you are looking for things, stickers, there's a lot of different things that. A lot of different price points. Please feel free to check it out. I own most of it, and I can say from a relatively biased but also unbiased place that as it pertains to, like, the clothes, the quality is there, y'all, so I highly recommend it. It's a good time and you simply will not regret it because we are.

[Podcast Host]

Building a brand here at Critical Magic Theory, right?

[Professor Julian Womble]

Like, we are being critical. We are staying magical and we're inviting other people to do that. And what better way to invite them than to let them see what we're all about over here, Whether it be from a sticker, a mug, a hoodie, it's all there. And some of it is super branded and some of it is very, very, very.

[Podcast Host]

If you know, you know.

[Professor Julian Womble]

And that may be some of your vibes, it's there for you.

[Podcast Host]

I get that.

[Professor Julian Womble]

I set it up like that for you. So you go and get that merch, all right? I promise. It's good stuff. Like, I really, really love it. So just know that. Okay? And finally, last but not least, we will be having one more episode on Voldemort and we will be talking about Voldemort. As in like adult noseless Voldemort. Like, we're fresh out of the cauldron. Voldemort. That's what we'll be talking about in the next episode. So get ready, because we are building a foundation on which we are going to build, y'all. All right? So let's let this music do what it does and then we are going to dive in. To Tom Riddle.

[Chumba Casino Ad]

How to have fun anytime, anywhere. Step one, go to chumbacasino.com chumbacasino.com Got it. Step two, collect your welcome bonus.

[Podcast Host]

Come to papa. Welcome bonus.

[Chumba Casino Ad]

Step three, Play hundreds of casino style games for free.

[Ryan Seacrest]

That's a lot of games all for free.

[Chumba Casino Ad]

Step four, unleash your excitement.

[Professor Julian Womble]

Woo hoo.

[Chumba Casino Ad]

Chumba Chumba Casino has been delivering thrills for over a decade. So claim your free welcome bonus now and live the chumba life. Visit chumbacasino.com no purchase necessary vgw group.

Void where prohibited by law 21 + terms and conditions apply.

[American Express Ad]

With the American Express Gold card, I can earn four times membership rewards points at US Supermarkets. So with all these groceries, I'm also getting points. Learn [e-mail] US Explore Gold Terms and points cap apply.

[Professor Julian Womble]

Okay, y'all, so we are here and it is time for us to Explore Tom Riddle Jr. And when I was thinking about my favorite moment with Tom Riddle Jr. Immediately, immediately, the first thing that popped into my head was the revelation in Chamber of Secrets that he is Lord Voldemort. Now listen, y'all. I remember reading that book and the audible gasp that I gasped. I gusped, okay. The fact that I threw my book because I couldn't believe it. I just remember being like, this is the plot twist of all plot twists because I was young and I didn't know any better, but also because it still had me gagged. But the thing that I love about this moment, and especially as an adult who thinks about, you know, these things through a more critical lens, one thing that I love about this is, like, y'all, just for a second, close your eyes. As long as you're not driving or doing anything that requires you to have.

[Podcast Host]

Full attention, if you are not doing.

[Professor Julian Womble]

Any of those things, close your eyes. And I don't want you to. Just imagine Tom Riddle sitting at his.

[Podcast Host]

Desk, working through the anagram that would.

[Professor Julian Womble]

Get him to I am Lord Voldemort. Like, the idea that this nerd, this dweeb, was, like, not hanging out with his friends. He was just sitting around being like, tom Marvolo Riddle. Like, what kind of I am. Okay, we have that, but now what do we have? And, like, literally, y'all, what a loser. What a loser. And I love that because it really does show the desperation that he had to be anything, anything other than who he was. It's his insecurity made manifest. The idea that you would have spent a considerable amount of time. Now, maybe. Maybe there was a spell that he cast, an anagram spell, animagio, perhaps, that would have given him, you know, the different combinations. But I don't think that that's what he did, because I think it would have been meaningful for him to create something that would have been memorable, that would have elevated him above everyone else around him. I think he would have been intentional about wanting to make sure that whatever the title was was something that was so distinct. And the fact that he calls himself Lord, which is something that I talk about very frequently on my social media accounts, is so telling, because there is no wizarding royalty. And yet somehow he uses this language to make himself superior to the people who would ultimately become his followers. And I just love this as a. An origin story. I love this as a display of the sheer desperation that he has to be greater. And I think that so much of that defines who he is as a character, who he becomes. And I've gotten into some debates with people on social media about, you know, whether or not Tom Riddle has imposter syndrome. And some people are like, no, because he's a narcissist. And so he doesn't.

[Podcast Host]

We're gonna get into all of that.

[Professor Julian Womble]

But for me, this particular moment is one that plays a really Big part in our understanding of, you know, who he is as a person and who he wants to be more than that. Right? And so much of the way that we understand Tom Riddle is through the lens of who it is that he aspires to be, where he never quite settles for who he is. Even from the moment that Voldemort, I mean Voldemort. Oops. That Dumbledore tells him, you are a wizard, he's like, I'm special. I'm better. I'm superior to everyone else. And he spends considerable amounts of time trying to make sure that everyone knows this fact, whether it be by changing his name, whether it be by being the best student, whether it be by highlighting the fact that after a number of years he finds out who his ancestor is. All of these different instances are instances of him trying to prove, like, no, no, no, no, no. I'm better than you. You're not like me, and I'm not.

[Podcast Host]

Like the rest of these other half bloods over here.

[Professor Julian Womble]

And I may not know my heritage when I walk in, but by the time I walk out, you know who I am. And I think that there's something so specific about that. And I think the moment that we can, like, focus on and think about is this moment where he decides to name himself Lord Voldemort. And the fact that, like, he just knew he was gonna gag Harry when he was drawing out those letters and drew out his name and was like, let me do a quick wave and show you. Like, how many times do you think he had to be able to actually do that to write out Tom Marvolo.

[Podcast Host]

Riddle and then wish that wand and say, I am Lord Voldemort?

[Professor Julian Womble]

Like, the premeditation, the thought, the pageantry, the drama, the madness, like, y'all, this is not someone who is secure. And that is incredible because he really does pass himself off as someone who is outlandishly confident and yet somehow he doesn't get past me. I see it. And this moment, for me really shines a light on that particular reality.

[Podcast Host]

And for that, it is one of my favorite, favorite, favorite moments.

[Professor Julian Womble]

And I'm interested actually to know what yours are. Right. Like when we. We actually get to spend a considerable amount of time with Tom Riddle and.

[Podcast Host]

Half Blood Prince and we get to.

[Professor Julian Womble]

Understand how he ticks and who he is. And so, like, in the post episode.

[Podcast Host]

Chat, please feel free to share with.

[Professor Julian Womble]

Me some of your favorite moments because, like, this is our Big Bad. This is our Big Bad villain. And so let's spend a little time Talking about who he is and what he's about and what you all think of him. You all did it a little bit in your surveys.

[Podcast Host]

But let's think about maybe our favorite moment.

[Professor Julian Womble]

And it can be a moment where he kind of falls on his face or whatever. But anyway, it doesn't matter.

[Podcast Host]

I'm interested and I want to hear.

[Professor Julian Womble]

From you because I think that one.

[Podcast Host]

Of the things that makes Voldemort, Voldemort.

[Professor Julian Womble]

Is the belief that somehow he's just this like, very, very methodical, well thought out person. And some of the stuff that he gets up to is very methodical and well thought out. And sometimes, y'all, it's not like the Horcruxes. I know we're gonna get into it in the next episode, but like, we.

[Podcast Host]

Kind of see a little bit of.

[Professor Julian Womble]

The cracks beginning to show even when he's younger. And so what are the things that make you, like, scratch your head a little bit even when he's just, you know, regular degular? Tom Riddle.

[Ryan Seacrest]

Hello, it is Ryan. And we could all use an extra bright spot in our day, couldn't we? Just to make up for things like sitting in traffic, doing the dishes, counting your steps, you know, all the mundane stuff. That is why I'm such a big fan of Chumba Casino. Chumba Casino has all your favorite social casino style games that you can play for free, anytime, anywhere, with daily bonuses. That should brighten your day a little. Actually a lot. So sign up [e-mail] that's chumbacasino.com no.

[Chumba Casino Ad]

Purchase necessary bgw void prohibited by law. See terms and conditions 18+.

[Professor Julian Womble]

When asked what word best describes Tom Riddle, the top three were evil, insecure, selfish. And then the fourth word is an important word that I want to talk.

[Podcast Host]

About, which is psychopath.

[Professor Julian Womble]

So we talk about psychopathy and sociopathy a lot in our society, right? Like we call everyone a sociopath.

[Podcast Host]

We call everyone a psychopath.

[Professor Julian Womble]

We call everyone a narcissist, right? And these are words that came up a lot, both in terms of the words that are used to describe him, but also a lot in your kind.

[Podcast Host]

Of essays and your descriptions of him.

[Professor Julian Womble]

In your open ended questions in the survey. And so I was like, ugh. Like, to the extent that we recognize these words as being true for Voldemort, are we overusing them? Do they actually apply to him? So I reached out to a friend of mine, Dr. Adidjit Mustafa, who is a assistant professor of psychology at Drew University, where I went and did my undergrad with Dr. Mustafa and also a massive Harry Potter fan. And so I reached out to her and I asked her a couple questions because she's a clinical psychologist. And I said, you know, I need your answers. I need to know. The people need to know if we're diagnosing Voldemort correctly as a psychopath.

[Podcast Host]

So I asked her, is Voldemort a psychopath?

[Professor Julian Womble]

And she wrote, yes, without a doubt. To be more specific, as a clinical psychologist, Voldemort would absolutely meet criteria for antisocial personality disorder. Aspd, psychopath and sociopath are not clinical diagnoses in the dsm. Instead, we use ASPD as a diagnosis that explains people who show a blatant and chronic disregard for the rights, well being and or safety of others. For example, they can steal others property or physically harm them without remorse. She goes on to say, with aspd, there's a version that starts in childhood with conduct disorder. We know from the memory with Mrs. Cole from Wool's orphanage that Tom Riddle was suspected of being involved in some unpleasant incidences. But they couldn't quite prove it. Children with conduct disorder who don't have magic may hurt small animals or smaller children. Imagine how dangerous Tom would have been with magic to those other children. Harry accidentally sets a snake loose. Think of the other things young Tom would have done in that orphanage. Once he realized he could make magic happen, he with his mind terrifying. She also writes, the other note that I want to make is that while we are used to thinking of those with ASPD as outwardly violent or dangerous, research shows that some never actually get accused or convicted of crimes. Some people, like Tom in his Hogwarts years, are so smart and clever that they are not caught or others know how to toe the line just well enough. And I posted a little clip of this on my Instagram and Anna L. Who is a trauma therapist, wrote, is he a psychopath or did he just develop a personality disorder from unprocessed complex trauma and attachment issues? And when I said, Anna, you're asking me like, I know, but you're the professional. And she said, I don't have an answer. So you know what y'all, this is for us. Because I think what is clear is that there is something not all the way right with Tom Riddle Jr. And I think that that's the most forgiving and ecumenical way that I can say that. But I do think that we can see from the examples that Dr. Mustafa gives us that he fits the bill in a lot of ways. And in some Ways I wonder about how we reconcile that with the trauma that many of us argue he experienced. And we will get into that when we discuss whether or not Tom Riddle Jr. Is a victim. But I think that it is clear that he has, at the very least an antisocial personality disorder, right? Like the fact that he clearly has no regard for the rights, well being and or safety of others is clear to us even from a very young age when we first meet him before he is brought in. So that's at 11 years old. That much is clear to us. And so I think this is really important for us to think about because I think it also manifests in a lot of meaningful ways as we see him grow and become a student at Hogwarts. Many of you bring up many instances where we can see these things kind of manifest. We also recognize, right, that the evilness and the selfishness kind of fit into this particular dynamic. We can talk a little bit about whether or not we believe he's a narcissist. Dr. Mustafa also provides an affirmative answer to that as well. And I think that at the root of this, right, and she argues that a lot of his narcissism can also come from or be the byproduct of his insecurity. And so the top words for him, this evil, this insecure, this selfishness, all kind of comes together in these kind of antisocial disorders that we see kind of made manifest in a lot of what Tom Riddle does. And I think it's really fascinating because we also see that, like, he's a people person, like he can charm the pants off of anyone. And so that when we see things about, like, antisocial, it feels maybe a little bit counter to how we understand him. But the reality of the situation is, is that like, him having an antisocial personality disorder does not negate his ability to engage in social practices and kind of pantomime things, right? Like he's able to charm the pants off of Slughorn, off of Hepzibah Smith. He's very adept, even Dumbledore, right? He's very adept at navigating social spaces in ways that is very disarming and also leads people to not necessarily put their guard up in a way that they probably should. And that's really, really, really important and also tells us a very specific kind of story. Now, the kind of twist in the tale that Anna from Instagram provides us in terms of about how we're supposed to think of his own trauma and the potential unprocessed kind of attachment issues is a whole nother can of worms that we will get into as we continue on our journey. But I think that, you know, when we think about who this person is, evil, insecure, selfish and psychopath fit him very, very, very well.

[Ryan Seacrest]

Hello, it is Ryan and I was on a flight the other day playing one of my favorite social spin slot games on chumbacasino.com I looked over the person sitting next to me and you know what they were doing? They were also playing Chumba Casino. Coincidence? I think not everybody's loving having fun with it. Chumba Casino is home to hundreds of casino style games that you can play for free anytime, anywhere, even at 30,000ft. So sign up [e-mail] to claim your free welcome bonus. That's chumbacasino.com and live the Chumba life.

[Chumba Casino Ad]

No purchase necessary. VGW prohibited by law. See terms and conditions 18 + with.

[American Express Ad]

The American Express Gold Card, I can earn 4 times Membership Rewards points at US supermarkets. So with all these groceries, I'm also getting points. Learn [e-mail] US Explore Gold Terms and Points Cap apply.

[Podcast Host]

For today's arithmancy Lesson we had 777 responses. Which feels very fortuitous because we know that magical numerology suggests that 7 is a very important number. We know that old Tom Riddle Jr. Okay, he had seven Horcruxes and well is it? The number of horcruxes always confuses me. I know that he had intended to make seven horcruxes. Now I know Harry throws a wrench in the plan. Spoiler alert. But either way, seven is a good magical number. And so the first question that we're going to look at is is Tom Riddle Jr. A good Slytherin? 74% of us said yes, 17% of us said no, and 8% of us said don't know. Someone wrote I thought for a second about whether he is a good Slytherin. I wondered if the inherent misguided goals that he was after made him less of a good Slytherin. Like dude was after immortality and all that he has to show for it is 13 years of being a ghostly boy and then dying in his 70s when normal wizards live for over 100 years. All right then that's not a very well thought through ambition, my guy. And the whole basis of building fascism on superiority of a class of people that you aren't included in Silliness. That's not a bad stupid goal. But no, I don't think being clever about ambition is what gives Slytherins their oomph. Oh, sorry, Professor. That's what they wrote. Or even how effective they are in achieving the things they want. It's about how they pursue that ambition to their own ends. And Voldy definitely gets after what he wants, no matter the cost. Someone else wrote, I feel that Voldemort is the epitome of being a Slytherin. Always vying for a power, but at the same time not being a diplomat and causing a power struggle. I feel that this behavior appeared purely because of sheer hatred. But at the same time, Voldy doesn't notice when things gradually start to get out of control. Maybe because of his strong sense of being a pick me. Okay, y'all. I learned what a pick me was in one of my classes from the Gen Z's. If you're listening, just know that I'm hip and cool. And now one of my favorite things to talk about is how Voldemort is a pick me. That's gonna be in the reflection, though, so we're not talking about it now. But I'm very proud that that language has moved over from Gen Z space into my space, because it just. I feel my wrinkles filling with collagen every time I use it. And that is really what we are about, okay? Natural youth, age. Defying things like using parlance that you don't truly understand, but get enough to make it make sense. Enough about that. You all distracting me. One of the things that I had not thought about was the way that Tom Riddle's pursuit of so many of these things, while, and, yes, very ambitious, are not particularly well conceived. And whether or not that leads us to believe that he is actually a good Slytherin. And so the first comment really kind of struck me, because when we think about what it means to be a good Slytherin, right, We know that ambition is the calling card and blah, blah, blah. But at the end of the day, you also have to kind of be good at ambition. And yes, Voldemort had a lot of really lofty goals and a lot of things that he wanted to and actually did achieve. But at the end of the day, he ultimately dies young, like the comment said. But also, you know, he truly did not think through some of the choices that he made. Right? You know, choosing these very high profile Horcruxes really did you a massive disservice. You know, he even says in the graveyard scene with Harry in Goblet of Fire that he, you know, slipped up and thinking about what Lily's sacrifice would have done. And then he ultimately was, as the commenter said, a Ghostly Boy for 13 years. There just seems to be the kind of mitigation of some of his ambition is his ego, right? And it just strikes me that that might be the pitfall of a lot of Slytherins that we are introduced to, right? Is the belief that because you're you and you're either really good at magic or all these other things, that even though you have ambition, you know, there's something to be said about not believing yourself to be the absolute best all the time. Because when you believe that it can undermine your ambitious goals, right? Like you believing that somehow just going in because you got your hands on this prophecy and you're going to go and just kill this kid and his family, it ultimately is all undone so easily, actually, because you weren't paying attention, because your goal was so kind of. You were so focused on your goal that you weren't actually thinking about the fact that, like, what would happen? There's no contingency plans. I think that that's the thing that gets me. And look, I'm an ambitious person, but I also have a lot of anxiety. And so my anxiety means that I'm, like, thinking about everything, like, three or four steps ahead. And one of my favorite moments, and I was going to talk about this in the next episode, but it's apropos here, so we'll keep it here. One of my favorite moments is when Voldemort realizes in Deathly Hallows that Harry has figured out the Horcrux situation and that he's been hunting them. And there's a line. I think it says something along the lines of, like, you know, Dumbledore was reaching from the ignominity of death. And I love that line one. Cause I love that word, even though I never use it for anything. I need to start including it. But also I love it because it's like, yeah, you dummy. You really thought that you were, like, keeping this a secret from people. I mean, to be clear, right? Like Regulus Arcturus Black figured out the Horcrux situation and had already undone some of what you thought you had done, and you were none the wiser about it. You had no idea. Because so much of the way that he conceptualizes his ambition and his goals is like, I'm the best, and no one will ever be able to figure it out. And when we think about what this means for him, being a good Slytherin or not, I really do think about the chamber of secrets, right? And I think no one knew how to get into that chamber. No one knew where it was hidden. No one knew any of the details after Salazar dipped out. And I think that that tells us a very specific kind of story about how certain kinds of ambition can be done in a way that are, you know, maybe grounded in some sense of moral superiority, but also well thought out. And that there wasn't an ego enough for Salazar to just kind of slip through some details and be like, whatever, I'll figure that out later. Like, he was so meticulous that only him and one other person, well, I guess, and then Harry were able to open it up because there was thought, there was planning. And the fact that Tom Riddle did not do any of this, even from a very young age because he's like, well, I'm smarter than everyone else is so fascinating to me. And so, like, yes, he has the ambition. But this comment really invites me to think about the fact that there's more to it than being ambitious. You have to be so specific in your planning, in your execution, so that you can actually get your. You can not only reach your goals, but, like, maintain them. I think that there's something very specific about, you know, the notion of maintaining the things that you've been working for. And I think we see this with other people, right? We see this with Draco, who also was, like, doing plans, but not necessarily to the highest level. And to the point where Dumbledore is like, that was kind of lazy. And so I think that we kind of see that the presumption of superiority and the ego really does undermine what one's ambition can offer them. And in this way, I don't think that Tom Riddle's a bad Slytherin, but I certainly don't think he's the best because I think that there are better ways for you to be able to get what you want and keep what you want.

[Professor Julian Womble]

Right?

[Podcast Host]

I think that's the thing about ambition. It's like, you can be ambition all day. You can be ambition, you can be ambitious all day long. But if you can't keep the things or actually attain the things that you're wanting, well, then what's the point of ambition? Like, why does it matter? And in that way, I think that Voldemort and Tom Riddle, they really fall short on this for me. And this comment really kind of brought that to the fore in a way that I had not thought about. You can get the things that you want and that you're striving for by way of your ambition. But can you keep them? Is it something that you can maintain? For me, that's the mark of a good Slytherin.

[Chumba Casino Ad]

How to have fun anytime, anywhere step one go to chumbacasino.com chumbacasino.com Got it. Step two collect your welcome bonus.

[Podcast Host]

Come to papa. Welcome bonus.

[Chumba Casino Ad]

Step 3 Play hundreds of casino style games for free.

[Ryan Seacrest]

That's a lot of games, all for free.

[Chumba Casino Ad]

Step 4 Unleash your excitement.

[Professor Julian Womble]

Woo hoo.

[Chumba Casino Ad]

Chumba Casino has been delivering thrills for over a decade. So claim your free welcome bonus now and live the chumba life. Visit chumbacasino.com no purchase necessary.

VGW Group Void where prohibited by law 21/ terms and conditions apply with the.

[American Express Ad]

American Express Gold Card, I can earn four times membership rewards points at US Supermarkets. So with all these groceries, I'm also getting points. Learn [e-mail] US Explore Gold Terms and Points Capafly.

[Podcast Host]

The next question is Is Tom Riddle a villain? About 87% of us said yes, about 7% of us said no, and about 6% of us said don't. No, Someone wrote in regards to whether Tom Riddle Jr. Is a villain or not, I had to put I don't know. I really struggled with this question because it's hard to separate the two. And when I think about young Tom Riddle stealing from other orphans, it seems like this is a little villainous. But at the same time he was young and really had no understanding of what it meant to be a person, good or bad. But then he goes to Hogwarts and he unleashes the Basilisk and frames Hagrid. All points to villain. But I feel like at what point does he forsake his birth given name for Voldemort? When he decided this is who I am. Is it before or after the Chamber of Secrets for these unknowns? I had to say, I don't know. Someone else wrote, Tom Jr. Is a villain because he lets Hagrid take the fall for him opening the Chamber. He may have been a victim as a child in a cruel orphanage, but I don't think adults get to claim victimhood for what happened to them as children. And another person wrote, I had to pause to double check that I wasn't crazy. That little Tommy J. Okay, I'm obsessed with the names that were coming up with truly inspired Chef's Kiss. That little Tommy J was obviously a villain. That kid has been killing rabbits and traumatizing other orphans since he was 7. And I'm sure he had A full understanding of what he was doing. You don't take other kids into a super secret cave and tell them never to breathe a word to anyone about what happened in there without some villainy baked in. And his victimhood simply cannot be an excuse for that. He was living in a whole orphanage from which no one else became an evil dictator. It's just him. And we are intimately familiar with another magical orphan around Muggles in a bad, abusive situation that pretty specifically does not become super evil. What was his name again? Henry Panther. We see in flashbacks that he was very interested and in and good at taking full advantage of his power over other children. And he really internalized by the time Albus got to him that those powers made him better than other children. Once he got to Hogwarts and was confronted with the fact that there were others like him and his blood status made him, quote, unquote, less than some of them, his primary goal became to take that power back, to find the feeling of superiority that he was able to get over the kids at the orphanage again, utilizing his skill and personality to achieve those goals. That sounds like a villain to me. And I guess it's arguable that he became Voldy versus Tommy, but I'd argue that killing Myrtle falls squarely into Tommy Jr. Villainy territory. Even if he had become, even if he had come up with the name, I think that the change into true Voldemort Hood happens later. I think he is still Tom, at least until he asks for the Defense against the Dark Art job. That feels like a big turning point of motivation and personal identity for the character. I did not expect this particular question to be the one that brought chaos, but I also didn't expect to be kind of moving in a direction of thinking that Tom Riddle Jr. Wasn't a good Slytherin. So you all are really challenging me today and one another. And isn't that what we love? This is really fascinating, right? Because not a lot of comments brought up the fact that he unleashed the Basilisk to kill a Muggle born person, right? Many of us talked about the fact that he framed Hagrid, our beloved Hagrid. But many of us did not highlight the fact that in the framing of Hagrid, someone legitimately died and that the only reason he went on to frame Hagrid was because he needed to be able to come back to Hogwarts because it was a safe place for him to be able to use his magic without any sort of governmental interference. Right? And in this moment we can see another Kind of flaw in his ambition kind of scheme of things, right? Because it's like, so you thought you were gonna just kill a girl and nothing was gonna happen, there wasn't gonna be any recourse, and that you weren't gonna have to deal with the consequences of it. Like, dude, get a grip. And so then all of a sudden, you have to kind of figure out what you're gonna do once Professor Dippett is like, no, girl, we're gonna close the school down because kids are dropping, there is a beast roaming around these halls and a girl is actually dead. And so what's fascinating about that, right, is that to me, that in and of itself, even without the framing of Hagrid, the fact that you were so cool, calm and collected about unleashing this beast on Muggle Borns and to the point where someone died, and you're kind of like, well, whatever, until it affects you, right? Until the consequence comes back to you. And now all of a sudden you're like, oh, wait, I can't come back to school. You mean I have to go and stay in the orphanage? Like, that's crazy. Don't worry, I'll fix it, right? And it is so fascinating because I'm like, to me, the villainy journey begins with the opening of the Chamber of Secrets. Because you don't just open it. Just cause you opened it, you figured out that the Basilisk was in there. You were talking with the Basilisk full on convos to the point where it was only listening to you. Like, you spend a considerable amount of time thinking about this, and for what, right? Like, there's no motivation for this other than for you as a person to be like, look how powerful I am, right? Like, I need to be able to claim a birthright into kind of the Slytherin space. And the best way that I'm gonna be able to do that is to attack someone else. The best way that I'm gonna get these other Slytherin girlies on my side is by showing them how powerful I am. And I like this. I've been doing this since before I even showed up at Hogwarts, right? And so that I think, you know, when we think about when he became a villain, I think the question is, like, I think it is something that he always had in him. And I think we really do begin to see the villainy birthed at Hogwarts. I mean, yeah, sure, we can talk about what he did, you know, as a child, and there are lots of ways to think about that, but And I think, you know, one of the comments brought up a really good point that, like, a lot of the things that he did were absolutely premeditated. And for the purposes of, like, scaring other children, making them realize that they shouldn't mess with him. Like, the whole thing with the rabbit, the whole thing with the cave, like, there is a way. And then stealing, right? Like, stealing the things to kind of. To have them. And I think this kind of returns us back to the definition that was provided to us by Dr. Mustafa about the idea of what it means to be a psychopath. Right. And what it means to be someone who has one of these antisocial personality disorders. Right? And it's very clear to us from a very early age that he has one of these, namely because he simply does not care about what his actions mean and. Or do to other people. And so that when we think about kind of what villainy actually is. And it's interesting because, you know, for the Half Bloods, we haven't really. We're trying to define things in more concrete terms. And so it's interesting because we kind of all know villains, but we recognize that villains come in different shapes and sizes and different motivations. And one of the things that has always struck me about Voldemort is that his motivation is not born out of something that happened to him, Right. That turned him into this. I mean, not in a way of, like, tragedy befell him. Like, this is someone who simply wants to prove to themselves and to everyone else, like, hey, I'm amazing. Hashtag, pick me.

[Professor Julian Womble]

Right?

[Podcast Host]

And all of his choices are with that in mind. And he doesn't really care what happens to other people. And that, to me, reeks of villainy. It reeks of the idea of, like, no, but I'm actually just better than you, and I don't care what it takes. I want you to know, and I need to prove it to me. And that is something that's really, really fascinating to me. And so I think that the villainy was always there. I think he just changed his name and got some cosmetic surgery done. But I think that the foundation of it, maybe the ambition got a little bit bigger over time, right? Maybe he wanted to take over the government or use that as a smokescreen to do the other things that he wanted to do, maybe that grew. But his lack of concern or care for other people, his kind of narcissistic motivations to be able to prove that he's worthy of whatever, all that was there from the beginning. And I really like the part of one of the last comment that says once he gets to Hogwarts and realizes that there are other people who can do what he can do, that made him so different and special in the Muggle world. He then went on this journey to figure out how to prove that he was still special. Right? Because if everyone's special, then no one is special. And so you have to then figure out ways to get around that. And you know, I think that it's there, right? It's in the quest to prove himself as being better, which we see him utilizing at a young age and then kind of just developing over time. That's where the villainy comes from. That's the origin story of who he is as a villain. And I also think that. And we'll get into this in the next question, you know, that him, you know, experiencing what he experiences, you know, as a child in the orphanage doesn't necessarily negate the fact that what he does is villainous.

[Ryan Seacrest]

Hey, it's Ryan Seacrest. Life comes at you fast, which is why it's important to find some time to relax a little. You time. Enter Chumba Casino. With no download required. You can jump on anytime, anywhere for the chance to redeem serious prizes. So treat yourself with Chumba Casino and play over 100 online casino style games, all for free. Go to Chumbacasino.com to collect your free welcome bonus. Sponsored by Chumba Casino.

[Chumba Casino Ad]

No purchase NECESSARY VGW Group VOID where prohibited by law 21 plus terms and conditions apply.

[Podcast Host]

The last question that we're going to be talking about on this episode is, is Tom Riddle Jr. About 45% of us said yes, about 43% of us said no. And 12% of us said don't know y'all. I wasn't ready for this particular bit of chaos either. Y'all really surprised me. And you know, I realize that I said, you know, bring the chaos. And I just forget how good you all are at it because sometimes I feel like it's just me, like I'm the chaos problem. But now I'm realizing it's really y'all. Y'all are the problem. And I'm just here giving you a space to be chaotic, right? Like this is the Chaotic Triwizard Tournament and all of your names have been pulled out of the goblet of chaos. And you all deliver every single time. Someone wrote Tom Riddle Jr. I would say is a victim. This notion that he was conceived under a love potion and thus cannot feel love is not something he Asked for. And I believe that having someone live in a world where he will never fully be able to feel and therefore truly understand what the power of love is, is wholly cruel in itself. Someone else wrote, I do think he's a victim. He just chose to base his life around it and trying to be everything he wasn't. It's sad, but it's no excuse. Voldy always needed some loving family and lots and lots of therapy.

[Professor Julian Womble]

Hello.

[Podcast Host]

Heavy on the therapy immediately. Post haste. Someone wrote, is he a victim? Yes. He was failed by everyone. The system, Muggles, wizards, Dumbledore, everybody. He had tremendous potential to be truly great. But I think he didn't have a chance from the start. If the love potion theory is indeed true, then he was doomed to fail from conception, making him truly heartless. Now, we've talked a little bit about this in the Merope episode. I am not necessarily the biggest fan of this kind of love potion. Conception did a thing that made him the way that he is, because it cannot and is undoubtedly untrue that he is the only person who is conceived this way. Now, we talked at considerable length about the problematic nature of what Merope did, and I think that that is really important. But I think what I dislike about the love potion theory is that it negates the reality that his family had a lot of heartlessness and a lot of issues that were mental and behavioral and attitudinal in them already before the love potion. Right? Like when we look at the cruelty of Morphin, right? The fact that he cursed Tom Riddle Sr. Just because Merope was looking at him, the fact that he had done.

[Professor Julian Womble]

All of these things, the way he.

[Podcast Host]

Treats Merope, it's all suggesting that a lot of these things existed before, you know, Merope even gave what did whatever she did, right? We don't know if it was a love potion. We don't know what kind of spell it was. We don't know if it was imperious. We have no idea if it was a love potion. That's the other thing, right? Like, that's the other wrinkle is that we don't actually know what was used on Tom Riddle Sr. We just know that he was, you know, bewitched, hoodwinked, bamboozled, led astray. And so, you know, I struggle with this. And I also struggle with this because the notion of being born without love suggests that every other person that we meet was conceived with love in mind. And I don't know that that is true. It seems a little bit too fantastic. Of a concept for me, I think when we are in a society where it's so kind of back ass words in terms of the politic of it, right, the pure blood supremacy, like what would it mean for us to kind of look at certain characters and assume that there is love there, right? Like we look at Bellatrix, for example, many of us wrote, and we discussed a little bit in her episode the fact that she was married to Rodolphus, right? But she clearly has this like yearning for Voldemort. And if Bellatrix and Rodolphus had had kids, right, Like I would contend that it wouldn't be because, like they were so deeply and madly in love and what does that mean for their children, right? So I think that this idea of like love potion kind of being the reason why Tom Riddle is the way that he is, I think it really undermines a number of things and it removes some of his own decision making and it removes the reality that his family and his genetics also help in this. And it also, I think, promotes this idea that love is a kind of prerequisite or a necessity for having healthy children. When that. I don't think that that's true. And I don't know, it puts me in like a weird space. So I'm not convinced that, you know, the love potion aspect of it is the thing that I would at least use as a justification for why he was a victim. I asked Dr. Mustafa about this, right? I asked her to what extent would Tom Riddle's childhood have contributed to the way that he behaves and the way that we kind of understand him? And she wrote, his childhood contributed greatly. First, I must acknowledge the role of genetics. He comes from a lineage of a mom, father, uncle, grandfather, et cetera, that also demonstrated a blatant lack of regard of others rights. Merope's magical control of Tom's mind and body is a blatant and disturbing disregard for his rights and autonomy. So it's in Tom's blood, the very blood he claimed proudly, and it was then activated and perpetuated by his mother's death. Being raised in an orphanage where he did not get adequate individual love and care, learning that he was abandoned by his father, et cetera, Any one of these things could be a risk factor for his severe behavioral problems, to put it mildly. But the combination of all of these factors really did a number on him. For example, imagine his reaction to finding his father and seeing how wealthy and privileged his family was while he, Tom Riddle Jr. May have survived off scraps in the orphanage. So we can definitely say that his childhood explains part of how he became who he is without justifying it. That is to say, most people who lose their mother to childbirth, who grow up in orphanages and. Or who experience parental neglect or abandonment do not go on to become serial killers. So I think we can agree that, yes, there are a lot of things in Tom Riddle's world in orbit that.

[Professor Julian Womble]

That would lead us to believe that.

[Podcast Host]

He is a victim. Right? Like, on every metric, he is living a life of scarcity until he arrives at Hogwarts. And there are lots of factors that play a part in this. But I do think, and this is really important, that, you know, we can see these things as being true and not necessarily use them as an excuse or a justification for his behavior. Because, as someone else wrote, Harry undergoes a lot of this. And Harry lives, was born with a family that loved him but lost them. Right. And grew up and was raised and socialized in a family where he did not experience love at all, had no idea, and spent a considerable amount of his time thinking that his parents died in a car crash.

[Professor Julian Womble]

Right?

[Podcast Host]

So it's like, without any context for the fact that, like, you know, his mom sacrificed her life for him. So the idea that all of the things that Voldemort undergoes, you know, are the justifications or the reasons why he's a victim. Right. To me, it seems a little bit too. It's a little bit too. Oh, what's it. What's the word?

[Professor Julian Womble]

Who is it?

[Podcast Host]

I think it's Sarah on Patreon calls it the baby girlification. Like, this feels like a little bit of that.

[Professor Julian Womble]

Right.

[Podcast Host]

Like, I think we can recognize some of this, but I also think that we don't have to wait until he loses his nose to figure out that, like, he's not a good person and that what he did is bad. And we can acknowledge that. And I also don't think that we need to kind of conceptualize the why of it being because of this love potion. Because I think that that puts way too much of an onus on his mom in a way that, like, yes, she is. She does some really problematic stuff. But at the same time, also, concurrently, like, so did his father. Right? Cause that's the other thing. Tom Riddle Jr. I mean, Tom Riddle Sr. Is not a good person. He's mean, he's nasty. Like, he also was not contributing love and kindness to this gene pool just by virtue of, like, who he was. Like, they were not liked people. He was a mean person. Right. Like, when he's riding on the horse in the memory and, like, commenting on the gaunt house and talking about how terrible it is and. And how. And the girl is like, why can't you have the house rip? Like, he is not kind. And I think that, you know, we're putting a lot of onus on Merope and the justification of, like, you know, well, this is the decision she made. But also, I would care to wager that even if she hadn't done this, and let's say that her and Tom had gotten together, you know, organically, whatever, like, neither of them were bringing a lot of goodness to the genetic table. And so there's not gonna be a lot for Tom Riddle Jr. To, like, eat from. Add on top of that, the fact that he is then, like, in this orphanage and what that means. And so I think that, yes, he is a victim of a lot of things, and I think that there is a lot of care and concern and love that he could have experienced. I though y'all, oh, this might be a hot take. I don't think it would have made a difference. I don't think it would have made a difference. I think that what he was dealing with genetically, all of the kind of antisocial personality disorders that we see exhibited even in his family, whether it be his mom, whether it be his uncle, whether it be his grandfather and. Or his actual father. Right. Like, there are a lot of things in there that, you know, without any sort of other provocation or, you know, like, I don't think it would have made a difference. I think that he would have been this person. And I know that that stands in the face of the desire to always kind of elevate this person and make them, you know, try to redeem them. But, like, there is. There is no one to blame for a lot of what he did just because of something they did to him. This is kind of in his blood. You know, this is coming from a place that is so far outside of the nurture space and is very much rooted, like, deeply rooted in the nature space. And I don't know that any sort of intervention would have changed that, because I also think that someone brought this up as well. Like, we. As far as we are made aware, no one else from that orphanage became a serial killer. So it's like, it's not the orphanage. And we can argue a lot of ways and that this might have been different. But if we are truly making the argument that Voldemort is someone who is dealing with psychopathy and is dealing with this antisocial personality disorder, then it suggests to us that there's an aspect of his behavior that is beyond the scope of remediation. And I think we just have to accept that as being true. And we can recognize that like him, being victimized by all these other external forces contributes to the behavior. But there's a baseline, there is a foundation on which all of that other behavioral stuff and all the other externalities are contributing. But there is a baseline that is meaningful and we can't ignore it for the sake of trying to absolve him of some of the choices that he makes. And we can't blame these other people for his decisions when it seems like those decisions are simply built on top of a pre existing genetic, familial, antisocial personality problem. We've now reached a portion of the episode where I am going to give a reflection on Tommy Riddz. Tommy J. Right, Tom Riddle Jr. All names that he would absolutely hate. And one of the things that really stood out to me as I was reading through your comments and going through the survey and just thinking about this particular iteration of Tom Riddle Jr. As a young person, before the nose is gone, before the soulless split, before all these things, well, maybe not fully before the soulless split, one of the things that I really, that really stood out to me was this kind of very clear desire to belong in space. And many of you brought this up in your conversation surrounding the choices that he makes. And one of the things that really stood out to me was like, you know, we know that when he gets to Hogwarts, no one knows who he is and he doesn't know who he is. And he goes on this journey to find out, you know, who he is, where this magic came from. And, and on that journey he is met with disappointment after disappointment after disappointment after disappointment. So that when we think about and couple this with the idea of his ambition and the desire to kind of always be special, there were so many roadblocks that created this, right? So the first thing we know is he gets to Hogwarts and already he realizes I'm not as special because everyone can do what I can do. Now, I may be better than them, but like, I don't know how soon that that idea manifested, right? And then he begins this kind of genealogical journey. He goes to basically do the like Ancestry.com of the magical world, but all he does is goes and searches the archives. And this for me is probably the first or I guess the second disappointment. The first would be realizing that you're not as special as you thought you were. Secondly is the fact that your first belief is that your dad is the one who is magical. And so you're first you go and you're looking up riddles, right? You're searching for all these things, disappointment. Because your dad's not magical. And there is no evidence of riddle at all. It's not a magical name. It's not anything and it's not anywhere. So then you're like, well, this is sucky. Because I really did expect my dad to be the one who made me special. Because it couldn't be my mom because she died. And magic means you cannot die, right? Like we can see the conceptualization of this. Then you realize that magic does not protect you from mortality. Because you realize that like, oh, actually it was my mom who was the one who was magical, right? And so he goes on this whole journey, finds out, you know, Marvolo Gaunt, and you find out that, you know, your connection to the magical world is an old pure blood family that was broke and was mud. No one cared. And that everyone that you know is disgraced. So you can't even hang your hat on that. It gives you the ability to go and, you know, connect yourself to Salazar Slytherin. But that's also when everything takes a tailspin, right? Like, that's when things kind of go crazy. Because now you have to prove to other people, right? Because that's the thing about Voldemort, right? That's the thing about Tom Riddle. It's not enough that he realizes how great he is or that he realizes how special he is. He wants everyone else around him to experience this, to recognize this particular truth, right? It's why you take those kids to the cave. It's why you open up the Chamber of Secrets and use it to attack. Because, like, I would have used that Chamber of Secrets as a study room. Me and the Basilisk hanging out. Like, why do I need to kill someone? Because I need to prove to the people who I want to follow me that I'm powerful. And that you all should be afraid of me and recognize who I am. And what good is knowing who I am if you don't get to see the power, right? It's why we see noseless Voldemort call all the Death Eaters back when he could have just killed Harry, right? It's why we see him doing all of these things, right? Like he wants everyone to see how special he is, how great he is, right? It's why instead of running out of town when Dumbledore shows, shows up in the Department of Mysteries, he's like, no, we're about to fight, right? Like the ego, right? Again, this is another instance where we're able to see his ego and his desire for external validation playing a big part in undermining his ultimate goals, right? It's this thing that takes away from his ability to actually achieve the things that he wants because he wants everyone to see how great he is. Like every single time you could have just killed Harry and you were like, nah, everyone needs to see this. I want them to know it. It's the pick me of it all. And so we see very early on a lot of his choices are motivated by the belief that people need to see how special I am. They need to know that I'm the heir of Slytherin. They need to know how good I am. Right? Because it's not enough that I know that. And I get in a lot of trouble on the Internet when I say that. Tom Riddle, Voldemort, Tommy J. You know, Tommy RHDZ is outlandishly insecure. People are like, no, he's a narcissist and so he can't be insecure and blah blah blah blah. And I don't want to undermine anyone's kind of beliefs. You are obviously always welcome to disagree with me, but this is not the behavior of someone who has a very strong sense of self confidence in themselves. Like he may be confident in his ability but his own internalized understanding of self. No, everything he does is so that he can prove that he belongs in that space because he wants everyone to see it. Right? Like the fact that you show up to Hogwarts with your cronies like waiting for you at the Hogshead, right? Like the idea you want followers. You need to feel wanted. You need to feel not loved but feared. You need to feel that everyone in your orbit respects you and you don't really care if they do. But you need the Bellatrixes, right? And that's why he loves her so much. And that's why he can't stand Lucius when he comes back. Because Lucius was out here living a life. You want the people who are gonna go search for your body. It's why Wormtail was so annoying to him, but he kept him around. That's why he loved Barty Crouch Jr. So much. Because he needs the external validation. He wants people to see how amazing he is. I mean one of my. I keep giving up my favorite moments and I'm not even gonna tell you this one. I'll talk about it in the next episode. Because if I keep giving them up, then I'm not gonna have anything to talk about. And there will be at a stalemate. We're not doing that. We're not doing that. But there is a moment that I love. And it exemplifies this idea that so much of the way that he operates is for the validation from others, because he needs it. And we can see why he would want it so bad. Because at every turn, as Tom Riddle Jr. He is confronted with disappointment. Disappointment about who his father is, disappointment about who his mother is, disappointment about what his family name means outside of the Salazar Slytherin of it all. And once he gets that kernel, baby, he rides it till the wheels fall off. Because he's like, this is all I've got. This is the only calling card I have. And I need it because I need people to recognize that I belong in this space. I belong more than most of these other people because I'm a direct descendant of the person who built this place. And so not only am I just gonna say it, I have to prove it. Cause you have to believe it. And the way that I'm gonna prove it isn't just by taking my friends down to the Chamber of Secrets with me to be like, look, who else could do this but me? But by going the extra mile. Because I need them to believe and understand that I'm also like them. I need them to know that even though I'm a half blood, I'm still better than you. Because the half of my half bloodedness that like is meaningful is more powerful and more special than you. I don't care if you're pure blood. I come from the og, okay? Never forget. And it's just so fascinating that he operates this way. And I think that Dr. Mustafa's point about, like, also realizing that his father abandoned him, but also was wealthy and had a big manor house that he then goes back to when he's like, still a shell of a person after, you know, during. At the beginning of Goblet of Fire, right? Like, what we recognize is that Tom Riddle Jr's like, insecurities manifest in so many ways. After the nose, after the soul, after all these, he is always chasing the things that he believes that he should have had and all the things that make him feel special. He says to Frank the gardener, he says to him, when Frank's like, something, something, something man, and he's like, I am no man, right? Like, he goes so far as to remove the actual humanity from himself. And not like the humanity in the more moral sense, but like the literal. Like I don't even wanna look like a person anymore. Like I need my outward manifestation to be an indicator of just how far removed and how far I am away from everyone else. How special I am relative to everyone else. And we can see that so much of that is in a lot of ways trying to undo these constant disappointments that existed in his life. Right? He keeps looking for ways to connect himself to the magical world in ways that make sense. Like by way of your dad and your mom. And he can't do it. And so he goes so far because all of the very strong indicators of what it would mean to belong in this world are so weak and so tenuous and they don't give him the grandiosity that he's looking for. Right? Being a Gaunt doesn't mean anything. An old pure blood family, being a descendant of Slytherin, though, that is meaningful. And you are gonna know that that is who I am whenever I get the chance to. And y'all, that's just not the behavior of someone who believes in themselves. Again, believing in your ability is not the same as believing in yourself. And I don't know, it just strikes me as the kind of the kid who's outrageously good at, you know, whatever and it becomes solely who they are so that when you know, something befalls them and they can no longer do that thing, they completely tailspin and they try to attach themselves to other things. And that is what Tom Riddle Jr. Gives me left and right. Just like this constant search for external validation. And so you create a group of Death Eaters who literally wear your mark because they care about you that much. Like the whole enterprise of Death Eaters and Voldemort, it just reeks of insecurity and this desire to not be disappointed by what has connected you and ground you in the magical world. And y'all, what a sad state of affairs.

[Ryan Seacrest]

Hey, it's Ryan Seacrest. Life comes at you fast. Which is why it's important to find some time to relax a little you time. Enter Chumba Casino with no download required. You can jump on anytime, anywhere for the chance to redeem some serious prizes. So treat yourself with Chumba Casino and play over 100 online casino style games, all for free. Go to Chumbacasino.com to collect your free welcome bonus Sponsored by Chumba Casino.

[Chumba Casino Ad]

NO PURCHASE NECESSARY VGW GROUP VOID we're prohibited by law 21 + terms and conditions apply.

[American Express Ad]

With the American Express Gold Card, I can earn four times membership rewards points at US Supermarkets. So with all these groceries, I'm also getting points. Learn [e-mail] US Explore Gold Terms and points Cap apply.

[Podcast Host]

This has been another episode of Critical Magic Theory. I'm Professor Julian Wambol and if you liked today's episode, first of all, thank you. Please feel free to like, rate, subscribe, follow, do all the things that one does where pods are cast. If you would like to get in touch with me via email, please feel free to do [e-mail] if you want to follow me on social media, you can do that. Roff jw on Instagram, roffw on TikTok. Y'all, you know that the post episode chat is about to be fire because I feel like I had some takes that I wasn't ready for and I know that some of us are gonna not like that. And you know that that means that the post episode chat is about to be crazy. And so please feel free to join. Join us there for free on [e-mail] criticalmagictheory There are also a lot of other paid subscriptions. If you want ad free, if you want bonus episodes, if you want to join the monthly chat, all of those things are there for you. Please feel free to check it out. If you want to get some merch, please feel free to go to criticalmagictheory.com and click the merch link and it will take you right to where you need to go to get this merch, y'all. It's good stuff.

[Professor Julian Womble]

Stuff.

[Podcast Host]

It's good stuff, y'all. I cannot wait for our next episode. We're continuing our journey into Voldemort, but this time we're talking about the noseless guy. We're not. We're. We're done with Tommy J. Now we're going to Voldi V. You see what I'm saying? And it's going to be a ride because many of us came with takes and I was took. Okay, y'all, I can't wait to to dive into that. And so until then, be critical and stay magical, my friends.

[Professor Julian Womble]

Bye.

[Chumba Casino Ad]

Step into the world of power, loyalty and luck. I'm gonna make him an offer he can't refuse. With family, cannolis and spins mean everything. Now you want to get mixed up in the family business. Introducing the [e-mail] test your luck in the shadowy world of the Godfather slots. Someday, I will call upon you to do a service for me. Play the Godfather [e-mail] Welcome to the family. No purchase necessary. VGW Group void. We're prohibited by law. 21 + terms and conditions apply.

[Shipstation Ad]

Servicios de interpretacion Estandis ponibles presentar su solicitud es fazil.

[Podcast Host]

Llame al.

[Shipstation Ad]

Uno, ocho, siete, siete, tres, cuatro, cinco, tres, cuatro, ocho, cuatro. Uno ocho, siete, siete, tres, cuatro, cinco, tres, cuatro, ocho, cuatro.

[Podcast Host]

Para recivira Yuda. Encual quier.