YAPA

(Yet Another Potter Analysis - Muggles beware!)

The quest for Hallows and Horcruxes are completely different - and that is one thing that separated Voldemort from Dumbledore.

“That which Voldemort does not value, he takes no trouble to comprehend. Of house-elves and children’s tales, of love, loyalty, and innocence, Voldemort knows and understands nothing. Nothing. That they all have a power beyond his own, a power beyond the reach of any magic, is a truth he has never grasped.”

That was Voldemort's weakness. But if Voldemort had known about the Hallows - would he still have pursued his quest for Horcruxes? Keeping 3 objects safe would have been easier for Voldemort - plus, he could've retained his charming good looks that won him applaud from everyone and got his work done. The possibility of that would sound so unlike Voldemort to Potter fans - but we have only Dumbledore's analysis of him. Didn't he hesitate to kill Lily? Didn't he think that killing her would be unnecessary if she was sensible?

Voldemort has never been portrayed as pure evil by Rowling herself - he is said to be evil by many in the book. Then again, so was Sirius Black. Word of mouth is not really the best way to judge a person - and most people know it and will swear by it. But when it comes to forming a negative opinion - it usually flies out of people's mind. Why should the magic world be any different? Who knows the magical equivalent of Facebook, Twitter, Page-3 gossips and did-you-hear-about exaggerations?

Voldemort might have been the most brilliant student at Hogwarts for a long time, who was very power-obsessed and tried to become a dictator. Yes - he did kill - but that was a means to an end. On the contrary, Dumbledore voluntarily stayed away from confronting Grindelwald and knowingly let innocent people die. When he did nothing to prevent death (though it was well within his powers) - how different was he really from Voldemort? At least Voldemort got his soul preserved by murder - Dumbledore only managed to raise doubts about his abilities as a powerful wizard.

The reason Dumbledore and Voldemort were so powerful was probably because the rest of the world knew so little of them. And there is always a cloud of awe surrounding a mysterious person - which leads to many guesses, speculations and far-fetched theories. Some of them are true - some of them are ridiculously crazy - but all of them build the perceived persona of the individual. Sometimes - the persona might influence a person's instinct. And that was probably why Harry Potter was kept hidden until he could no longer be sheltered from the wizarding world.

Harry Potter was the chosen one - but by chance, not by ability. He had Hermione for brilliance, Ron for... em... well, oh yeah - to be his future brother-in-law and half the Order of Phoenix laying down their lives to keep him alive. Before you go up against me in arms - answer this, if it was the 'ability to love and feel pain' the reason Harry was better than Voldemort - how come Dumbledore was not upto the mark? Simple - Extra-ordinary people will be falling short of expectations if they do not do amazing things. Harry was plain and average and more akin to readers than the omniscient Dumbledore. Plus - if Dumbledore was the hero - Rowling would've ended up with a short story and no legacy to leave the world.