Voldemort and Adolf in WWII: A Tale of Two Tyrants

Dani Tiedemann

7/20/12

Voldemort and Adolf in WWII: A Tale of Two Tyrants

                The Dark Lord Voldemort drives the same sense of fear and confusion into the heart of the wizarding world that the most famous dictator of modern history, Adolf Hitler, caused during World War II. Accounts of both worlds tell stories of unsuspecting peoples disappearing and no one hearing from them again. Friends and neighbors never know whether they ran and are now safely in hiding, or were taken. Rowling relates the two war periods by that general sense of confusion and mystery in the air. In the Deathly Hallows, Lupin explains to Harry, Ron, and Hermione, “Naturally many people have deduced what has happened… they daren’t confide in each other, not knowing whom to trust… remaining masked has created confusion, uncertainty, and fear” (206). Nobody knows exactly what is happening and former leaders deny any disturbances of power or control. They deny the fact that someone else is now in charge.

                Hitler and Voldemort as leaders of their new age, both justify their actions. Hitler was “The Fuehrer meaning leader or guide in German, and Voldemort gave himself the name Lord as they both attempted to set themselves up as leaders rather than monsters. These two tyrants experienced abusive and unlucky childhoods making their growing resentment towards certain groups more defined and powerful. Hitler resented his connections to Jewish faith and Voldemort was deeply ashamed of his muggle (non-magical) blood causing deep-seated hatred towards populations. The two men attracted many devoted and brainwashed followers in their rise to power. Why this is true remains somewhat a mystery. Nevertheless Lord Voldemort and Adolf Hitler soon had an army of passionate servants. As part of their status as leaders both preferred to stay out of the spotlight and had their minions perform all the dirty word. Lupin explains that though he appears out of the loop, Voldemort has the power now, “Effectively he is the Minister, but why should he sit behind a desk at the Ministry? His puppet, Thickness, is taking care of everyday business, leaving Voldemort free to extend his power beyond the Ministry” (Hallows 208). The leader does not need to be in the action and not being there allows for plausible deniability and a clean record as ruler. While Voldemort and Hitler ruled with an iron fist for a significant amount of time both showed immense weakness in the end. Hitler ended up losing faith and fearing his demise and humiliation ended his own life with his wife towards the end of the war. Voldemort cannot stand when Harry uses his muggle related name Tom Riddle making him feel inferior and weak. While other characters only destroy one Horcrux each, Voldemort kills the most of himself: both the part inside Harry, and his last remaining piece in his own body. Voldemort and Hitler follow the pattern of many tyrants by showing their hidden but intense weaknesses before their downfall.

                While Hitler was recorded to be an awkward speaker in small groups- unlike the awe inspiring speeches of Voldemort, their motto or messages were basically the same. Their guiding statement was a template communicating the existence of superior and inferior groups of people. In the magical world of Harry Potter Voldemort’s food chain idea went from lowest to highest: Muggles, mudbloods, muggle-lovers, half-bloods, and on the top purebloods. Hitler and Voldemort used the government to command genocide against the groups on the bottom of the chain. Judgment of groups based on birth and family status rather than achievements or choices. Neither of the antagonist parties even regarded the lowest stereotypical groups as human, playing towards as animals in need of mass slaughter. Lupin explains the changes in law to Harry, “Muggle slaughter is becoming little more than a recreational sport under the new regime” (439). Jews, along with other peoples oppressed by the Nazi party, were not considered as humans and mudbloods, as far as the reformed ministry was concerned were not real wizards. The corrupted government underneath the two tyrants even went as far as setting them up as scapegoats and thieves. A paper issued from the Ministry explains their excuse, “The so-called Muggle-born is likely to have obtained magical power by theft or force. The ministry is determined to root out usurpers of magical power” (209). Mudbloods stole magic and Jews were what was ruining the world. Vise Versa too. Whether pureblood or Nazi the persecutors used the law enforcement to set up a legal annihilation of massive groups of people.

                Not only are Voldemort and Adolf Hitler similar in childhoods, strategies, and messages- they created a similar environment and rebellion of those against their reigns. The reaction of the population acted the same whether or not they had magical powers. Opposing governments issued safety precautions, ideas, and procedures to keep citizens safe (and in both realities these safety procedures proved more to help people feel safe rather than actually be safe). During the Nazi era here were specific rebel beacons of hope for the population such as Churchill, refugee camps, and America. In Voldemort’s period of power people like Harry Potter, the radio-station Potterwatch, and Dumbledore’s Army remained hope-filled ideas in the war-struck worlds. People were on the run or in hiding either because they were a hunted group or defended the hunted groups. Rebel underground societies and forces were born as similar as they could have been as a reaction to Hitler and Voldemort.

                In the end, it did not matter whether people could do magic or not. A human dark time of war and oppression is the same as a wizarding dark time of war and oppression. Voldemort is Hitler with a wand. They both hacked their way to the top of the power pyramid and ordered a hatred of a group of people based on nothing they could have controlled. Both of the population of the world fought back in similar ways and through similar ideas. In the end, both the Fuehrer and the Dark Lord fell, weakened and humiliated, when the good underdogs united and won.