Voldemort’s Aversion to Death

In the world of Harry Potter, death is something to be feared and avoided at all costs. Lord Voldemort, the series’ primary antagonist, is obsessed with this idea and will stop at nothing to cheat death and achieve immortality.

But what is it about death that Voldemort finds so terrifying? And how does he go about avoiding it in the books?

First and foremost, Voldemort is afraid of death because he believes it means the end of his existence. He wants to live forever, to continue ruling and imposing his will on the world without fear of consequences. In his mind, death is the ultimate enemy, a force that must be conquered at all costs.

To avoid death, Voldemort turns to dark magic and the manipulation of life itself. He creates Horcruxes, objects in which he hides pieces of his soul, as a way to become virtually immortal. If his body is destroyed, his soul can live on in the Horcruxes, allowing him to return to a physical form.

But even this plan is not foolproof. As Harry Potter learns in the later books, destroying a Horcrux does not necessarily mean destroying the soul inside of it. And even if all of the Horcruxes are destroyed, Voldemort’s soul remains vulnerable to being destroyed itself.

In the end, Voldemort’s philosophy of avoiding death is ultimately futile. Despite his best efforts, he is unable to cheat death and is ultimately defeated by Harry Potter. The lesson, then, is that death is an inevitability that cannot be avoided, no matter how hard one may try.

Furthermore, Voldemort’s fear of death and pursuit of immortality highlight the importance of living in the present and making the most of one’s life. Instead of trying to avoid death, it is better to accept its inevitability and focus on making the most of the time we have. As the ancient Greek philosopher Epicurus wrote, “Death is nothing to us; for that which is dissolved is without sensation, and that which lacks sensation is nothing to us.” In other words, death is not something to be feared because it does not affect our consciousness. It is only the fear of death that causes us suffering. Therefore, by embracing the inevitability of death and living in the present, we can find peace and fulfillment in life.

Lord Voldemort’s fear of death and desire for immortality in the Harry Potter books serves as a reminder of the importance of accepting the inevitability of death and living one’s life to the fullest. By embracing this philosophy, we can find meaning and purpose in our own lives.

Pain as a Path to Peace

In the Naruto universe, Pain (Nagato) was undoubtedly the most fascinating and philosophical character. He’s possibly the best-written antagonist in anime history. 

Through Friendship and Unity?

Pain thought that establishing peace through friendship and unifying people was a naive and simplistic approach to peacemaking. How can friendships be naive and simplistic paths to peace?

It can be noted that in the real world, not all friendships are real. Naruto, and by extension you, must be naive to think that all your friends wholeheartedly support you in your endeavors. It is natural for each man to have his own intentions and motivations thus you can never be sure of your friend’s or anybody else’s loyalty. There is also a room for maneuvering and for negotiation to these kinds of people.

“Faithless is he that says farewell when the road darkens.”

– J.R.R. Tolkien

Faithless people are real. They exist. The premise in the Naruto universe that friends are always there and can consistently be relied upon is so idealistic that it wanna makes me gag.

There will never be world peace through friendship because the unity of friends is dependent upon intentions and motivations. Just have one friend that aspire other things and your fellowship will be broken. Peace can never be achieved that way.

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Cycle of Hatred and Death

Pain felt that the world was trapped in an endless cycle of hatred and death, and that the only way to reach true peace was to go through war. As a result, the new Akatsuki was formed, consisting of all of the strongest rogue shinobis from various villages. He desired to capture all of the Tailed Beasts in order to establish a military monopoly. After then, everyone would feel the same anguish, and the nations would finally be able to live in harmony.

Anger begets strife. Strife begets violence. Violence results to death. This cycle is not just accidental, not just possible but real and inevitable. This occurs in the real world because our anger fuels resentment, a feeling that cannot be quenched until it is sated.

Anger and resentment is not evil. It is natural, a part of our reality as human beings. To stop it with idealism alone is an exercise doomed to fail. War is inevitable. It cannot be avoided.

Pain is correct to believe that for peace to be achieved all of humanity should be subjected to the same oppression. A uniform distribution of anguish, communism of pain, is what will stop war. Because when everyone is in pain they will not seek revenge, they will seek respite from the pain that they are feeling.

In his mind, pain will be the currency of peace. Less pain means war is more possible. Just look at our world today, which countries are warmongers? Aren’t these the countries that call themselves “developed” and “first world”?

These countries do think of war because they do not have pain in their own lands. Bring anguish to them and they shall not think of waging war. Bring them hunger, pestilence, famine, and disease so that they will renounce war.

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A Philosophy of Pain

Pain’s Philosophy is possible, but only through understanding. If everybody feels the same pain, they will never opt to choose it again. This ideology is based on Utilitarian Theory which believes in the result rather than the rules.

Yes, he killed a lot of people, but he saw it as a necessary sacrifice for the greater good. Pain’s only motive for carrying out his plan and achieving so much was his conviction that he was special.

The philosophy is sound but the reality of such an action is that of a megalomaniac. The reduction of a complex situation to the simple emotion of pain and fear may be effective in the short term but the effects over a long period of time is yet to be answered.

Zaheer and the Philosophy of ‘Anarchy for Freedom’

A screenshot of Zaheer as he talks to Korra in the spirit world.

The strongest antagonist in The Legend Of Korra is Book 3’s airbending anarchist Zaheer.

Zaheer, for me, is one of Avatar’s most ideologically compelling villain because his dialogue is filled with poetic, philosophical, and proactively political quotes. There is a depth to his line of thought that maybe only the protagonist, General Iroh, can match.

Anarchy is Natural

“The natural order is disorder.”

~ Zaheer

For him, the chaos of anarchism is the natural way of things and any attempt at organizing a government is a slippery slope to tyranny. Thus, the only way to maintain freedom is through a world run by chaos.

Anarchism is a political theory, which is skeptical of the justification of authority and power, especially political power. It is usually grounded in moral claims about the importance of individual liberty. Anarchists also offer a positive theory of human flourishing, based upon an ideal of non-coercive consensus building. 

By this line of thought, we can deduce that he sees governments as an impediment to freedom. The government’s ability to wield power over its citizens stifles freedom and can be considered as a form of oppression and thus, unnatural. Unnatural in the sense that there is no naturally occuring government systems and that a society can function even without governments.

In this precept, we are asked to choose between having unfettered freedom and oppressive wielders of power.

Revolutions revitalize Freedom

“True freedom can only be achieved when oppressive governments are torn down.”

~ Zaheer to Korra

In Book 3’s ninth episode, “The Stakeout,” while Zaheer converses with Korra in the spirit world, he rattles off examples of tyrannical or inept leaders who’ve broken the world’s balance: Fire Lord Ozai and his forefathers, the incompetent President Raiko of the United Republic of Nations, and the tyrannical Earth Queen Hou-Ting.

Even in the real world, we see examples of tyrannical or inept leaders who leads the downfall of their nations. Thus, we feel in line with Zaheer to think that revolutions are necessary evils to revitalize freedom.

A revolution, as used in political science, refer to “a major, sudden, and hence typically violent alteration in government and in related associations and structures.”

Revolutions happen when the people throw the yoke of their oppressors and revert to their initial state of freedom. Thus, we can say that Zaheer’s actions in the story is indeed guided by a philosophy that is grounded on proper political sciences.

Freedom, according to him, can only be achieved through action. It can never be achieved when people do not work for it. Aspiring for freedom is good, but acting to achieve freedom is a lot better.

“Better to die fighting for freedom then be a prisoner all the days of your life.”

~ Bob Marley