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And, if you think about it, the Nazgul and the dementors are entirely different in creation and purpose. The Nazgul were once human men, and their form is the result of corruption. They serve due to their own greediness. The dementors were always as they were - a separate species of creature. They are considered "humanesque" but nothing more. The dementors serve wizards only to their own ends - they have no allegiance instilled by threat or otherwise.
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I wonder if one could say "Expecto Patronum" and conjure up Gildor Inglorion? :P Didn't those Elves shine with an inner light much like a Patronus? Of course, what Patronus would come out looking like an Elf? But I believe you're right,
VanimaEdhel--the Nazgul work through fear and are tied utterly to their master, whereas the Dementors work through despair and serve none but the one who can provide the most fodder for their endless hunger. I'd say the Dementors are more like Shelob in this respect.
As for the question of Dumbledore, I shall reserve judgment until more thought has passed through this sluggish brain. And, as Snape has always been my favorite HP character, I must say this last book has been, well,
interesting. But I digress, and to make a final point, it seems that Tolkien is much more prone to drawing evil as a sickness to which characters fall inherently--Saruman, given the chance to redeem himself, rejects it, as does Wormtongue, Gollum, all the Orcs (seemingly bred to be bad!)--as Frodo tells Sam "Orcs have always behaved this way when they are not led." (may be misquoted but drawn from "The Land of Shadow" chapter in ROTK.). Shelob is utterly unlight, as was Ungoliant. These are elemental evils, beyond the political evil of Sauron, beyond the political evil of Voldemort, a darkness thrown up by the very Universal force of darkness, the Morgoth, and even beyond...
I didn't notice as much
elemental evil in
Harry Potter, but the Dementors would seem to fall in this category, being akin to the "dark places of the world" that seem to prevail much more prominently in
Lord of the Rings. . I hope this little rant made sense, and maybe someone will get something from it, incomplete and unfocused as it may be!
Cheers!
Lyta (still a believer in Severus Snape, for what it may be worth...)
P.S. Please don't give this post the rating of "Troll!"
