The Harry Potter series has brought joy to people all over the world. It tells the story of a young boy who finds out he is a wizard and must learn the ways of magic to defeat the evil wizard who killed his parents. That evil wizard, Lord Voldemort, disappeared for a while, but he returns to wreak havoc on the magical world.
When Voldemort returns he comes back with anger, vengeance and some memorable quips and quotes. Voldemort delivers lines throughout the series that can be cutting to Harry Potter, Voldemort's opponents and his Death Eaters, while others can be downright hysterical.
10 "I Fashioned Myself A New Name, A Name I Knew Wizards Everywhere Would One Day Fear To Speak When I Had Become The Greatest Sorcerer In The World."
This line was delivered by the memory of a young Tom Riddle to Harry Potter in Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets. Riddle was explaining how he hated his birth name because of its connection to his Muggle parentage. He was determined to shed all things Muggle and be recognized for his magic.
It's an excellent summary of his childhood in one quote. He is ambitious and driven. Both of these qualities can be wonderful, but his hatred drove him to evil deeds and him not wanting to be known by anything that wasn't connected to wizardry.
9 "And You Will Lose. Everything."
Voldemort delivers this line to Harry Potter during their battle in the Department of Mysteries in Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix. Voldemort has invaded Harry's mind and is trying to sway him to the dark side, but Harry refuses. This causes Voldemort to tell him that he will lose not just the battle but his friends, as well.
This is a nice bit of foreshadowing, because Voldemort doesn't understand why Harry wouldn't join him in chasing power. Voldemort's dismissal of love and friends wound up being his undoing.
8 "Come Out, Harry, Come Out And Play, Then It Will Be Quick, It Might Even Be Painless, I Would Not Know, I Have Never Died."
Another quote from Voldemort's battle with Harry in the Department of Mysteries in Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, Voldemort is trying to goad Harry into a fight that Harry simply isn't ready for. Voldemort is trying to sell Harry on the concept of death while trying to murder him. It's really quite eerie.
It also points to Voldemort's greatest fear. Voldemort fears death because it's something that Muggles would do. This line foreshadows the introduction of horcruxes in the next book and the ultimate climax in the final book.
7 "Welcome, My Friends. Thirteen Years It's Been, And Yet, Here You Stand Before Me, As though It Were Only Yesterday. I Confess Myself... Disappointed. Not One Of You Tried To Find Me."
Voldemort would attack his followers with his words almost as much as his enemies, if not more. When Voldemort returned in Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire and several Death Eaters returned to his side, he was quick to point out how he wasn't excited to see them but disappointed.
He calls out their cowardice for refusing to look for him, instead deciding to lie about their intentions and keep their comfy, cozy and cushy lifestyles. He delivers it in a delightfully creepy manner where the reader, or viewer if you're watching the film, feels the Death Eaters' fear as they realize they are once again pawns in his quest.
6 "Out Of Fear, Not Loyalty."
Another instance of Voldemort attacking his followers comes when he delivers this line to Peter Pettigrew in Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire when Pettigrew mentions he returned to Voldemort's side before any of the other Death Eaters.
While Voldemort was happy to use Pettigrew's assistance, he knew that Pettigrew wouldn't have returned if he could've stayed in his cozy position as a rat with the Weasleys. Pettigrew wasn't demonstrating loyalty to Voldemort. His hiding spot had been compromised, and he had nowhere else to go.
5 "I Want You To Look At Me When I Kill You."
This line from Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire captures just how evil Voldemort can be. He has restored his body and is ready to kill the Boy Who Lived, but he has to be a showman while he does it. He wants Harry to look at him as he prepares to kill the boy.
He tries to coerce Harry to fight him in a typical dueling manner rather than kill Harry while Harry is running for his life and hiding behind anything to protect himself. It sets up the Priori Incantatem moment that inspires Voldemort's actions in later films.
4 "Master The Wand, And I Master Potter At Last."
By Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Voldemort has realized that the shared cores between his and Harry's wands are preventing him from killing Harry. He has now decided to pursue the Elder Wand, the most powerful wand in wizard lore, believing if he could master its power, he could finally beat Harry.
This line proves to be the ultimate irony, because it's Voldemort's use of the Elder Wand that becomes his undoing. Ollivander has pointed out "the wand chooses the wizard," and the Elder Wand had been allegiant to Dumbledore until he was disarmed by Draco Malfoy. Malfoy would be disarmed by Potter meaning Potter had been the master of the Elder Wand while Voldemort was in possession of it.
3 "Greatness Inspires Envy, Envy Engenders Spite, Spite Spawns Lies."
This one line from Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince perfectly demonstrates Voldemort's charisma and how delusional he is. He says this line to Dumbledore when interviewing for the Defense Against the Dark Arts jobs. He is trying to demonstrate that many of the negative comments about his actions are from people jealous of him.
Of course, Dumbledore doesn't see Voldemort's actions as "great" but evil. Dumbledore isn't envious of Voldemort but sad for him. This perfectly demonstrates Voldemort's delusion, because he is convinced his pushing of magical boundaries is "greatness."
2 "Harry Potter. The Boy Who Lived, Come To Die. Avada Kedavra!"
Voldemort may be legitimately frightening, but this line elicits more than just fear from readers and viewers; it elicits sadness. In Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Harry has arrived ready to die to save everyone else. He may have lived 17 years prior, but this time he was ready to sacrifice himself.
Voldemort is feeling victorious. He thinks he has finally vanquished his greatest foe, but it ends up being the worst decision he can make. Still his acknowledgment of Harry before sending a killing curse his way can bring a tear to any Potter fan's eye.
1 "There Is No Good And Evil. There Is Only Power And Those Too Weak To Seek It."
This is the perfect quote to sum up all of Lord Voldemort's motivations, and it comes from Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone. He is ambitious and cutthroat, because he wants power. He doesn't view things through a moral lens, and that's why he has no issue attacking and killing anyone who stands in his way.
As mentioned previously, it is his lust for power that becomes his undoing. He doesn't want someone with the power to stop him to live, so he tries to kill the Potters only for Harry to survive. He wants the most powerful wand, so he steals it from Dumbledore's grave only for it to be loyal to Potter. He never learns his lesson about the power of love and never learns that he is showing true weakness.