I know that Merope's love potion made him unable to love, but I was wondering if Tom Marvolo Riddle's inability to love somehow affected his moral alignment for the worse.
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I'm not sure what you mean when you say you "know" that Merope's love potion made Voldemort unable to love. Given the emphasis J. K. Rowling places on how one's choices determine what kind of person one is, it's hard to imagine her considering Voldemort predestined to do any of the evil things he did. Remember that while Harry was conceived in love, he was raised without it by the Dursleys. Yet Harry didn't make the kind of evil moral choices Tom Riddle did. In fact, it's arguable that Tom Riddle was raised in more love than Harry, but Riddle chose to do evil. – Kyralessa Mar 25 '22 at 07:55
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According to JKR, it didn’t entirely determine it - but was a factor.
Tom Marvolo Riddle being born from the use of a love potion was symbolic - there was never any love involved at any point of his life. His birth being a result of a love potion is representative of that, that even in producing him, there was no love involved.
Ravleen: How much does the fact that voldemort was conceived under a love potion have to do with his nonability to understand love is it more symbolic
J.K. Rowling: It was a symbolic way of showing that he came from a loveless union – but of course, everything would have changed if Merope had survived and raised him herself and loved him.
J.K. Rowling: The enchantment under which Tom Riddle fathered Voldemort is important because it shows coercion, and there can’t be many more prejudicial ways to enter the world than as the result of such a union.
2007 Interview with The Leaky Cauldron
However, she also says if Merope had survived and loved him, he wouldn’t have turned out the way he did. So, his being born due to use of a love potion was one of the contributing factors, but not the only reason he became the Dark Lord.
