Evil : inside human cruelty and violence

This study of human violence begins by describing the "magnitude gap" between the victim's viewpoint and that of the perpetrator. It then goes on to explore the basic roots of evil, evil as a means to an end, revenge and egotism, and sadism. The final section looks at how people step over the line between acceptable and evil acts, then how evil can grow and spread. There is also a discussion of the human mechanism for suppressing evil - guilt - as well as our natural inclination towards ambivalence, which allows evil to flourish.

• The question of evil, and answers
• image and reality
• the four roots of evil
• how they do it.

The question of evil, and the answers. Part 1 Image and reality: victims and perpetrators; the myth of pure evil. Part 2 The four roots of evil: greed, lust, ambition - evil as a means to an end; egotism and revenge; true believers and idealists; can evil be fun? the joy of hurting. Part 3 How they do it: crossing the line - how evil starts; how evil grows and spreads; dealing with guilt; ambivalence and fellow travelers. Part 4 Conclusion: why is there evil.