Making Evil: The Science Behind Humanity's Dark Side
Julia Shaw
What is it about evil that we find so compelling? From our obsession with serial killers to violence in pop culture, we seem inescapably drawn to the stories of monstrous acts and the aberrant people who commit them. But evil, Dr. Julia Shaw argues, is all relative, rooted in our minds and our unique cultures. What one may consider normal, like sex before marriage, eating meat, or being a banker, others find abhorrent. And if evil is only in the eye of the beholder, can it be said to exist at all? In Evil, Shaw uses case studies and examples from academia and popular culture and anecdotes from everyday life to break down complex information and concepts like the neuroscience of evil, the psychology of bloodlust, and workplace misbehavior. This is a wide-ranging exploration into a fascinating, darkly compelling subject.
Publication Year: 2019
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There were a couple of interesting chapters, but broadly this was a shallow romp over well trodden ground. It’s non controversial main argument: ‘calling stuff evil is an unhelpful over simplification that erases nuance and therefore proper understanding’ was presented with the passion and force of someone not expecting a ‘well duh’ reaction, but well duh is what I felt.
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