Naming Evil, Judging Evil
Is it more dangerous to call something evil or not to? This fundamental question deeply divides those who fear that the term oversimplifies grave problems and those who worry that, to effectively address such issues as terrorism and genocide, we must first acknowledge them as evil. Recognizing that the way we approach this dilemma can significantly affect both the harm we suffer and the suffering we inflict, a distinguished group of contributors engages in the debate with this series of timely and original essays.
Drawing on Western conceptions of evil from the Middle Ages to the present, these pieces demonstrate that, while it may not be possible to definitively settle moral questions, we are still able—and in fact are obligated—to make moral arguments and judgments. Using a wide variety of approaches, the authors raise tough questions: Why is so much evil perpetrated in the name of good? Could evil ever be eradicated? How can liberal democratic politics help us strike a balance between the need to pass judgment and the need to remain tolerant? Their insightful answers exemplify how the sometimes rarefied worlds of political theory, philosophy, theology, and history can illuminate pressing contemporary concerns.
“A book that poses questions as interesting as any that there are! . . . It is one mark of a university that is flourishing that it is a place where such continuing, fruitfully inconclusive conversations on matters of moral and metaphysical moment are sustained. The contributors to this volume have served not only their university but also their readers well.”—Alasdair MacIntyre, from the Foreword
“A very fine collection. At once topical and reflective, these pieces thoughtfully engage each other, ultimately showing us how political theory helps us both to confront and to stand back from the burning issues of the day.”—Tracy B. Strong, University of California, San Diego
"After 9-11, the word 'evil' became more common in political, academic, and daily conversations--but so did questions about its meaning and use. This collection of finely honed essays gives any reader real nuggets of wisdom about what people do and should mean when they call terrorists 'evil' and about the compatibility between the virtues of liberal tolerance and tough judgments about moral wrongness and rightness. Connecting historical and philosophic reflections, the book made me feel smarter, wiser, and better equipped to speak of and respond to grave problems."<Martha Minow, Harvard Law School, author of Between Vengeance and Forgiveness: Facing History After Genocide and Mass Violence>
"Five years after the September 11 attacks resurrected the rhetoric of evil,
the use of the term has become as banal as Hannah Arendt once argued evil
itself is. Despite this ubiquity -- or perhaps because of it -- we seem
increasingly incapable of actually recognizing and confronting evil. This
quandary motivates much of Ruth W. Grant's engaging anthology Naming Evil,
Judging Evil, an effort born of two years of discussions among her Duke
University colleagues. The resulting essays equip readers with the
intellectual tools to understand evil's manifestations, past and present,
and to navigate the tricky terrain of judging those evils -- a prerequisite
to acting against them. While some of the pieces bog down in academic
wrangling, others are excellent and accessible, provoking the kind of deep
and complex thought that is missing from today's public discourse. --Hannah
Lobel, Utne Reader
Foreword
Alasdair MacIntyre
Preface
Introduction
Part 1: Speaking About Evil
Chapter 1 Where Did All the Evils Go?
Michael Allen Gillespie
Chapter 2 Seeing Darkness, Hearing Silence: Augustine’s Account of Evil
Stanley Hauerwas
Chapter 3 The Rousseauan Revolution and the Problem of Evil
Ruth W. Grant
Chapter 4 Inequality and the Problem of Evil
Nannerl O. Keohane
Part 2: Making Judgments, Passing Judgment, Taking a Stand, Biting Your Tongue
Chapter 5 The Butler Did It
J. Peter Euben
Chapter 6 Evil and the Morality of Conviction
David Wong
Chapter 7 Combining Clarity and Complexity: A Layered Approach to Cross-Cultural Ethics
Elizabeth Kiss
Chapter 8 Liberal Dilemmas and Moral Judgment
Malachi Hacohen
Chapter 9 Between Bigotry and Nihilism: Moral Judgment in Pluralist Democracies
Thomas A. Spragens, Jr.
Bibliography
Index
Philosophy: General Philosophy
Political Science: Political and Social Theory
Religion: Religion and Society
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