Four Types Of Evil

 

Here I am taking short cuts again Rather than read lars Svendsen’s book on evil, I am going to quote and comment on a short article, a review of his book. Literary Kicks carried an article by Levi Asher, dated 7/17/2010 called Philosophy Weekend: The Four Types of Evil.

 

Asher: I recently impulse-bought A Philosophy of Evil by Lars Svendsen, a Norwegian philosopher I’d never hear of . . . The nature of evil—along with the closely related question of the nature of good is one of the primary unresolved questions of ethical philosophy, and has remained unresolved from the age of Plato to today. To frame the terms “good” or “evil” in a philosophical setting is to suggest that they can be defined in some kind of meaningful, pragmatic and universal way, but few attempts to provide these definitions has ever been considered successful. Religions and rigid political doctrines define good and evil, sure—but academic philosophy is held to a different standard of objectivity, nd tends to fall short of a sturdy anchoring point for any kind of moral language.

 

My response: philosophers are typically atheists so they would not believe in metaphysical evil, but would accept that some misbehavior in society could be described approximately as asocial, selfish or evil. They would argue that no precise definition of evil is available or conceptually possible, so this moral concept is always subjectively stated, an approximation at best, relative to the times and society that the specific definition is tied to.

 

I believe that evil is natural, spiritual, moral, biological, and social.

 

Asher: Friedrich Nietzsche advised us to give up on morality and follow him ‘beyond good and evil” in 1886, and its probably fair to say that academic philosophy has remain in that Nietzschean zone—beyond any common or widely accepted agreement on the meanings of the terms “good” and “evil”—ever since. This is where modern philosophy rests.

 

My response: We are never beyond good and evil designations and attributions for our character, our choices, and each thought, word and deed, their motives and our primordial urges are answered by our willed choices. Evil is real and there are real consequences for our behavior and misbehavior in this world and the next.. Can I define this or prove it—not completely, butt, yes to a sufficient and mostly convincing degree, yes I can.

 

Asher goes on to describe how Lars writes about evil, and I am going to skip some of this and start deeper into the article. Lars does not define evil so much as identify it when he sees or encounters it and wants us to fight it. Fair enough.

 

Asher: His one precondition is an admirably pragmatic and ambitious one: he refuses to discuss the nature of evil in a detached or theoretical way, but rather hopes to discover an answer that will make us better people. The book is meant to make a difference. “Evil should never be justified, should never be explained away,” Sevendsen writes” “It should be fought.”.

 

My response: I agree with him, but I do think evil can be defined with some high degree of clarity and linguistic relevance. Below are listed his four kinds of evil.

 

Asher;

 

Demonic Evil

 

Demonic evil is evil for its own sake, performed for the express purpose of harming others, or for the enjoyment of the experience of watching others suffer. A serial killer who slowly tortures his victims would seem to be an example of this.

 

My response: demonic evil exists spiritually, and it involves a devil’s guidance or demonic possession of the sinner by the controlling demon, and evil is evil because one hurts oneself first, and then requires others to hurt to export for a while one’s inner pain. The sadomasochistic nature of hurting self and others is enjoyable in a sick way.

 

Asher: Instrumental Evil

 

Instrumental Evil is evil that occurs in order to carry out some other purpose. An example might be the BP oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico, the hazardous by-product of an aggressive business venture, and our civilization’s collective need for fuel.

 

My response: I have no issue with this concept, but it does sound like unintended consequences which can be catastrophic, the worst kind of evil in the damage it causes humanity.

 

Asher: Idealistic Evil

 

Idealistic evil is evil that is “justified” by some greater cause. It’s not hard to find bug examples here. Adolf Hitler, Chairman Mao and Osama bin laden were all motivated by what they considered to be lofty ideals.

 

My response: the great evils of the 20^th century were done by mass movements of people serving their cause, often by group leaders in charge of a totalitarian government. This evil is the worst and the most prodigious that humans have ever experienced or suffered.

 

Asher: Stupid Evil

 

Stupid evil is evil that occurs based on human incompetence, despite the fact that nobody wished it. A plane due to an easily avoidable pilot error would be an example of stupid evil.

 

My response: stupid evil is what I have addressed elsewhere as people lacking moral, advanced, and modern and more enlightened, that would help them act better. Despite our being born deprave, and running in cruel packs and living in a world owned by the Dark Couple that operate it,, when people know more, on average, they will act better.