In the real world of things, does "evil" exist? Where? What qualifies a phenomenon as "evil?"
please spare us the copying and pasting from wikpedia, bibles, dictionaries, and the like.
I'm hoping for some well premised, well reasoned answers to add to my own ponderings about the matter.
2006-06-29 19:45:28 · 17 answers · asked by My Big Bear Ron 6 in Society & Culture ➔ Other - Society & Culture
Evil... in my opinion is an overused term which encompasses all things and actions perceived to extraordinarily cruel or unjust. What do I think in real life is evil? I really don't know. You see I'm in college and my way of thinking has been a little skewed lately... I guess Adolf Hitler, Charles Manson, the IRS...
2006-06-29 19:52:08 · answer #1 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
I don't think there is any real definition of evil that covers everything. It's how people perceive certain activities that go against cultural norms or biases. Hell, I've even heard that eating shellfish is evil according to the Christian Bible and Jewish Torah. I used to eat shrimp all the time... I'm SO screwed when I die.
My feeling is that true evil doesn't exist in mankind, because the concept of evil itself is rooted in beliefs about the supernatural. We usually perceive "evil" in a person when their acts are so horrific that no real human being could have committed them -- the person must be connected with the Devil or something. What we're really perceiveing, in my opinion, is evidence of a tragic mental imbalance with tragically horrible consequences.
But who's the first person that comes to mind when you hear the word "evil"? 9 times out of 10, people will say "Hitler". I know I'm playing the exaggeration card here, but bear with me.
Ask yourself, though, how did Hitler get into power? Wasn't it because so many people in Germany agreed with him? And what about all the people who carried out his horrible orders? Aren't they to be considered evil, too? And what about Germans who knew what was happening and didn't do anything to stop it? Aren't they, then, evil?
Fact is, Hitler and his followers did what they did because they believed that doing so would be to the betterment of mankind. There are still people I know who are otherwise very nice who believe Hitler wasn't as bad as he is made out to be. It's a belief born out of fear and ethical retardation.
Evil is just a word we use when we just can't understand how a person could do something like that. But looking at it as evil does no good, either. If someone is evil, then we don't need to ponder it any further -- but if someone has a mental imbalance that causes him to disregard the simple human courtesy of not hacking a victim up with a cleaver, then there's hope.
I know, this is a rambling essay filled with BS and leaps of logic. But if you're talking about a concept as out there as the definition of evil, then you're gonna get a lot of convoluted answers. Especially since I haven't given it much thought...
2006-07-12 17:08:31 · answer #2 · answered by freelancescribe 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Evil is something so negative that you can not comprehend it.
Like What Hitler and Germans were doing in Europe in the world war II.
Or Child pornography, molestation and murders afterwords...Pure evil. How can anyone hurt a child?
Evil is when you see it an a TV or read, and weep because you could have not be there to save that Pearson, or that child.
Evil is human induced, there is no devil pushing us. He is just an excuse for our ill deeds. I would deal with all evil people right here on earth, would not leave it up to God. He is too merciful.
2006-07-09 02:25:31 · answer #3 · answered by sheba 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
That shellfish thing is crap... read your New Testament.
Anyway... okay, so I think evil is being kept apart from God. But,I understand what you are asking apart from typical religious cliches. Agreeing that without God there is no Evil, because good and bad are binary opposites-- here is my description of evil.
It is like drowning in clay.
Dark and cold and too thick to get out of. You can't escape and you panic because no matter what you do, the clay just surrounds you and traps you more and more until you drown in desperation.
I know it may not make sense. But that's what I've got.
2006-07-14 02:25:11 · answer #4 · answered by Andrea S 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Either fortunately or unfortunately evil is different for most people. I think that it has to do with the things that repel us, disgust us, or at times things that we just don't really understand. Could evil, like beauty, be in the eye of the beholder.............
2006-07-14 00:57:25 · answer #5 · answered by Scv705 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Evil is the bad that is deep inside of everyone but only breaks out in the vilest among us.
2006-07-12 20:48:51 · answer #6 · answered by ha_mer 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
WELL EVIL IS A STATE OF SOMETHING A PERSON HASE WHEN ESPECIALLY WHEN THEY HAVE NOTHING TO CARE
BEING EVIL DOSEN'T MEAN U ARE PHSYCO PATH IT IS JUST A PERSONALATY AND ONLY PERSONALATY WHICH IS HIGHLY BASED ON FUER EMOTIONS LIKE DISPARE AND ANOYENCE AND ETC...
ONLY THING EVIL I KNOW ARE US... US... HUMANS WE DESTROY WHAT WE CHARISH AND LOVE.. OUR ENVIROMENT OUR FAMILYS WE SHOULDN'T HAVE BEEN GIVEN THE GIFT OF LOVE THE GIFT OF SPEECH AND EVEN THE GIFT OF KNOWELEDGE. HA! WE THINK GAY PEOPLE ARE THE ONES DESTROYING THE HUMAN CULTURE AND REVOLTING AGAINTS GOD. I DO NOT KNOW THIS FOR FACT BUT I DO KNOW WE ARE AL SIINIG AGIANTS GOD, WE ARE ABUSE OUR POWER AGINTS GOD WE ARE UPROARING THE PLANET GOD GAVE US TO PROTECT A CHARISH AND ROAM OVER. WE ARE HE TRUE EVIL NOT THE MEANING OF EVIL ITSELF. I AM NOT PARANOID OR ATLEAST I HOPE I AM NOT BUT IN THIS CASE IF HELL EXISITI AM THANKING GOD AND IF THE DEVIL DO EXSIST INOW BOW TO GOD BECAUSE- HERE LISE THE KEY TO PEACE AND THE WORLD TO BE IN GODS HAND
HELL RELEASES IT'S CHOS AND DISPARE ALL OVER THE LAND NOT BECAUSE THE DEVIL COMANDS IT BUT GOD DOSE BECAUSE Y DO U THING GOD SEND THE DEVIL TO EARTH NOT AWAY FROM THE PARADISE HE MADE US. I THINK GOD HAS GIVEN THIS TO KEEP OUR TRUE NATURE TO BE REVEALED I AM NOT CRAZY < I HOPE NOT > BUT THIS IS MIGHT BE THE TRUE EVIL HEAR NOT THE EVIL WITHIN ITSELF"
2006-06-30 03:03:07 · answer #7 · answered by silouz 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Evil is the thought or act of actually purposely hurting another human being(s) or animal for the true fun or enjoyment of it.
2006-06-30 02:51:23 · answer #8 · answered by Gothic Martha™ 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
George W. Bush is the definition of evil.
2006-06-30 02:50:20 · answer #9 · answered by Nia 2 · 0⤊ 1⤋
My Ex was Pure Evil!! The devil incarnate
2006-06-30 02:52:55 · answer #10 · answered by angelic_alicia_77 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋