In this study, the author sets out to unravel and expose one of the most powerful and compelling phenomena, a subject which has generated books, films and media, and has now become one of the most popular topics of entertainment: evil. This book argues that evil may be understood empirically as a type of mental and physical behaviour. Analyzing this behaviour in terms of all aspects of popular culture, painting, psychology, law, philosophy and history, it argues that evil contains predictable, specific ingredients. It also takes place within a highly specialized landscape, in which its massive violence, its diabolical self-consciousness and its impersonal selections of victims may develop with impunity. Evil is thus a demonstratable fact: by understanding its nature we can diagnose its specific manifestations in mass murder, genocide and serial killings. The book crisscrosses a variety of cinematic and literary genres in developing its evidence. It considers such films as "Persona", "The Silence of the Lambs", "Brazil" and "Performance", while from literature it draws upon such works as "Richard III", "Oedipus the King" and "The Picture of Dorian Gray". Relevant works of art, by Goya, Fuseli, Dali and Waterhouse, among others, plus a re-examination of the biblical story of the Tower of Babel, complement enquiries into the role of criminality and a peculiar linguistic straining and collapse that is seen in environments of evil.

Evil and the Demonic: A New Theory of Monstrous Behaviour

Paul Oppenheimer

Focus Publishing/R. Pullins Co.

<p>Guilt makes no compromises. One may be a little in love or a little bit angry, but the idea of degrees of guilt is meaningless. Any guilt, whether of the emotional, religious or legal variety, is fiendishly intense. The word itself points to a mysterious intensity of indebtedness, and this with an absolution extraordinary in human affairs. This book aims to go to the heart of the mystery. Its theme, that of the absolutism of guilt, is explored from a variety of different perspectives and through a series of anecdotes. The author examines the sources of the word "guilt"; languages and cultures without the concept of guilt; the religious importance and meaning of guilt, in Judaism, Christianity and other religions; psychological investigations of guilt, by Freud and Jung, among others; guilt and criminal behaviour; guilt and mourning; the effect of guilt as a creative stimulant in modern times, on literature, art, politics, law and film; and the mysterious persistence of guilt in modern secular societies Throughout, the text is supported with quotations from authors ancient and modern.</p>

An Intelligent Person's Guide to Modern Guilt (Intelligent Person's Guide Series)

Health, Fitness & Dieting

Psychology & Counseling

Duckworth & Co.

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Books by Paul Oppenheimer

See the best price to sell, buy, or rent books by Paul Oppenheimer. BookScouter helps to compare book prices from 25+ online bookstores and 30+ buyback vendors with a single search.

Evil and the Demonic: A New Theory of Monstrous Behaviour

An Intelligent Person's Guide to Modern Guilt (Intelligent Person's Guide Series)