Dale S. Wright
This book develops the comprehensive claim that all existing explanations of evil fall somewhere within the scope of four basic models, thereby cultivating a descriptive/analytic typology of ways that evil can be and has been understood. The conclusion to the book makes a superb contribution by developing a connection between the author’s favorite model—Augustinian privation and Aristotelian virtue ethics—a worthy contribution to the field of ethics.
Louis E. Newman
In this very important and penetrating study, Flescher explores the resources for thinking about evil in a manner conducive to human flourishing. Weaving together sources ranging from Aristotle and Augustine to contemporary fiction and films, from Leibniz to Levinas, Flescher offers a subtle and incisive analysis of evil that is compelling, insightful, and ultimately calls us to cultivate those virtues that alone can protect us from the force of evil in human life.
From the Publisher
"In this very important and penetrating study, Flescher explores the resources for thinking about evil in a manner conducive to human flourishing. Weaving together sources ranging from Aristotle and Augustine to contemporary fiction and films, from Leibniz to Levinas, Flescher offers a subtle and incisive analysis of evil that is compelling, insightful, and ultimately calls us to cultivate those virtues that alone can protect us from the force of evil in human life."—Louis E. Newman, John M. and Elizabeth W. Musser Professor of Religious Studies, Carleton College
"This book develops the comprehensive claim that all existing explanations of evil fall somewhere within the scope of four basic models, thereby cultivating a descriptive/analytic typology of ways that evil can be and has been understood. The conclusion to the book makes a superb contribution by developing a connection between the author's favorite model—Augustinian privation and Aristotelian virtue ethics—a worthy contribution to the field of ethics."—Dale S. Wright, Gamble Distinguished Professor of Religious Studies, Occidental College
"What is moral evil, and why do people so often fall into its clutches? Flescher's analysis is penetrating and ethically unflinching. At the same time, it reflects great compassion. This book ought to be read by everyone who longs for goodness and is pained by its absence."—Diana Fritz Cates, professor and chair, Department of Religious Studies, University of Iowa
Diana Fritz Cates
What is moral evil, and why do people so often fall into its clutches? Flescher’s analysis is penetrating and ethically unflinching. At the same time, it reflects great compassion. This book ought to be read by everyone who longs for goodness and is pained by its absence.
