Evil
The Science Behind Humanity's Dark Side
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Evil
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Narrated by:
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Julia Shaw
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Written by:
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Julia Shaw
About this listen
An original and scientifically rigorous exploration of the darkest recesses of the human mind.
What is it about evil that we find so compelling? From our obsession with serial killers to violence in pop culture, we seem inescapably drawn to the stories of monstrous acts and the aberrant people who commit them. But evil, Dr. Julia Shaw argues, is all relative, rooted in our unique cultures. What one may consider normal, like sex before marriage, eating meat, or being a banker, others may find abhorrent. And if evil is only in the eye of the beholder, can it be said to exist at all?
In Evil, Dr. Shaw uses case studies from academia, examples from popular culture, and anecdotes from everyday life to break down complex information and concepts, such as the neuroscience of evil, the psychology of bloodlust, and workplace misbehavior. In grappling with thorny dilemmas - from "Would I kill baby Hitler?" to "Why do I want to murder my spouse?" - Dr. Shaw offers listeners a better understanding of the world, ourselves, and our Google search histories.
©2019 Doubleday Canada (P)2019 Julia ShawWhat the critics say
"Curious readers will be riveted by Shaw's deliberate, rational discussions of such taboos as cyberbullying, homicide, pedophilia, and the ways money and power corrupt the souls of formerly good men and women.... A consistently fascinating journey into the darker sides of the human condition that will push on the boundaries of readers' comfort zones." (Kirkus Reviews)
"Julia Shaw has crafted a brilliant panorama that elucidates humanity's dark side in her masterpiece, Evil. This science-based foundation for studying the minds of sadists, mass murderers, freaks and creeps, as well the new role of tech in promoting evil is presented in a totally engaging fashion." (Philip Zimbardo, author of The Lucifer Effect)
What listeners say about Evil
Average Customer RatingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- LadyK
- 2019-07-17
Rethinking Your Perspective on Evil
Not an in-depth look at evil and she states as much in the beginning but it definitely gives you a different perspective on what is deemed "evil" and presents reasoning as perhaps why we should rethink our perspective. I found the chapters on murder (Chapter 2 Murder by Design), businesses (Chapter 7 Snakes in Suits), and compliance (Chapter 8 And I said Nothing) to be the most interesting whereas my husband thought the chapter on technology (Chapter 4 Two-faced Tech) to be the best. So needless to say there is a little something for everyone here. Some of the science and experiments were familiar others were new to me so that helped my understanding and to keep my interest. I really liked this and had me talking about it long after I was done reading.
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1 person found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- T McKen
- 2019-06-06
Thought provoking with a good sense of humor.
Really enjoyed the book, I love social sciences and psychology, so this was very interesting. If you like the title, the book won't dissapoint.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
- J. Brun
- 2019-08-01
recomend with reservation
very insightful. heavy topics, not for everyone. made me reflect about many things. I would recommend with reservations because of sensitive subjects
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1 person found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- angela douglas
- 2023-01-09
Fantastic story and reader
I could listen to this author endlessly. very clear, very entertaining, and very soothing.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Christine
- 2023-05-11
Fascinating and easy to listen to.
I can't say enough how much I enjoyed this. I've already downloaded her other book and hope she keeps writing more books in the future!
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- Coren
- 2020-12-14
Strong writing, great arguments
A subjective novel on what is or is not the definition of evil. Great listen. It draws from some well known cases and experiments. Julia Shaw is an excellent narrator.
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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Performance4 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- David C
- 2022-05-25
Interesting, thought provoking, valuable insights
An engaging and thought provoking examination of the problematic aspects of human behaviour. Acknowledging that some people’s behaviour is horrific, it makes the point that more often we will all be safer if we more thoughtfully consider most people rather than simply categorizing them as evil.
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- Dan
- 2020-09-05
Evil Re-examined
I have never been disappointed with the author being the narrator, I feel they are best at stressing what is important to be conveyed. I share her ideals of seeing beyond what is easy or comfortable to perceive, and only differ with her on our ability to reach those ideal visions. To say that laziness is the cause of using the word "Evil" is to ignore the cost of resources to reach that higher plane of awareness. A similar argument could be used about the use of the word "God" but nobody really objects to its use. The laziness is accepting that Evil is only applied to an external "Them", and not to a broader "Us". "There. but for the grace of Evil, go I" There are other factors beside laziness involved in a majority Evangelicals ignoring half of the 10 Commandments, and the teachings of Christ. But that is for another study. In the meanwhile, Ms. Shaw's excellent work helps point the direction to those of us trying to look "Up". I highly recommend this book to anyone even slightly intrigued by the title.
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Overall2 out of 5 stars
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Performance4 out of 5 stars
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Story2 out of 5 stars
- Andrew Zuo
- 2020-06-29
Dry Academic Writing
This book opens saying it's going to discuss the causes of evil without making any value judgement. And that's just what this book does. It covers a bunch of studies of things society believes to be 'evil' without commenting too much on any one study. The result is it reads like a dry University textbook. Also it does not go into very much detail on the topics. It is quick to make hand-wavy statements such as 'that's just how people are' which although probably true isn't very compelling.
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Overall2 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story2 out of 5 stars
- Davyggrasil
- 2019-04-07
Simple but....
Great intro into the topic for people who have never thought about it before. For someone with even limited experience in the subject it might be a bit too simple. Sometimes the distance between academic writing and science journalism is a bit jarring, and in this case it's due to the very personal, human injections by the author. I would like to read her academic work.
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3 people found this helpful