Good and evil are as old as ethics or morality itself. For without an understanding of religious or philosophical ethics, the moral existence of good and evil would be impossible to comprehend; the term good, for example, would be exclusively a matter of subjective personal likes and dislikes in other words, a mere matter of taste, differing from individual to individual with no real obligation to the public good or safety. As it currently stands in philosophy, for instance, the term good may be understood as engaging in righteous conduct; the term good may also be understood as an object that corresponds and fulfills natural needs inherent in human nature. These natural needs, for example, which are deeply, rooted in human nature, manifest themselves in our human desire for life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness, among other things. In these two senses, the term good is an objective universal value, based on the reality of man (by man I mean human beings everywhere, of course). From natural needs, we derive the doctrine of human rights. It logically follows that the things we have a natural human need for, we as human beings also have a natural right to. This idea is not only used in the real world that you and I live in; it is also used in the storyteller's world of fiction or imaginary literature. Anything working to defeat or frustrate the good in the real world or in the storyteller's world is judged evil. This is of the utmost importance to those who believe in right and wrong. For right and wrong always follow good and evil. Society can never know what right or wrong is in the domain of social human affairs, without first knowing what is good and what is evil, and what makes it so. In Trapped Between the Extremes of Good and Evil, we enter a fictional world and explore the phenomenon of good and evil through the actions of an international serial killer, angels and demons, one twin brother's hatred of the other, and a San Francisco detective caught in the middle of it all.

The idea of moral evil has always held a special place in philosophy and theology because the existence of evil has implications for the dignity of the human and the limits of human action. Andrew M. Flescher proposes four interpretations of evil, drawing on philosophical and theological sources and using them to trace through history the moral traditions that are associated with them. The first model, evil as the presence of badness, offers a traditional dualistic model represented by Manicheanism. The second, evil leading to goodness through suffering, presents a theological interpretation known as theodicy. Absence of badness—that is, evil as a social construction—is the third model. The fourth, evil as the absence of goodness, describes when evil exists in lieu of the good—the "privation" thesis staked out nearly two millennia ago by Christian theologian St. Augustine. Flescher extends this fourth model—evil as privation—into a fifth, which incorporates a virtue ethic. Drawing original connections between Augustine and Aristotle, Flescher’s fifth model emphasizes the formation of altruistic habits that can lead us to better moral choices throughout our lives. Flescher eschews the temptation to think of human agents who commit evil as outside the norm of human experience. Instead, through the honing of moral skills and the practice of attending to the needs of others to a greater degree than we currently do, Flescher offers a plausible and hopeful approach to the reality of moral evil.

"An outstanding collection that brings an extraordinary international perspective to the growing literature on the treatment of the survivors of torture." -- New England Journal of Medicine

What distinguishes evils from ordinary wrongs? Is hatred a necessarily evil? Are some evils unforgivable? Are there evils we should tolerate? What can make evils hard to recognize? Are evils inevitable? How can we best respond to and live with evils? Claudia Card offers a secular theory of evil that responds to these questions and more. Evils, according to her theory, have two fundamental components. One component is reasonably foreseeable intolerable harm -- harm that makes a life indecent and impossible or that makes a death indecent. The other component is culpable wrongdoing. Atrocities, such as genocides, slavery, war rape, torture, and severe child abuse, are Cards paradigms because in them these key elements are writ large. Atrocities deserve more attention than secular philosophers have so far paid them. They are distinguished from ordinary wrongs not by the psychological states of evildoers but by the seriousness of the harm that is done. Evildoers need not be sadistic:they may simply be negligent or unscrupulous in pursuing their goals. Cards theory represents a compromise between classic utilitarian and stoic alternatives (including Kants theory of radical evil). Utilitarians tend to reduce evils to their harms; Stoics tend to reduce evils to the wickedness of perpetrators: Card accepts neither reduction. She also responds to Nietzsches challenges about the worth of the concept of evil, and she uses her theory to argue that evils are more important than merely unjust inequalities. She applies the theory in explorations of war rape and violence against intimates. She also takes up what Primo Levi called the gray zone, where victims become complicit in perpetrating on others evils that threaten to engulf themselves. While most past accounts of evil have focused on perpetrators, Card begins instead from the position of the victims, but then considers more generally how to respond to -- and live with -- evils, as victims, as perpetrators, and as those who have become both.

Containing 250 entries, each volume of the Dictionary of World Biography contains examines the lives of the individuals who shaped their times and left their mark on world history. Much more than a 'Who's Who', each entry provides an in-depth essay on the life and career of the individual concerned. Essays commence with a quick reference section that provides basic facts on the individual's life and achievements, and conclude with a fully annotated bibliography. The extended biography places the life and works of the individual within an historical context, and the summary at the end of each essay provides a synopsis of the individual's place in history. Any student in the field will want to have one of these as a handy reference companion.

"A Bed for Two" takes us through the turbulent life of Wagner, a child forced to confront the brutality of his father and the neglect of his mother at an early age. His adolescence is haunted by the anguish of confronting his gay identity, leading him to believe that unhappiness would be his only destiny. However, amidst this dark period, a spark of hope emerges during an apparently innocent game of truth or dare. Challenged to kiss Sandro, they begin a relationship, and for the first time, Wagner finds himself embraced by the warm embrace of happiness. Wagner and Sandro embark on an intense and moving love story, developing a romance that is as beautiful as it is captivating. Prepare yourself for an emotional rollercoaster as you explore the depths of love, self-discovery, and acceptance. Immerse yourself in this touching and memorable narrative where love and pain intertwine in a striking manner. Get excited, be moved, be surprised.

Philosophy and World Problems theme is a component of Encyclopedia of Social Sciences and Humanities in the global Encyclopedia of Life Support Systems (EOLSS), which is an integrated compendium of twenty one Encyclopedias. The Theme on Philosophy and World Problems deals, in three volumes and covers several topics, with a myriad of issues of great relevance to our world on Philosophy and World Problems. Philosophy resists conclusions because its method across disagreements – like modern science to which it gives rise - always leaves issues open to counter-argument and furtherance of understanding. This is how philosophy differs from religious, sectarian and other dogmas and closed systems of thinking. Yet agreement across the research contributing to this work is implicit or explicit on one meta principle: whatever is incoherent with organic, social and ecological life requirements through time is false, and evil to the extent of its reduction and destruction of life fields and support systems. These three volumes are aimed at a wide spectrum of audiences: University and College Students, Researchers and Educators