Excellent piece. The film "Run Hide Fight" (available to watch on Daily Wire) has a few small flaws, but does a GREAT job with the villains who are trying to shoot up a high school. "Disaffected teens" -- NOT. There's the mastermind, who is a psycho. HIs mentally ill follower, who is under his thumb; and a girlfriend (same, but in a different way). There's only one "bullied kid" and what the heroine does with him may be far-fetched, but is possible with an ACTUAL alienated person tempted to do bad things with friends, but who is psychologically normal. All too often, filmmakers and writers fall for the old "he's so crazy he must actually be a genius!" line that makes people believe real life pscyhos.
Evil genius is a misperception, fomented by, well, the psychos who get away with it for so long. We will never hear about the evil bastards who pick the wrong fight in a bar and end up in the dumpster. We'll only hear about the smart ones, because the stupid ones have been given Darwin awards.
I thought of Heinlein's Time for the Stars where one twin was always the patsy for the other twin and none of the rest of the family ever caught on. Dominant twin was a sociopath IMO. I wonder how intentional that aspect was to Heinlein.
Great take on evil. It is boring as the focus or as the hero. The small minded and morally bankrupt seem to have become obsessed with the idea of evil triumphant. I suppose they could argue that Sauron was merely attempting to create a workers paradise were everyone would be equally miserable.
This, this, this-ity, THIS! UGH, I hope to heaven I *never* understand this mindset. I have written so many posts trying to explain why villain-worship is bad, and yet no one pays attention. Grrr...!
Thanks for posting this. I was planning to do another article on evil, so having something like this to refer to will help with that. Appreciate the points! :D
One example of how evil "loves" comes from pyschopaths. They will use my kids, my wife, in the same sense that normal people use my shoes, implying total ownership.
When evil is interesting, it's often the remnants of the good in them. And that fades. Hence, the idea best expressed by Lewis that Hell is bounded to limit the pain.
Excellent piece. The film "Run Hide Fight" (available to watch on Daily Wire) has a few small flaws, but does a GREAT job with the villains who are trying to shoot up a high school. "Disaffected teens" -- NOT. There's the mastermind, who is a psycho. HIs mentally ill follower, who is under his thumb; and a girlfriend (same, but in a different way). There's only one "bullied kid" and what the heroine does with him may be far-fetched, but is possible with an ACTUAL alienated person tempted to do bad things with friends, but who is psychologically normal. All too often, filmmakers and writers fall for the old "he's so crazy he must actually be a genius!" line that makes people believe real life pscyhos.
Evil genius is a misperception, fomented by, well, the psychos who get away with it for so long. We will never hear about the evil bastards who pick the wrong fight in a bar and end up in the dumpster. We'll only hear about the smart ones, because the stupid ones have been given Darwin awards.
I thought of Heinlein's Time for the Stars where one twin was always the patsy for the other twin and none of the rest of the family ever caught on. Dominant twin was a sociopath IMO. I wonder how intentional that aspect was to Heinlein.
I'm sure he heard of Leopold and Loeb... and if not, I'm sure he met a few duos in SFWA.
Thank you for the thought provoking post!
You're welcome. Thanks for sharing.
Great take on evil. It is boring as the focus or as the hero. The small minded and morally bankrupt seem to have become obsessed with the idea of evil triumphant. I suppose they could argue that Sauron was merely attempting to create a workers paradise were everyone would be equally miserable.
Shh. Don't give them ideas. That'll be the next lecture at the Tolkien Society.
This, this, this-ity, THIS! UGH, I hope to heaven I *never* understand this mindset. I have written so many posts trying to explain why villain-worship is bad, and yet no one pays attention. Grrr...!
Thanks for posting this. I was planning to do another article on evil, so having something like this to refer to will help with that. Appreciate the points! :D
One example of how evil "loves" comes from pyschopaths. They will use my kids, my wife, in the same sense that normal people use my shoes, implying total ownership.
When evil is interesting, it's often the remnants of the good in them. And that fades. Hence, the idea best expressed by Lewis that Hell is bounded to limit the pain.
Pretty much.