Evil in Contemporary Political Theory

This title explores the actual and possible roles of evil in current-day international politics. Politicians and the press exploit the rhetorical strength of the word ‘evil’ in phrases such as ‘evil regimes’ or ‘Axis of Evil’. But does it have any role in political theory? The contributors to this volume systematically explore the competing definitions of ‘evil’ and make sense of the political spin to discover how evil has shaped our judgements in humanitarian international law, post-conflict situations and the notion of forgiveness. They find suprising agreement in modern cultures on the evils that confront human communities – genocide, torture, slavery. It is here, where our tolerance reaches breaking point, that the concept of evil can be applied. It shows the usefulness of the concept of evil in the development of humanitarian international law, theorising post-conflict situations, the notion of forgiveness and making sense of political spin.