Citation

Aragno A. Psychoanal. Rev. 2014; 101(2): 249-288.

Affiliation

140 West End Ave., Apt. 23C, New York, NY 10023. E-mail: annaragno@earthlink.net.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2014, Guilford Publications)

DOI

10.1521/prev.2014.101.2.249

PMID

24731047

Abstract

Of all the great dualities of human experience, "good and evil" have been the most instrumental in shaping the beliefs, rituals, and laws of Homo sapiens. The polarization of our nature into "good and bad" and anthropomorphic externalizations of these impulsions have been with us for millennia, providing inspiration for magical rites, representational forms, and the cornucopia of dramas, narratives, and artworks to which they give expression. Furthermore, whereas all religions advocate for good, the particular narratives of evil underlying the traditions of Western culture come to us from the Bible. However, good and especially evil are theological and moral, not psychological, constructs. With Freud's death instinct, and later Fromm's necrophilous character, the darker shadow of human nature became definitively secularized. After an introduction and historical/developmental overview of select theorists, this paper adopts a strictly psychoanalytic frame of reference in the exploration of what renders some human beings capable of doing inhuman things. Looking at behaviors manifesting through the psychodynamics of character structure and severe personality disorders, the breakdown of empathy and defacement of the "other" in the creation of an enemy is discussed. In conclusion two clinical portraits are offered, illustrating how primitive emotions and defenses, superego pathology, and latent schizoid, narcissistic, and projective mechanisms provide fuel and rationalization for malignant aggressive, duplicitous, and sadistic behaviors.

Language: en