Dark and heavy, but well written. "Anatomy of Evil" by Michael H. Stone, MD

Title: The Anatomy of Evil

Author: Michael H. Stone

Reviewer: Richard Sesek (educator, wantrepreneur)

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Topic/Intent of book: An in-depth and science-based description of what makes men (it is mostly, but not exclusively men) perform evil acts. I believe the intent is to make several points: 1) determine what antecedents contribute to a propensity to commit evil acts (not to justify, but to explain these acts), 2) show the humanity in some of these people, 3) make a compelling case to continue research into determining who might be at greatest risk for such acts, and 4) make a case that some people should never be allowed to reenter society once incarcerated.

I selected this book because: I was compelled by the title and brief description to learn more and was intrigued by what causes one to commit evil acts. With the coarsening of political discourse and the “othering” of ideological rivals, I fear that many persons may be inspired to commit evil acts as they are motivated/manipulated by charismatic/populist leaders to “eradicate the evil” they are told is in others.

Recommendation: I recommend this book, particularly for those interested in the science of psychology. I would advise, however, that the subject matter and case studies covered, while presented as delicately as possible, is dark and heavy. Dr. Stone does a great job in conveying the nature of the crimes without gratuitous descriptions.

Major lessons from this book: There is a difference between evil acts and evil people. Dr. Stone presents a “scale” of evil (that goes to 22) and discusses acts of murder, for example, that society would call “justified” (killing someone harming your child or spouse) on the low end to those that take pleasure in the killing of others and that completely lack compassion for those they harm (treating them as “packages” or “garbage” rather than people).

He explains the difference between empathy (ability to understand other people’s emotions/motivations) and compassion (actually caring about others). Some people have neither empathy nor compassion. I found those that use empathy to understand and then manipulate/coerce others while utter lacking in compassion to be the most horrifying. This book does a great job in explaining why society condemns some acts “evil.”

Book Inspirations: I have a deeper appreciation for what conditions, environments, and interactions might contribute to the propensity to commit evil. This book inspires the reader to have compassion, even for people who do evil things, but more importantly to act in ways to prevent those conditions. Perhaps most important is the need for loving/nurturing upbringings for all children and for society to intervene when conditions are poor (i.e., intervention by child protective services). I will explore other books by this excellent author.