
Cruelty: Human evil and the human brain (Hardback)
Kathleen Taylor (author)
£16.99
Hardback
360 Pages
Published: 26/02/2009
Published: 26/02/2009
In this thoughtful exploration of a painful subject, Kathleen Taylor seeks to bring together the fruits of work in psychology, sociology, and her own field of neuroscience to shed light on the nature of cruelty and what makes human beings cruel. The question of cruelty is inevitably tied to questions of moral philosophy, the nature of evil, free will and responsibility. Taylor's approach is ambitious, but little work has been done in this area and this wide-ranging
discussion, considering the roles of emotion, belief, identity and 'otherizing'; evolved instincts and differences in brains; callousness and sadism; seeks to begin to identify how we might reduce or limit cruelty in our societies by a greater understanding of its causes, and the circumstances in
which it can grow.
As with her highly regarded previous book, Brainwashing, Taylor draws in examples from history and literature in her study, making this a rich and multifaceted analysis that should be of interest to a wide readership, and provoke much thought, debate, and further research.
Publisher: Oxford University Press
ISBN: 9780199552627
Number of pages: 360
Weight: 688 g
Dimensions: 240 x 163 x 31 mm
MEDIA REVIEWS
Both lay readers and academics from a variety of disciplines will find 'Cruelty' an absorbing and thought-provoking work. * Sue McHale, Times Higher Education Supplement *
A copy should be given to every politician elected to Parliment. * Sue McHale, Times Higher Education Supplement *
[A] wise and timely book. * Steven Rose, The Guardian *
A copy should be given to every politician elected to Parliment. * Sue McHale, Times Higher Education Supplement *
[A] wise and timely book. * Steven Rose, The Guardian *
You may also be interested in...
Please sign in to write a review
Sign In / Register
Not registered? CREATE AN ACCOUNTCREATE A plus ACCOUNT
Sign In
Download the Waterstones App
Would you like to proceed to the App store to download the Waterstones App?
Click & Collect
Reserve online, pay on collection
Thank you for your reservation
Your order is now being processed and we have sent a confirmation email to you at
When will my order be ready to collect?
Following the initial email, you will be contacted by the shop to confirm that your item is available for collection.
Call us on or send us an email at
Unfortunately there has been a problem with your order
Please try again or alternatively you can contact your chosen shop on or send us an email at