The Science of Evil

Baron-Cohen, Simon (2011). The Science of Evil: On Empathy and the Origins of Cruelty. New York: Basic Books.

This book had so much potential: a great topic, the availability of cutting edge knowledge and research, and a scientist who can also write well about these complex matters. Too bad none of these things aligned within this book. The author, an award-winning scientist and writer (and, indeed, the cousin of the famous Sacha), is far outside of his area of expertise here, and it shows. I can’t even begin to tell you how disappointed I was when he started to incorporate Freudian theory in a serious context. A. Volk’s two-star review of this book on the Amazon.com web site captures a great deal of my perspective. I’ll stop there.
Rating: No Oogs