Evil as a Subject of Sociological Cognition: Methodological Reflections
Evil as a Subject of Sociological Cognition: Methodological Reflections

Summary/Abstract: In this article; the question of opportunities and boundaries of scientific research of the evil is considered. It is emphasized that the notion “evil” is widely used in politics and journalism for the description of the most vital issues of the present; for instance; international terrorism. It induces social scientists to the methodological reflection of scientific and philosophical attempts of conceptualization; description and analysis of a complex of the phenomena and processes determined by the term “evil.” Abrief review of such attempts in science and philosophy of the 20th century is carried out.Despite the marginal status of the notions of Good and Evil in modern scientific discourse; the main scientific and philosophical concepts of human and society recognized in the 20th century admit the possibility of using these notions. Despite the fact that the idea of Evil is difficult to interpret as a concept term; which is the major obstacle to a scientific application of this; it is inappropriate to name it as unidentified. Such interpretation seems relevant to both social phenomena and anthropological ones.It is noted that the essential postulates of the modern scientific perception of “The Evil” analysis in sociology have been obtained in the writings of Karl Marx; Émile Durkheim; Karl Popper; Sigmund Freud and Friedrich Nietzsche. Those were Marx and Nietzsche who stated the polar vision of the phenomenology of Evil on the socio-philosophical level. Herewith; the survey of the conceptualizations and approaches to this problem is not limited with the abovementioned scientists; but involves the ideas and researches of a quite wide range of sociologists; philosophers and psychologists of the 20th century.Thus; the contents of the article; i.e. the overview of concepts and ideas; cannot be considered as the extensive one as the theme and the reference sources analyzed are boundless. This issue is to be regarded just as an introductory attempt to give an insight into the matter and get involved into the interaction on the subject.

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