Knowing Evil When You See It
Uses for the Rhetoric of Evil in International Relations
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 4445435 |
|---|---|
| Authors | William D Casebeer (US Air Force Academy, Colorado, USA, corresponding author) |
| Year | 2004 |
| Volume | 18 |
| Issue | 4 |
| Pages | 441-451 |
| Publication date | 2004-12-01 |
| Peer Reviewed | Yes |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | International Relations (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 0047-1178 • E-ISSN: 1741-2862 |
| Publisher | SAGE Publications Inc (PUBLISHER) |
| DOI | 10.1177/0047117804048486 |
| OpenAlex | W1980469402 |
| Language | EN |
| Citations received | 5 |
The rhetoric of evil has been a mainstay in international affairs, although President Bush's use of the phrase 'axis of evil' has elevated its prominence. Few, however, have attempted an analytically defensible definition of evil as it relates to international events. I attempt this, identifying commonalities that unite historical deployment of the term: an evaluation of evil cuts across the traditional ethical axes of evaluation of 'person' (virtue theory), 'nature of action' (deontology), and 'consequence' (utilitarianism). This analysis will help identify possible roles that the concept of evil plays in our international linguistic economy and what purposes it serves. I briefly discuss these roles (motivational, counterforce, divisional, and evaluational). Clarifying the meaning of the term evil and its usage in global political discourse will highlight the pitfalls that accompany the use of such rhetoric in international relations, which include forestalling possibilities of redemptive reform
Action (physics) · Environmental ethics · Epistemology · International relations · Law and economics · Linguistics · Meaning (existential) · Moral evil · Political ponerology · Political science · Politics · Rhetoric · Sociology · Utilitarianism · Virtue · Global Peace and Security Dynamics · International Relations and Foreign Policy · Law · Philosophy · War, Ethics, and Justification
| Unique citing works | 5 |
|---|---|
| Citations per year | 0,36 |
| Citation span | 2012 - 2025 (14) |
| Citation velocity | recent |
| Highly cited | No |
| Citation types | Neutral: 5 |