Not so easily led

摘要

Why do ordinary people do appalling things? This problem has vexed scholars for centuries. Early Christian theologians, for example, spent an inordinate amount of time trying to reconcile the idea of a benevolent and omnipotent God who could nonetheless allow evil to exist. The darker side of human nature still troubles us, though nowadays we tend to seek more naturalistic explanations. This was never more true than after the second world war, which offered an unflinching and deeply distressing view of the depravity to which humans can sink.