Lessons from history have taught us that evil comes in a variety of different forms such as the KKK, ISIS, Soviets, tyrants, dictators, imperialists, and, of course, the Nazis. But when one breaks it down, these are but coalitions to express evil in their own ways, although they may not think as such. When somebody hears these groups or kinds of people, images can be evoked of an absolutely horrible person, with no regard for decency, common sense, or the people they are harming. In short, opponents classify these kinds of people as nothing short of monsters. But what is considered monstrous, and more importantly, what is evil?
Philosophers throughout history have spent as much time figuring out what is evil as much as they have tried to figure out what is good; some believed it was because of demons or spirits, while others believed it was the way they were raised. But to Jewish-German philosopher, Hannah Arendt (1906-1975) evil is not radical, nor a defect in the human condition: it is simply a product of thoughtlessness and no empathy whatsoever.
In her book, Eichmann in Jerusalem, which covered the trial of Adolf Eichmann, the SS officer in charge of mass deportations to concentration camps, Arendt delineates the life of Eichmann and his bureaucratic position during the Second World War and how his thoughtlessness led him to hang after his trial in Jerusalem.
Throughout the book, Eichmann led a fairly normal life, involving going to school, working for his father’s mining company and even becoming a traveling oil salesman, while being a well-revered member of his community. He joined the Nazi Party in 1932 in Austria, and when the Nazis gained control in 1933, he quickly rose through the ranks until he was in charge of mass deportations to the concentration camps.
When the war ended, Eichmann fled to Buenos Aires, Argentina to escape his trial at Nuremberg. However, former prisoners recognized him and after a heated battle with Argentine officials, Eichmann was forcibly removed from Argentina to be placed on trial in Israel on April 11, 1961. After a long and heated trial, Eichmann was sentenced guilty on May 31, 1962 and executed on April 1, 1962.
After the trial and Eichmann’s execution, Arendt’s biggest takeaway was what she called, the “banality of evil.” Eichmann himself was not a psychopath, a sociopath, or fanatical, he was, by all accounts, a normal man, but his downfall was his inability to think for himself. Blindly he followed orders from his superiors, put promotion ahead of ideology, and didn’t take the time to see things from the perspective of his victims. Of course, as Arendt states, he may have had some personal opposition to it, but he didn’t express it far enough, and put it behind his work and duties. Nothing was hidden from Eichmann either; he knew full well what he was doing.
Eichmann’s actions were not a result of any fanatical or repressed anti-Semitism, he was like any ordinary person, but he never thought twice about what he was actually doing. His thoughtlessness and passivity helped to define the modern definition of evil.
Much like members of the KKK or any other extremist religious groups, they fail to see things from the other side of the spectrum, and that same lack of knowledge allows them to commit these atrocious acts. A person’s fear and loathing can lead them to isolate themselves into groups that share the same ideologies as they do, even if that group does commit atrocities, that same person might have some reservations, but overall, they would feel exactly what they want: to fit in somewhere.
However, such mistakes, as these are all too human: fear and familiarity are two of the biggest responses a human can have. Often times people cannot bear to be by themselves or think for themselves, instead, they place their trust and responsibility to the group to do that for them, and as a result that person can be nothing more than an instrument or a tool used by that group. At its core, evil is a form of idleness; whether in action, thought, or development, evil is the result of passivity towards a situation that is in need of attention.
If this were so, then we are all evil, especially in these troubling times where some of the most demanding situations are met with idleness and indifference. Racial tensions in America, the bombings of Aleppo, pollution, and hard pressing economic issues are just a few of the things people turn blind eyes to; of course people feel strongly about these issues, but let’s face it, complaining about it on social media is not enough. Evil is passivity, idleness, and indifference, and is something that cannot be overlooked and hoped it goes away; it is something that takes action. It is like a virus, if one has it and does absolutely nothing it is free to take over the entire body, and even spread to other people.
That is exactly what happened to Eichmann, he was infected with evil, because he let himself be infected.