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Philosophy: Books

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The University of Manchester Library is home to a significant collection of books for Philosophy.

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Front Cover of Being Evil: A Philosophical Perspective

Being Evil: A Philosophical Perspective

We regularly encounter appalling wrongdoing, with the media offering a depressing parade of violent assault, rape, and murder. Yet sometimes even the cynical and world-weary amongst us are taken aback. Sometimes we confront a crime so terrible, so horrendous, so deeply wrong, that we reach for the word 'evil'. The 9/11 terrorist attacks were not merely wrong, but evil. A serial killer who tortures their victims is not merely a bad person. They are evil. And as the Holocaust showed us, we must remain vigilant against the threat of evil. But what exactly is it? If we use the word 'evil', are we buying into a naive Manichean worldview, in which two cosmic forces of good and evil are pitted against one another? Are we guilty of demonizing our enemies? How does 'evil' go beyond what is merely bad or wrong? This book explores the answers that philosophers have offered to these questions. Luke Russell discusses why some philosophers think that evil is a myth or a fantasy, while others think that evil is real, and is a concept that plays an important role in contemporary secular morality. Along the way he asks whether evil is always horrific and incomprehensible, or if it can be banal. Considering if there is a special psychological hallmark that sets the evildoers apart from the rest of us, Russell also engages with ongoing discussions over psychopathy and empathy, analysing the psychology behind evildoing (Provided by Publisher).

This title was acquired through the Library's Order a Book service.

Locating and borrowing books

You can use Library Search to search for both print and eBooks as well as a range of other resources including articles, journals, and databases.

Guide to printed collections

The Library uses the Dewey Decimal Classification scheme (Dewey for short) to arrange books and other resources on the shelves so you can locate them easily.

The vast majority of books relating to Philosophy and related subjects can be found in the Main Library.

 

Subject Areas Classmark(s) Location
Philosophy and psychology 100 - 109 Main Library - Blue Area - Floor 1
Ancient, medieval and eastern philosophy 180 - 189 Main Library - Blue Area - Floor 2

 

More information: Locating books on shelves

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Course reading lists

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Reading Lists

E-book collections

The Library provides access to numerous e-book collections that host many titles relating to Philosophy and related subjects. Follow this link to browse different collections you can explore to find e-books relating to your studies. 

E-book collections 

E-book collections

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Theses and dissertations

Theses can be a valuable source of information for your research and are very useful points of reference for when you come to write your own thesis.

For detailed information on how to access theses from the University of Manchester, and from other universities in the UK and internationally, please visit our Theses Library Guide

 

Theses

 

 

Doctoral/Research Theses

  • Electronic versions of many open-access University of Manchester research theses, submitted from the 2010 session onwards, are available on Research Explorer, the University of Manchester’s research database.

 

Theses from other UK/International Institutions

  • ProQuest Dissertations and Theses Global (PQDT Global)

    A searchable and browsable database of dissertations and theses from around the world, spanning from 1743 to the present day. It also offers full text for graduate works added since 1997, along with selected full text for works written prior to 1997. It contains a significant amount of new international dissertations and theses both in citations and in full text. Designated as an official offsite repository for the U.S. Library of Congress, PQDT Global offers comprehensive historic and ongoing coverage for North American works and significant and growing international coverage from a multiyear program of expanding partnerships with international universities and national associations.

Creative Commons Licence This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International Licence.

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