Courtney’s Reviews > People of the Lie: The Hope for Healing Human Evil > Status Update

Wow. The husband and wife example (Hartley and Sarah) are exactly like the ex's parents.

"They are acutely sensitive to social norms and what others might think of them... The words 'image,' 'appearance,' and 'outwardly' are crucial to the understanding of the morality of evil people. While they seem to lack any motivation to be good, they intensely desire to appear good. Their goodness is all on a level of pretence. It is, in effect, a lie."

"A predominant characteristic of the behaviour of those I call evil is scapegoating. Because, in their hearts, they consider themselves above reproach they must lash out at anyone who does reproach them. They sacrifice others to preserve their self-image of perfection... They attack others instead of facing their own failures."

"There is another reaction that the evil frequently engender in us: confusion. Describing an encounter with an evil person, one woman wrote: 'It was as if I had suddenly lost my ability to think.' Once again this action is quite appropriate. Lies confuse. The evil are the people of the lie deceiving others as they also build layer upon layer of self-deception."

"The feeling that a healthy person often experiences in a relationship with an evil one is revulsion. It is a powerful emotion that causes us to immediately want to avoid, to escape the revolting presence."

Chapter Two