Evil

Abstract

Evil (Onde, Ondskab--noun; ond--adjective). The Danish word Onde can mean harm, misfortune, or illness, as well as evil. It may also refer to a person or thing that produces harm or injury. Ondskab also refers to a bad nature, wickedness, or inclination to cause harm. The adjective ond indicates that something is bad, inferior, or lacking in some respect. Christian Molbech notes that ond generally expresses what is contrary to good or what goes against the requirements of reason or morality. The term appears most frequently in 'The Concept of Irony', 'Either/Or', 'Part One', 'The Concept of Anxiety', the 'Concluding Unscientific Postscript', 'Edifying Discourses in Various Spirits', and 'Christian Discourses'. However, the most sustained discussions of the concept of evil are found in The Concept of Anxiety, the Concluding Unscientific Postscript, and The Sickness unto Death. In these works, Kierkegaard's analyses of evil can be examined under three rubrics: (1) evil as ignorance or indifference; (2) evil understood in relation to anxiety, guilt, and freedom; and (3) evil understood in relation to sin and despair.