Melissa Purgert

Dr. Gatti
COR 357
8 November 2016
The Point
Thesis:
To best understand evil, we will study What is Evil? through case studies about the evil
eye, Nero, and the excommunication of the mafia. With these different case studies, we will
study "What is Evil?" while considering society, politics, religion, and philosophy in terms of
their influence on what is believed by people throughout various time periods as they determine
what is deemed evil.
Thoughts:
The goal of this Core Capstone Project is beyond any one persons ability to answer the
question of What is Evil?. To approach this timeless question, I shall create a lesson plan
which will be taught in the Rome COR 357 class. This lesson plan will by no means answer the
question What is Evil?, but rather by presenting different case studies, will demonstrate to the
students the complexity and importance of this question.
For the case studies that will be implemented in this project I have chosen to study the
evil eye, the evil emperor Nero, and the excommunication of the mafia. Each of these case
studies attempts to look at the question, What is Evil? from a different perspective; the evil eye
defines evil in terms of folklore, Nero in terms of politics, and the mafias excommunication in
terms of religion. The reason I have chosen these three case studies is because they represent that
evil is apparent across time periods, and fields. In addition, each of these cases can evidently
demonstrate why people have deemed them as evil, but each also offers some question as to
whether people have accurately defined the situations and people as evil.

Through using these different case studies and considering the input of authors across
disciplines on their definitions of evil, the class will hopefully be provoked to think from a
variety of perspectives. For traditionally, people associate evil with morality, but by exemplifying
these case studies from different time periods and traditions, and thoughts from various
disciplines, hopefully the class will understand that What is Evil? is the epitome of an enduring
question.