What is terrible is that people have become accustomed to sin. When a person refuses to think, he gives up his unique traits of humanity and no longer has the ability to make moral judgments.

Eichmann

▌Hannah Arendt learned that Eichmann was on trial in Jerusalem, Arendt volunteered to the New Yorker magazine to report to the Eichmann trial in Jerusalem. Before departure, Arendt wrote in a letter to Rockefeller Foundation : "You will understand why I reported this trial. I failed to witness Nuremberg trial with my own eyes. I have never seen what those people look like. This is my only chance."

What is the "living" Nazi war criminal that Arendt saw in court?

"He is of medium body, thin, in his forties and fifties, has a half-bare front forehead, bad teeth, myopia, and a dry neck. During the entire trial, he kept thrusting his neck towards the judge's bench (never facing the audience)."

"The longer you listen to him, the more obviously you will feel that this lack of expression is closely related to the lack of thinking; to be precise, he will not stand on the sidelines of others. Thinking about the problem. "

" Eichmann is neither Iago nor Macbeth, and he is far from having the determination to 'become a villain' like Charles III. He has no other motivation except to spare no effort to pursue promotion and prosper; even this kind of effort is not a crime in itself, and he will definitely not kill his boss and take his place."

In plain words, he just never realized what he was doing.

Eichmann was tried in Jerusalem

▌If everyone gave a little evil

Arendt found that the cruel war criminals locked in a glass cage were all ordinary people no matter how they looked.

The Eichmann under her record is a gear that serves the Nazi system: bureaucratic mentality, blind obedience, and numb execution.

is exactly this, which made Arendt realize that The incarnation of evil may not be a violent demon. Under totalitarian rule, if you lack thinking and judgment, every ordinary person may become the spokesperson of evil.

The highly original view of "mediocrity" was first put forward in Arendt's trial report on Eichmann.

"So far away from reality and stop thinking, the disaster that causes a person may be more serious than the addition of all the sinful motives that the person has. In fact, this is a lesson learned in Jerusalem."

Without thinking, Eichmann was destined to become the biggest evil criminal of that era.

Therefore, Arendt believes that only by always insisting on distinguishing good and evil and listening to the moral laws in the heart, can individuals resist "mediocre evil" under totalitarian rule.

▌Never regret writing "Eichmann in Jerusalem"

Because of the proposal of "Mediocrity Evil", and even more because she accused many Jewish leaders of being accomplices of the Holocaust in the book. "Eichmann in Jerusalem" became Arendt's most controversial work, which once made her betrayal her relatives.

Regarding whether she regrets writing "Eichmann in Jerusalem", Arendt said in an interview with the famous German journalist Gauss: will not, and she will not write anything else.

"... The question is only about the truth, not about opinions and ideas. To the truth, the historical sciences in universities are the guardians. But that's not the best guard. They have no moral integrity, they write it for the country... Do we want this? "

" This is because truth is related to the country. What I am talking about here is not a military secret. This is another thing... Why shouldn't people tell the truth? "

▌The evil of mediocrity that is within reach

The simplified Chinese translation of "Eichmann in Jelualem" has been late, but the discussion of "the evil of mediocrity" in China has never stopped in recent years. From the story of "the most beautiful rural female teacher" to the "inaction of a certain Internet search engine, we always verify Arendt's insights over and over again in various events around us.

In the era of "click" or "action", anonymous evil is costless. Perhaps it is just a matter of thought, without any threshold, and everyone may be the "murderer". How can you ensure that you are not the "Eichmann" behind the screen? Here's why Arendt is still important.

A person should be himself first, and secondly, a member of the group. Independent individuals are more likely to dominate their own behavior. His basic characteristic is independent thinking. The lack of this ability of the group is characterized by not thinking, being easily led by others, and even doing evil unconsciously.

Hannah Arendt (1906.10.14—1975.12.4)

Sin is not scary, what is scary is that people have become accustomed to sin. If you blindly abide by the established rules or orders, you will most likely commit evil in accordance with the law and regulations. Therefore, the true meaning of morality is not to follow the rules, but to make independent judgments on right and wrong: to abandon blind obedience to established rules and commands, establish standards by yourself, and legislate for yourself.

As the leading thinker of the 20th century, Arendt's thoughts were complex and profound. In her book "Eichmann in Jerusalem", she put forward the famous concepts of "totalitarianism" and "mediocrity". Nowadays, thinking about totalitarianism and the mediocrity of ordinary people’s evil cannot bypass Arendt’s work.

◎ Carl Jaspers: The cornerstone of Arendt's survival is a kind of persistence with reality, and she exists as a person in her original sense.

◎ " Chicago Tribune ": is destined to shake our souls and torture our conscience.

◎ "New Republic": This book discusses the most serious problem of our time...that is, the problem of how humans survive under a modern totalitarian system.

Liu Qing said that as long as ordinary people commit crimes continue to exist, we will still live in Arendt's problem awareness... Arendt advocates that people should think positively, but he also warns us that thinking is a great burden and requires great ability and courage to bear the activity.

Arendt's research on totalitarianism is not only a reminder to people to be vigilant and reflect on the consequences of abuse of power, but also concerns people's thinking and ethical awakening in social life. To this end, the Prophet Bookstore sincerely recommends the "Seven Books of Arendt" including "Eichmann in Jerusalem" to break the evil of mediocrity of not thinking. (You can also purchase "Lucial Effect" on the page) .