This lawyer and lecturer in psychiatry at Yale goes to great lengths to argue that revenge is best viewed as an addiction, responsible for most violence and wars, and he is very convincing. He relates personal stories of coming close to becoming a criminal killer, and momentarily enjoying prosecuting many cases of criminal activity, in the adversarial justice system before becoming an advocate for an alternative.
The stories he tells of military, KKK members, and other extremist groups seeking revenge for real or perceived wrongs are chilling in the extreme, but with some recognizing their all consuming revenge addictions as the cause of self harm and reforming to become advocates for forgiveness. The best advocate I can think of for forgiveness is Anthony Ray Hinton, related in his 2018 autobiography The Sun Does Shine. The history he relates of the atrocities of Hitler, Stalin and Mao are all related back to horrendous childhood abuse, with subsequent indiscriminate mass killings that often had nothing to do with the original insult, but stayed in their brains as a revenge addiction that had to be satiated for fleeting relief. There is abundant scholarly research cited throughout, including the role of revenge seeking in the Capital attacks of 2021, and the dedicated revenge addiction actions of Donald Trump.
The neuroscience of revenge is outlined in detail and contrasted with that of the opposite, forgiveness, with the self-harm the former involves and the self-healing of the latter, but may be difficult for nonscientists to understand without anatomical sketches.
There is little distinction made between revenge addiction and pure sadism, and some of the many examples that he discusses blur the distinction. His proprietary Nonjustice System, while no doubt beneficial for many, seems to me to be a little overhyped.
This is perhaps the most memorable book I have read in years with a unique novel premise. I did not enjoy reading about millions of horrific deaths from revenge addiction, but that is a necessary part of his scholarly approach.
4.5/5
Thanks, Al D.
The Passionate Reader 