Um breve percurso das diversas representações do mal na história da filosofia.

Abstract

This final project investigates the diverse images of evil throughout the history of philosophy, highlighting its aesthetic and symbolic mutability within religious culture, through thought as a representation of religion. The research ranges from mythical and Eastern origins, such as Zoroastrianism and Manichaeism, through the Judeo-Christian tradition and its biblical interpretations, to the devil's protagonism in the Middle Ages and even questions about his figure in modern times, including the Church and its use of fear as an instrument of social and spiritual manipulation. It also analyzes the transition from the Renaissance, which gave evil comic and critical aspects, to Romanticism, which redefined it as a symbol of freedom and rebellion. The Enlightenment and modern philosophy, notably Thomas Hobbes, shifted the notion of evil from a metaphysical entity to a human and social dimension, linked to conflict and political contract. In contemporary times, with the thinking of Umberto Eco and the expansion of the cultural industry, evil is also understood as a commodity present in various media and consumer products. It follows that evil is not a fixed entity, but a symbolic construct that adapts to the cultural, philosophical, and political demands of each era, remaining a key to interpreting human experience.