goodversusevil

Goodversusevil is a term used in popular and academic discourse to describe the recurring framing of morality as a binary antagonism between 'good' and 'evil'. The phrase combines the familiar dichotomy into a single token, often used in discussions of ethics, storytelling, media analysis, and political rhetoric. While not a formal theory in standard philosophical taxonomy, goodversusevil functions as a heuristic for examining how audiences categorize actions, characters, and policies as morally righteous or wicked.

Origins and usage: Though informal, the term appears in online forums, media criticism, and some scholarly works that analyze binary moral framing. It is often used to critique simplistic storytelling and to explore nuances such as moral complexity, situational ethics, and the role of intention versus outcome.

Applications: In ethics and moral psychology, the concept prompts questions about absolutism versus relativism and the reliability of moral judgments. In narrative studies and media critique, goodversusevil describes character arcs that reinforce or challenge dualistic viewpoints, including cases where protagonists commit harmful acts or antagonists perform virtuous deeds for persuasive reasons.

Criticism: Some scholars argue that the term risks reinforcing dualism and oversimplifying morality, while others contend it provides a useful entry point for examining how moral labels influence perception and judgment.

See also: moral absolutism, moral relativism, binary thinking, virtue ethics, ethical psychology, narrative analysis.