Review: The Lucifer Principle by Howard Bloom

The Lucifer Principle is a book by Howard Bloom and was published in 1995. It explores the intricacies of what makes people do unspeakable things to others. While the title does reference a critical religious figure in the Christian church (i.e., Satan) it is not so much about religion as it is about exploring what fosters the behaviors of discrimination. Bloom elaborates on his hypothesis-- that the capability of committing atrocities is biologically and psychologically linked to the human condition. He then proceeds to provide detailed evidence to support his ideas.

While I definitely respect and value the scholarship of Howard Bloom-- I found myself either disagreeing or seeing things from a different point of view from him. Howard Bloom definitely takes things from an approach that I view as being more heteronormative. His insistence that the reason for most of the conflicts is about passing genes onto the next and to wipe out competition...I think there is more that can be fleshed out from this point. Summarizing the human condition and its ability to ignore the humanity of others as simply being a biological urge can only go so far.

Most of this information was based off of research that was available before this book's release in 1995. While the research done at the time was among the best...there are still limits. For instance, if we are only about procreation and the passing of genes... I'm curious to see what he would make out about LGBT experiences. After all, many members of our community are experts in the field of tearing each other apart but we are certainly not doing it to pass our genes onto the next generation. I do wager that this ability for humans to do the unspeakable against one another-- while rooted in biology-- has a source that is more deeply rooted in the human psyche. Additionally, I do think that Howard Bloom has a strong bias towards cultures in the Middle East and South Asia. It is not the information that I disagree with in this regard, it is the idea that somehow the atrocities of Islamic nations, communist nations, or isolated communities are somehow more grotesque than others.

One quote that did stand out to me was this:

Of such rejected pieces of ourselves are our devils made.

Howard Bloom is that classmate or intellectual that you disagree with strongly but you do have a respect for his craft and his understanding. I do believe his work offers great merit in understanding how human biology can impact our behaviors-- especially those we deem as evil. I personally take everything that he writes with a grain of salt though.