Now that you have read about all four categories of “evil” from the Baumeister reading—instrumental evil, vengeful or egotistical evil, idealistic evil, and sadistic or psychopathic evil—provide one key example from history, the news, or fiction for each category. Explain exactly how this person or character meets the characteristics described for the category you apply to them, citing Baumeister as necessary.
Because there are four categories total and you need one example per category, split your total answer into four smaller paragraphs, one devoted to the specific character you choose for each category. Each paragraph should be at least six sentences long.
For example:
The example I want to present for “instrumental evil” is Catwoman because although she breaks the law and often harms others in the process of stealing, she only does evil in the service of making money . . . . [keep going]
An example of vengeful evil, in contrast, you could argue is the Riddler. Although he steals money like Catwoman, he trying to target rich companies who mocked him, challenging Batman to a series of riddles and clues to specifically show how much smarter he is than everyone else . . . [keep going]
For idealistic evil, I believe Poison Ivy qualifies. In her mind, plants deserve protection, and she perceives humans as the primary threat to their well being. When she attacks people violently, she does so in the spirit of idealistically defending the plants she loves . . . . [keep going]
Finally, Joker is a good example of sadistic evil. The Joker isn’t trying to get rich or get revenge or defend any principles; in fact, he lacks any specific motivation at all except to cause chaos and pain whenever possible, just because it makes him laugh . . . [keep going]
(Do NOT use these specific examples in your exercise—pick your own! These are just samples to give you a clearer idea of what I am asking for.)