People of the Lie: The Hope for Healing Human Evil [Paperback]

M. Scott Peck (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: March 15, 1985 | ISBN-10: 0671528165 | ISBN-13: 978-0671528164

"So compelling in its exploration of the human psyche, it's as hard to put down as a thriller...such a force of energy, intensity, and straightforwarness.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

M. Scott Peck's publishing history reflects his own evolution as a serious and widely acclaimed writer, thinker, psychiatrist, and spiritual guide. Since his groundbreaking bestseller, The Road Less Traveled, was first published in 1978, his insatiable intellectual curiosity took him in various new directions with virtually each new book: the subject of healing human evil in People of the Lie (1982), where he first briefly discussed exorcism and possession; the creative experience of community in The Different Drum (1987); the role of civility in personal relationships and society in A World Waiting to Be Born (1993); an examination of the complexities of life and the paradoxical nature of belief in Further Along the Road Less Traveled (1993); and an exploration of the medical, ethical, and spiritual issues of euthanasia in Denial of the Soul (1999); as well as a novel, a children's book, and other works. A graduate of both Harvard University and Case Western Reserve, Dr. Peck served in the Army Medical Corps before maintaining a private practice in psychiatry. For over twenty years, he devoted much of his time and financial resources to the work of the Foundation for Community Encouragement, a nonprofit organization that he helped found in 1984. He died in 2005 at the age of 69. --This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.

From AudioFile

Scott Peck is a psychiatrist turned author and lecturer. His name is a household word with the self-help crowd. In People of the Lie, Peck takes on the topic of evil. The"volume" cited is not an abridgment but a group of case studies from the first chapters of the book, along with commentary. The presentations are consistently well done. Peck reads with a soft, yet strong voice that is both self-assured and reassuring. D.W.K. (c)AudioFile, Portland, Maine --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Product Details

• Paperback: 269 pages
• Publisher: Touchstone (March 15, 1985)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0671528165
• ISBN-13: 978-0671528164
• Product Dimensions: 8.2 x 4.9 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 10.4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (210 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #773,590 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

M. Scott Peck's publishing history reflects his own evolution as a serious and widely acclaimed writer, thinker, psychiatrist, and spiritual guide. Since his groundbreaking bestseller, The Road Less Traveled, was first published in 1978, his insatiable intellectual curiosity has taken him in various new directions with virtually each new book: the subject of healing human evil in People of the Lie (1982), where he first briefly discussed exorcism and possession; the creative experience of community in The Different Drum (1987); the role of civility in personal relationships and society in A World Waiting to Be Born (1993); an examination of the complexities of life and the paradoxical nature of belief in Further Along the Road Less Traveled (1993); and an exploration of the medical, ethical, and spiritual issues of euthanasia in Denial of the Soul (1999); as well as a novel, a children's book, and other works. A graduate of both Harvard University and Case Western Reserve, Dr. Peck served in the Army Medical Corps before maintaining a private practice in psychiatry. For the last twenty years, he has devoted much of his time and financial resources to the work of the Foundation for Community Encouragement, a nonprofit organization that he helped found in 1984. Dr. Peck lives in Connecticut.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

246 of 252 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars explains why evil often causes confusion, March 11, 2006

By 

Brad C. Pape "1peter318" (Lafayette, IN USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: People of the Lie: The Hope for Healing Human Evil (Paperback)

If you have ever experienced or been frustrated by people who seem to have a hidden agenda then you will enjoy and benefit from this book. The author states (some are paraphrased) and explains the following:
1. The evil hide their motives with lies.
2. Evil people want to appear to be good.
3. When confronted by evil, the wisest and most secure adult will usually experience confusion.
4. Evil seeks to discourage others to think for themselves (fosters dependency).
5. To oppose evil we must have an ongoing dedication to reality at all cost.

I agree that to be mentally healthy we must believe what is true and only what is true. After reading this book you will be better equipped to deal with people who cause strife and confusion. It will also help you identify thought patterns where you are lying to yourself.

302 of 326 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Thought provoking and entertaining, May 23, 2002

By 

Abdullah Z Jefri "Aceous" (Saudi Arabia) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: People of the Lie: The Hope for Healing Human Evil (Paperback)

Don't even consider buying this book if you haven't read the author's first book "The road less traveled." This is a sequel to that book and a lot of the notions and concepts discussed here were established in the first book. Besides, the author, M. Scott Peck, introduces many controversial suggestions in this book, and most of his findings are either shocking or, at least, unusual. Only by reading the first book you will establish the respect and admiration of the author's wisdom and intellect necessary to hear out his out of the ordinary ideas.

"The road less traveled" is a psychological study of love and of human spiritual growth, or in other words, the good side of humanity. This book is a follow up to that study. It is only logical that when you study the light that you wonder about the darkness. However, human evil is a concept totally alien to the science of psychiatry. Besides, as the author himself admits, using the term "Evil" can be an act of evilness itself! It is also highly risky to approach the flames of evilness without catching up on its fires yourself! With these precautions Dr. Peck begins a fantastic book in the study of human evil through the eyes of psychiatry.

The book begins by telling in detail the story of one of his patients who seemed to be a happy man leading a very normal and healthy life. However, as he carries on, we start realizing along with Dr. Peck that evil was staring the man in every corner of his life, hiding in his problems and even among his family members! It is by the end of the story we realize that this normal person literally did sell his soul to the devil!

How did this happen? How can one sell his soul to the devil? Does the devil even exist? With these questions Dr. Peck dives into the study of evil in human beings. Dr. Peck claims that evil does exist, but it's neither incurable nor unavoidable! And the only way to combat evil is to admit to its existence and to recognize its danger. How can you fight something that you don't even believe is true, he says.

Dr. Peck explains why scientists dismiss the idea of the existence of evil and how that is caused by their limited perception of what science stands for. He then carries on by giving examples of some of the cases he had to deal with where he allegedly met with the human evil. And in one chapter he dedicates it wholly to one story of one of his clients whom he failed to heal after more than 5 years of therapy because he didn't have the knowledge or the courage to admit that it was evil that she was suffering from. Later on he explains a different manifestation of evil that he terms as "The group evil." He explains that evil can be present in a group even if all of its members were not individually evil!

The end of the book talks about the dangers and the hopes of creating a science that studies evil. Once I finished the book, I had even more respect for Dr. Peck than I ended up with after reading his first book. Dr. Peck's writing style is pleasant and easy to comprehend. And his story telling techniques are exciting as well as thought provoking. By reading this book you will definitely have so many thoughts to ponder on for many days whether you agree with the author's findings or not. By reading this book you will definitely add intellectual, and possibly moral, value to yourself, and will probably find it highly entertaining at the same time. I totally recommend buying this book.

Nevertheless I have one serious reservation about this book, and it's in Chapter 5, which is titled "Of possession and exorcism." In that chapter the author takes one hell of a detour and starts talking about his personal investigation of the myth of possession and the alleged healing practice of exorcism. The shocking finding he throws in your face is that both are true and that he personally witnessed two exorcism procedures, one of which was a possession by Satan himself!

And even though I try my best to remain an open minded person by being receptive of every point of view out there, I can't accept such an outrageous claim if not accompanied with evidence and reason. The author's attitude in that particular chapter, surprisingly atypical of him, was very vague and unclear. He claims that the two exorcism experiences he went through were intense and that to give them justice would require that a whole separate book be written about them. Hence, he would only give us the impressions and resolutions he came out with from those experiences.

I, in my humble opinion, find that argument fallible! I don't think that anyone would've minded adding 200 more pages to that chapter just to hear those stories! Besides, if he truly thought that they deserve a book of their own then how come he never wrote one? I am mostly surprised because he never failed to extend proof and reason whenever he's presenting an unusual thought. This time it was very different though. By the time I reached the end of that chapter I felt that I was totally deceived by the author and that he did not deserve the respect I had for him.

However, once I started the following chapter, he gained back my respect of him and more immediately! I don't know what to think of chapter 5 and whether I prefer that I didn't read it or not. But, as I said previously, this book including chapter 5 will leave you thinking whether you agree with its findings or not.

I recommend it.

69 of 71 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Illumination the 2nd Time Around, January 9, 2004

By 

David Di Sabatino "whollyfool" (Lake Forest) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: People of the Lie: The Hope for Healing Human Evil (Paperback)

I remember picking this book up about 5 years ago and scanning through the first couple of chapters thinking to myself, "What is this guy talking about? I can't even fathom people that act like this." It just didn't ring true because my experience had not seen the likes of what he was trying to explain.

Fast forward 5 years later, and after going through a harrowing job experience with two people who could star in a movie representation of this book (which, come to think of it, has already been done in a film called SWIMMING WITH SHARKS in the character played by Kevin Spacey), I read it through in a single sitting. Peck so accurately diagnoses the "people of the lie" as being so self-absorbed and narcisistic that they continually make excuses about the abuse they heap upon other people, somehow turning every story 180 degrees in the opposite direction and always claiming victimization when the situation so clearly points to them as the perpetrator. It is a sad indictment of what must be a pandemic within institutions, as these folks clamor and cling to power, money and title oblivious to the human carnage left in the wake of their passing.

But even still, where our hearts are naturally inclined toward revenge, Peck cautions us, coaxing us toward pity for these wretched creatures. He suggests that whatever vile hellaciousness we could dream up as pay back should be tempered with the notion that these folks have consigned themselves to live in a hell of their own making (kind of like Annabella Sciorra in the movie, WHAT DREAMS MAY COME). The dark night of the soul sees their hearts scream out, "I hate you, you're nothing" when the worst some of us deal with is, "Ack... dumb mistake... oh well... keep going."

Bravo... this book rings true, even if it took a second reading. Context is everything!