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Born Bad
Original Sin and the Making of the Western World
Brief Description
Born Bad traces a fascinating journey from Adam and Eve all the way to Adam Smith and Richard Dawkins in this sweeping story of a controversial idea and its remarkable influence. According to the doctrine of original sin, humans are born bad and only God's grace...
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Description
Born Bad traces a fascinating journey from Adam and Eve all the way to Adam Smith and Richard Dawkins in this sweeping story of a controversial idea and its remarkable influence.
According to the doctrine of original sin, humans are born bad and only God's grace can bring salvation. In this captivating book, acclaimed historian James Boyce shows how these ideas have shaped the Western view of human nature right up to the present. The legacy of original sin takes many forms, including the distinctive discontent of Western people—the feelings of guilt and inadequacy associated not with doing wrong, but with being wrong.
As well as an innovative history of Christianity, Boyce offers new insights into the making of the West. Born Bad traces a fascinating journey from Adam and Eve all the way to Adam Smith and Richard Dawkins in this sweeping story of a controversial idea and its remarkable influence.
"What is wrong with me? This question has haunted the West for fifteen hundred years, but until recently it came with an answer—which was called original sin. Western people believed they were 'born bad' because they had inherited the sin of the first humans." - James Boyce
Book Details
INFORMATION
ISBN: 9781760646509
Publisher: Black Inc.
Format: Paperback / softback
Date Published: 07 September 2026
Country: Australia
Imprint: Black Inc.
Audience: General / adult
DIMENSIONS
Spine width: 19.0mm
Width: 135.0mm
Height: 208.0mm
Weight: 268g
Pages: 272
About the Author
James Boyce is the acclaimed author of Van Diemen's Land, 1835 and Born Bad. His books have been shortlisted for almost every major Australian literary award and he has won the Tasmania Book Prize on two occasions. He is also a professional social worker, who worked for many years in social policy and research and has been involved in the poker-machine debate for nearly twenty years.
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