"There is nothing that makes us feel so good as the idea that someone else is an evil-doer"

This quote by Robert Staughton Lynd talks to the human propensity to feel better about ourselves when we can point to someone else as the source of evil. It suggests that we frequently bask in the concept that somebody else is accountable for the bad things that occur in the world, rather than looking inward and taking duty for our own actions. This quote can be analyzed as a caution versus the threats of scapegoating and the tendency to blame others for our own shortcomings. It also talks to the importance of self-reflection and personal duty, in addition to the requirement to recognize our own potential for evil. Ultimately, this quote serves as a suggestion that we all have the capacity for both excellent and bad, and that we ought to aim to be much better individuals by taking responsibility for our own actions.