From Publishers Weekly
What can a close examination of five exemplary people reveal about the way that all individuals make ethical decisions? This is the question that Monroe attempts to answer in this dense but fascinating treatise on moral psychology. A professor of political science and philosophy at UC Irvine, Monroe (The Heart of Altruism) conducted in-depth interviews with five people who risked their lives to rescue Jews during World War II. Irene hid 18 Polish Jews in the home of a German major; Margot had an affair with a Gestapo commander in order to obtain information for the Dutch Resistance. Otto rescued more than 100 Austrian Jews before being sent to a concentration camp himself; John organized an escape network that carried Jews to safety in Spain and Switzerland. And Knud helped engineer the rescue operation that saved 85% of Denmark’s Jews. All these rescuers describe an overwhelming need to manifest virtuous behavior. "There is no choice," says John, "when you have to do right, you do right." For Monroe, such statements prove that "ethical acts emerge not from choice so much as through our sense of who we are, through our identities." She gets quite academic in her arguments, referring to various scholarly theories, including Noam Chomsky’s theory of language, which, she says, demonstrates that moral behavior is as universal as the parameters guiding language. While this book may serve best as a learning tool for ethics classes, the dramatic personal stories it recounts make it a compelling read for anyone interested in understanding how heroism can emerge in the face of life’s mercenary realities. 10 photos.
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Review
The Hand of Compassion is a compelling and powerful read, a terrific book filled with moving narratives of risk, loss, and sadness, and at the same time, the rescuers' affirmation that all human beings deserve the right to decent treatment. It is an analysis that takes social and political theory out of the text and places the reader in the midst of human suffering and courage. -- James M. Glass Perspectives on Politics Approximately two-thirds of this volume is devoted to personal narratives of five rescuers, based on interviews conducted by Monroe. The autobiographies of the rescuers are substantial additions to the body of Holocaust testimony. To her credit, Monroe is an unobtrusive interviewer and a light-handed editor who allows the stories to unfold in illuminating detail. Choice
