One who writes that "evil is really bad for us and we are perfectly capable of enjoying it" runs the risk of wandering off into self-righteousness. But such is not the case with George Dole. He writes with clarity and without ego, keen of mind as he carefully constructs his vision of hellish evils. "Is there really a hell?" the eminent scholar asks. Should we be good simply to avoid punishment in the life hereafter? There is limited value in such a theoretical question, he maintains, making frequent reference to the writings of Emanuel Swedenborg, who, in the 18th century, claimed to have visited hell and wrote that we are unconscious residents of the spiritual world as well as the material one, and that the hells he described have mirrors in our physical lives. The value of studying Swedenborg's descriptions of hell, argues Dole, is to examine images of our inhumanity to ourselves and each other right now. Simplicity, power, and precision characterize every word Dole chooses and every thought he presents. Personal anecdotes and references, notable for their compelling clarity, aptness, and gentle humor, enrich both his thought and our experience as readers.

Dole's exploration of evil and of hell is actually one of great hope, for it brings us face to face with a God of love and mercy. It is easy to believe with Dole that the gates of hell are not to keep people in but to keep people out--warning us that certainty closes the mind.