What is Solzhenitsyn's theory on the nature of evil?
The line between good and evil runs through every human heart. Evil is not some external force but a corruption that begins within, a willingness to choose falsehood over truth, to accept lies for the sake of comfort or advantage. Violence, the outward manifestation of this inner decay, cannot exist by itself; it is invariably intertwined with lies. The Soviet system thrived on this intertwining, poisoning minds and souls with its propaganda. True freedom, conversely, lies in spiritual independence, in the courage to speak the truth, however small, and to live by it, irrespective of worldly consequences.
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