What was evil, for Aquinas?

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

Aquinas believed that evil was not a positive quality, but rather a privation or absence of good. In other words, evil occurs when something that should be present (such as love or compassion) is absent. This view is consistent with Aquinas' broader philosophy, which holds that goodness is the fundamental quality of reality and that evil is a corruption or distortion of that goodness. Aquinas believed that evil was not a positive quality, but rather a privation or lack of good. Evil was the absence of what should be present, rather than a thing in itself.

What Was Evil, for Aquinas