Abstract

The different philosophical models developed to conceptualize responsibility involve a theory of action and a theory of moral obligation. In the current debate on the normative constraints of responsibility, the tendency seems to be to underestimate specific analyses related to the theme of evil and its historical forms. There is an archaic yet present version in which the latter manifests itself, that of impurity and contagion. The essay examines its basic elements and variants in some contemporary versions. It emphasizes the link between impurity and responsibility and the concept of innocent guilt, wandering what kind of responsibility can face this ethical challenge. Faced with what has been called a metaphysics of evil, a metaphysical responsibility stands out.