Cruelty is pleasure in inflicting suffering or inaction towards another's suffering when a clear remedy is readily available. Sadism can also be related to this form of action or concept. Cruel ways of inflicting suffering may involve violence, but affirmative violence is not necessary for an act to be cruel. For example, if a person is drowning and begging for help and another person is able to help with no cost or risk, but is merely watching with disinterest or perhaps mischievous amusement, that person is being cruel—rather than violent.
George Eliot stated that "cruelty, like every other vice, requires no motive outside itself; it only requires opportunity." Bertrand Russell stated that "the infliction of cruelty with a good conscience is a delight to moralists. That is why they invented Hell." Gilbert K. Chesterton stated that "cruelty is, perhaps, the worst kind of sin. Intellectual cruelty is certainly the worst kind of cruelty."
The word has metaphorical uses, for example "The cliffs remained cruel." (i.e. unclimbable when they desperately needed to be climbed) in The Lord of the Rings.
There are four distinct conceptions of cruelty. "The differences between these conceptions of cruelty rest on the types of agency, victimization, causality, and values that they employ."
The term cruelty is often used in law and criminology with regard to the treatment of animals, children, spouses, and prisoners. When cruelty to animals is discussed, it often refers to unnecessary suffering. In criminal law, it refers to punishment, torture, victimization, draconian measures, and cruel and unusual punishment. In divorce cases, many jurisdictions permit a cause of action for cruel and inhumane treatment. In law, cruelty is "the infliction of physical or mental distress, especially when considered a determinant in granting a divorce."
The term comes from Middle English, via the Old French term "crualte", which is based on Latin "crudelitas", from "crudelis".
六级/考研单词: inflict, affirm, necessity, drown, beg, mere, amuse, vice, motive, conscience, delight, sinister, intellect, metaphor, cliff, differentiate, seldom, spouse, punish, torture, divorce, jurisdiction, physics, distress
标签：term,when,suffering,cruelty,cruel,they From： https://www.cnblogs.com/funwithwords/p/16626898.html