This paper examines different reasons that make essentialist thinking, and by extension extremist ideologies based on such logic, attractive to individuals. Drawing from theories of personal and social identities, we examine the benefits derived from adopting an essentialist and reductionist ideology: an increased sense of clarity and agency, ease of moral judgements and a simple interpretative framework and prescriptions for social life. We also show the consequences of being on the receiving end of essentialist and reductionist discrimination, and the challenges of escaping essentialism and recognising the multiplicity of self. Our theoretical reflection is based on the life story of Muhammad Elvis Ngum, a young Cameroonian migrant to South Africa who became radicalised in a neofundamentalist religious group.

中文翻译：

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本质主义和极端主义意识形态的诱惑

本文探讨了导致本质主义思维的各种原因，并进而探讨了基于这种逻辑的极端主义意识形态对个人具有吸引力的原因。从个人和社会身份的理论出发，我们考察了采用本质主义和还原主义意识形态所带来的好处：提高了清晰度和代理能力，易于道德判断，并为社会生活提供了简单的解释框架和规定。我们还显示了接受本质主义和还原主义歧视的后果，以及逃避本质主义和认识到自我多样性的挑战。我们的理论思考是基于穆罕默德·埃尔维斯·恩古姆（Muhammad Elvis Ngum）的生活故事而来的，他是一个年轻的喀麦隆移民到南非的人，后来在新基金会主义者的宗教团体中激进了。