--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Beauty can be as dangerous as evil can be…" description: "\"Beauty can be as dangerous as evil can be beautiful. But that is just another aspect of the double edge of non-moral values. Both beauty and friends ca..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/81b/alexander-nehamas-40423_beautiful_beauty-can-be-as-dangerous-as-evil-can-b_2171143.png" --- # Beauty can be as dangerous as evil can be beautiful. But… ![“Beauty can be as dangerous as evil can be beautiful. But that is just another aspect of the double edge of non-moral values. Both beauty and friends can be dangerous. If you want to avoid them on these grounds, be my guest. But I wonder what your life will then be like.” quote by Alexander Nehamas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/81b/alexander-nehamas-40423_beautiful_beauty-can-be-as-dangerous-as-evil-can-b_2171143.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/81b/alexander-nehamas-40423_beautiful_beauty-can-be-as-dangerous-as-evil-can-b_2171143.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/81b/alexander-nehamas-40423_beautiful_beauty-can-be-as-dangerous-as-evil-can-b_2171143.png) > “Beauty can be as dangerous as evil can be beautiful. But that is just another aspect of the double edge of non-moral values. Both beauty and friends can be dangerous. If you want to avoid them on these grounds, be my guest. But I wonder what your life will then be like.” [Alexander Nehamas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-nehamas/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Beauty and evil share a seductive power; both can be harmful, urging caution in valuing aesthetics over morality. **In simple terms:** Beauty and evil are alluring and risky. Key Takeaway Beware seductive allure. Themes ay morality danger Mood cautionary contemplative Type philosophical ethical When to use this quote - art criticism - relationship choices - political rhetoric - personal values Key Concepts aesthetic philosophy ethical ambiguity Questions to Reflect On - When does beauty become dangerous? - Can evil be beautiful? A Different Perspective May conflate aesthetic appeal with moral worth. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Beautiful](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/beautiful/) [Beauty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/beauty/) [Evil](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/evil/) [Friendship](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/friendship/) [Moral values](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/moral-values/) [Values](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/values/) [Wonder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/wonder/) ## Related quotes > [Remarkable contributions are typically spawned by a passionate commitment to transcendent values such as beauty, truth, wisdom, justice, charity, fidelity, joy, courage and honor.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gary-hamel/remarkable-contributions-are-typically-spawned-by-a-passionate/) [Gary Hamel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gary-hamel/) > [We have to bring out the truth about how dark and dangerous and evil the taxi side is.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/travis-kalanick/we-have-to-bring-out-the-truth-about-how-dark-and-dangerous-and-evil/) [Travis Kalanick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/travis-kalanick/) > [There are people who are dangerous, and evil is real.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shane-claiborne/there-are-people-who-are-dangerous-and-evil-is-real/) [Shane Claiborne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shane-claiborne/) > [Stupidity is far more dangerous than evil, for evil takes a break from time to time, stupidity does not.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anatole-france/stupidity-is-far-more-dangerous-than-evil-for-evil-takes-a-break-from/) [Anatole France](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anatole-france/) > [Beauty is a dangerous word. Beauty becomes slightly indulgent for me. It's a snatched kind of moment for me because I'm entitled to a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/don-mccullin/beauty-is-a-dangerous-word-beauty-becomes-slightly-indulgent-for-me/) [Don McCullin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/don-mccullin/) > [The pursuit of beauty is much more dangerous nonsense than the pursuit of truth or goodness, because it affords a stronger temptation to the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/northrop-frye/the-pursuit-of-beauty-is-much-more-dangerous-nonsense-than-the/) [Northrop Frye](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/northrop-frye/) > [Beauty is a dangerous property, tending to corrupt the mind of the wife, though it soon loses its influence over the husband. A figure…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-home-lord-kames/beauty-is-a-dangerous-property-tending-to-corrupt-the-mind-of-the/) [Henry Home, Lord Kames](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-home-lord-kames/) > [“Sometimes, I have to look twice at you just to see if you’re actually real. That much beauty is dangerous.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/skyla-madi/sometimes-i-have-to-look-twice-at-you-just-to-see-if-you-re-actually/) [Skyla Madi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/skyla-madi/) > [When I was a footballer, I surrounded myself with footballers. We were all friends. But in Brasilia you don't know who your friends are.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pel/when-i-was-a-footballer-i-surrounded-myself-with-footballers-we-were/) [Pele](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pel/) > [A White Tiger keeps no friends. It's too dangerous.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aravind-adiga/a-white-tiger-keeps-no-friends-it-s-too-dangerous/) [Aravind Adiga](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aravind-adiga/) > [They ought to be gentle to their friends and dangerous to their enemies.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/plato/they-ought-to-be-gentle-to-their-friends-and-dangerous-to-their/) [Plato](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/plato/) > [Sometimes friends are dangerous. We must be very careful about the help friends give us.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/indira-gandhi/sometimes-friends-are-dangerous-we-must-be-very-careful-about-the/) [Indira Gandhi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/indira-gandhi/) > [My friends are much more dangerous than my enemies. These latter - with infinite subtlety - spin webs to keep me out of places…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lafcadio-hearn/my-friends-are-much-more-dangerous-than-my-enemies-these-latter-with/) [Lafcadio Hearn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lafcadio-hearn/) > [The family remains the basic unit of society and the first school in which children learn the human, spiritual and moral values which enable…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pope-francis/the-family-remains-the-basic-unit-of-society-and-the-first-school-in/) [Pope Francis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pope-francis/) > [Humans are, as Sartre put it, 'condemned to be free'. To insist that science, or God, objectively defines moral values is to abandon our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kenan-malik/humans-are-as-sartre-put-it-condemned-to-be-free-to-insist-that/) Kenan Malik ## More by Alexander Nehamas > [“I will tell you why I became a philosopher. I became a philosopher because I wanted to be able to talk about many, many…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-nehamas/i-will-tell-you-why-i-became-a-philosopher-i-became-a-philosopher/) [Alexander Nehamas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-nehamas/) > [ So long as we find anything beautiful, we feel that we have not yet exhausted what \[life\] has to offer \[…\] That forward-looking element… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-nehamas/so-long-as-we-find-anything-beautiful-we-feel-that-we-have-not-yet/) [Alexander Nehamas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-nehamas/) > [My own view is that friendship is essential to our becoming who we are. It provides a context within which we can, more or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-nehamas/my-own-view-is-that-friendship-is-essential-to-our-becoming-who-we/) [Alexander Nehamas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-nehamas/) > [To find something beautiful is to hope that your life will be better if that is a part of it. Unfortunately, the promise of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-nehamas/to-find-something-beautiful-is-to-hope-that-your-life-will-be-better/) [Alexander Nehamas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-nehamas/) > [To emphasize the importance of beauty is to connect art again to emotion and desire. To find something or someone beautiful is not simply…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-nehamas/to-emphasize-the-importance-of-beauty-is-to-connect-art-again-to/) [Alexander Nehamas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-nehamas/) > [This is a major, wide-ranging, and comprehensive book. A philosophical investigation that is also a literary and historical study, Truth and Truthfulness asks how…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-nehamas/this-is-a-major-wide-ranging-and-comprehensive-book-a-philosophical/) [Alexander Nehamas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-nehamas/) > [In contrast to the values of morality, which depend on and encourage our similarities to each other, values like friendship or beauty depend on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-nehamas/in-contrast-to-the-values-of-morality-which-depend-on-and-encourage/) [Alexander Nehamas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-nehamas/) > [“But is eternity an alternative to life? Isn't it, on the contrary, the case that it is when one wants everything to be eternal…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-nehamas/but-is-eternity-an-alternative-to-life-isn-t-it-on-the-contrary-the/) [Alexander Nehamas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-nehamas/) > [My view is that friendship permeates human life and is involved in almost everything we think, feel, and do. For that very reason, there…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-nehamas/my-view-is-that-friendship-permeates-human-life-and-is-involved-in/) [Alexander Nehamas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-nehamas/) > [It is clear that friendship is by and large crucial to human life. And I believe, in contrast with most of the philosophical tradition…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexander-nehamas/it-is-clear-that-friendship-is-by-and-large-crucial-to-human-life-and/) [Alexander Nehamas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-nehamas/) [Explore all 11 Alexander Nehamas quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexander-nehamas/) ## More Beautiful quotes > [I received a beautiful welcome to the world of music. I want to give something back to the younger generation.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/luciano-pavarotti/i-received-a-beautiful-welcome-to-the-world-of-music-i-want-to-give/) [Luciano Pavarotti](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/luciano-pavarotti/) > [Being beautiful comes naturally!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/being-beautiful-comes-naturally/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [My school was one of the most beautiful places a child can grow up in. You are surrounded by nature - cats, dogs, birds…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amala-akkineni/my-school-was-one-of-the-most-beautiful-places-a-child-can-grow-up-in/) [Amala Akkineni](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amala-akkineni/) > [“do not misunderstand person by beauty You really do not know its real or Mask on dirty thoughts”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mohammed-zaki-ansari/do-not-misunderstand-person-by-beauty-you-really-do-not-know-its-real/) [Mohammed Zaki Ansari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mohammed-zaki-ansari/) > [In the hearing world, I'm constantly having to lip-read and trying to understand what's going on. Sign language is so beautiful. It gives you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rose-ayling-ellis/in-the-hearing-world-i-m-constantly-having-to-lip-read-and-trying-to/) [Rose Ayling-Ellis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rose-ayling-ellis/) > [The more perfect the sight is the more delightful the beautiful object. The more perfect the appetite, the sweeter the food. The more musical…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-baxter/the-more-perfect-the-sight-is-the-more-delightful-the-beautiful/) [Richard Baxter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-baxter/) > [Call her beautiful a million times and she won't believe you. Call her ugly once, and she will never forget it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tumblr/call-her-beautiful-a-million-times-and-she-won-t-believe-you-call-her/) Tumblr > [You will never know just how beautiful you are to me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/you-will-never-know-just-how-beautiful-you-are-to-me/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [You felt a deep sorrow, the kind of melancholy you feel when you're in a beautiful place and the sun is going down](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thrity-umrigar/you-felt-a-deep-sorrow-the-kind-of-melancholy-you-feel-when-you-re-in/) [Thrity Umrigar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thrity-umrigar/) > [ Teaching might even be the greatest of the arts since the medium is the human mind and spirit. My three \[great teachers\] did not… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-steinbeck/teaching-might-even-be-the-greatest-of-the-arts-since-the-medium-is/) [John Steinbeck](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-steinbeck/) > [You're beautiful, cute, pretty, gorgeous, and fuck.. I ran out of words.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/raghib-clitso/you-re-beautiful-cute-pretty-gorgeous-and-fuck-i-ran-out-of-words/) [Raghib Clitso](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/raghib-clitso/) > [Growing up in Iceland, it was very beautiful, very safe, but quite isolated. There was something about jazz music that had a way of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laufey/growing-up-in-iceland-it-was-very-beautiful-very-safe-but-quite/) [Laufey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laufey/) > [How could you feel worthless when God has honoured you by creating you and choosing you to be with Him, in this life and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yasmin-mogahed/how-could-you-feel-worthless-when-god-has-honoured-you-by-creating/) [Yasmin Mogahed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yasmin-mogahed/) > [Sometimes it's about less is more. It's about the seed. Thinking about this gigantic tree that you think is so beautiful but it started…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fred-durst/sometimes-it-s-about-less-is-more-it-s-about-the-seed-thinking-about/) [Fred Durst](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fred-durst/) > [God's Word does provide life lessons to teach us how to live. And it gives us beautiful poetry that gives voice to our human…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jennifer-rothschild/god-s-word-does-provide-life-lessons-to-teach-us-how-to-live-and-it/) [Jennifer Rothschild](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jennifer-rothschild/) [Browse all 17,976 Beautiful quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/beautiful/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Beauty can be as dangerous as evil can be beautiful. But that is just another aspect of the double edge of non-moral values. Both beauty and friends can be dangerous. If you want to avoid them on these grounds, be my guest. 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