--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The will to be polite, to maintain…" description: "\"“The will to be polite, to maintain civility and normalcy, is fearfully strong. I wonder sometimes how much evil is permitted to run unchecked simply b..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/60e/alix-e-harrow-79276_civility_the-will-to-be-polite-to-maintain-civili_2001875.jpg" --- # The will to be polite, to maintain civility and normalcy… ![“The will to be polite, to maintain civility and normalcy, is fearfully strong. I wonder sometimes how much evil is permitted to run unchecked simply because it would be rude to interrupt it.” quote by Alix E. Harrow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/60e/alix-e-harrow-79276_civility_the-will-to-be-polite-to-maintain-civili_2001875.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/60e/alix-e-harrow-79276_civility_the-will-to-be-polite-to-maintain-civili_2001875.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/60e/alix-e-harrow-79276_civility_the-will-to-be-polite-to-maintain-civili_2001875.jpg) > ““The will to be polite, to maintain civility and normalcy, is fearfully strong. I wonder sometimes how much evil is permitted to run unchecked simply because it would be rude to interrupt it.”” Alix E. Harrow ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Politeness can mask deep fear, allowing harmful actions to continue because confronting them feels rude. **In simple terms:** Politeness may hide fear and enable harm. Key Takeaway Balance courtesy with moral courage. Themes civility fear morality Mood thoughtful critical Type ethical social When to use this quote - workplace - political discourse - online interactions - family dynamics Key Concepts social psychology ethics behavioral inhibition Questions to Reflect On - When does politeness become complicity? - How can you speak up without being rude? A Different Perspective Politeness can also protect vulnerable individuals. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Civility](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/civility/) [Evil](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/evil/) [Polite](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/polite/) ## Related quotes > [The arrangements that couples make in order to maintain civility in the midst of their journey to divorce are often most elaborate when the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-irving/the-arrangements-that-couples-make-in-order-to-maintain-civility-in/) [John Irving](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-irving/) > [I do not believe that a world without evil, preferable in order to ours, is possible; otherwise it would have been preferred. 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It’s the ultimate mark of a mensch.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruna-martinuzzi/when-someone-has-wronged-you-continue-to-treat-them-with-civility-it/) [Bruna Martinuzzi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruna-martinuzzi/) > [They parted at last with mutual civility, and possibly a mutual desire of never meeting again.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-austen/they-parted-at-last-with-mutual-civility-and-possibly-a-mutual-desire/) [Jane Austen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-austen/) > [How much wit, good-nature, indulgences, how many good offices and civilities, are required among friends to accomplish in some years what a lovely face…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-de-la-bruyere/how-much-wit-good-nature-indulgences-how-many-good-offices-and/) [Jean de la Bruyere](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-de-la-bruyere/) > [The Second World War had a precipitating effect in that it discredited the empires, as well as bankrupting them. 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But many of the same adults think nothing of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laurence-steinberg/most-adults-would-not-dream-of-belittling-humiliating-or-bullying/) [Laurence Steinberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laurence-steinberg/) > [There is nothing that we can properly call our own but our time, and yet everybody fools us out of it who has a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seneca-the-younger/there-is-nothing-that-we-can-properly-call-our-own-but-our-time-and/) [Seneca the Younger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seneca-the-younger/) ## More by Alix E. Harrow > [“Thresholds are dangerous places, neither here nor there, and walking across one is like stepping off the edge of a cliff in the naive…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alix-e-harrow/thresholds-are-dangerous-places-neither-here-nor-there-and-walking/) Alix E. Harrow > [“and what is lost that can't be found”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alix-e-harrow/and-what-is-lost-that-can-t-be-found/) Alix E. Harrow Explore all 3 Alix E. Harrow quotes ## More Civility quotes > [There is nothing that we can properly call our own but our time, and yet everybody fools us out of it who has a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seneca-the-younger/there-is-nothing-that-we-can-properly-call-our-own-but-our-time-and/) [Seneca the Younger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seneca-the-younger/) > [Most adults would not dream of belittling, humiliating, or bullying (verbally or physically) another adult. 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And that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wesley-morris/playboy-operated-with-a-patina-of-civility-that-granted-the-average/) [Wesley Morris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wesley-morris/) > [ \[T\]he politically correct are above the rules of ordinary civility, once they have identified you as an unbeliever in their religion. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/orson-scott-card/t-he-politically-correct-are-above-the-rules-of-ordinary-civility/) [Orson Scott Card](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/orson-scott-card/) > [Sanctions alone could not stop Iran's nuclear program. 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