--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Good and evil are polar concepts - one…" description: "\"Good and evil are polar concepts - one can't exist without the other.\" — Bruno Dumont" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e6d/bruno-dumont-16688_concepts_good-and-evil-are-polar-concepts-one-can_1304125.png" --- # Good and evil are polar concepts - one can't exist without… ![“Good and evil are polar concepts - one can't exist without the other.” quote by Bruno Dumont](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e6d/bruno-dumont-16688_concepts_good-and-evil-are-polar-concepts-one-can_1304125.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e6d/bruno-dumont-16688_concepts_good-and-evil-are-polar-concepts-one-can_1304125.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e6d/bruno-dumont-16688_concepts_good-and-evil-are-polar-concepts-one-can_1304125.png) > “Good and evil are polar concepts - one can't exist without the other.” [Bruno Dumont](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruno-dumont/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Good and evil are interdependent; one defines the other, creating a dualistic balance. **In simple terms:** Good and evil need each other Key Takeaway Accept the coexistence of opposites. Themes morality duality philosophy Mood contemplative serious Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - ethical debates - personal growth - conflict resolution Key Concepts ethical relativism binary opposition Questions to Reflect On - Can morality exist without its opposite? - How do you navigate moral gray areas? A Different Perspective Overemphasis on dualism can ignore nuance. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Concepts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/concepts/) [Concepts Exist](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/concepts-exist-4292432/) [Evil](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/evil/) [Evil Polar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/evil-polar-4292431/) [Good and evil](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/good-and-evil/) [Good evil](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/good-evil/) [Polar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/polar/) [Polar Concepts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/polar-concepts-4292433/) ## Related quotes > [Mental illness, of course, is not literally a 'thing' - or physical object - and hence it can 'exist' only in the same sort…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-szasz/mental-illness-of-course-is-not-literally-a-thing-or-physical-object/) [Thomas Szasz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-szasz/) > [We should remember that science exists only because there are people, and its concepts exist only in the minds of men. Behind these concepts…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wernher-von-braun/we-should-remember-that-science-exists-only-because-there-are-people/) [Wernher von Braun](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wernher-von-braun/) > [My hope is that my novels reflect the reality of a world where good and evil exist, imperfect people make mistakes, but a perfect…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julie-klassen/my-hope-is-that-my-novels-reflect-the-reality-of-a-world-where-good/) [Julie Klassen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julie-klassen/) > [“Because good and evil weren’t inborn traits. They were choices we made.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-thalassa/because-good-and-evil-weren-t-inborn-traits-they-were-choices-we-made/) [Laura Thalassa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-thalassa/) > [“It was granted me to carry away from my prison years on my bent back, which nearly broke beneath its load, this essential experience;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aleksandr-solzhenitsyn/it-was-granted-me-to-carry-away-from-my-prison-years-on-my-bent-back/) [Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aleksandr-solzhenitsyn/) > [I like to see the difference between good and evil as kind of like the foul line at a baseball game. It's very thin,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harlan-coben/i-like-to-see-the-difference-between-good-and-evil-as-kind-of-like/) [Harlan Coben](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harlan-coben/) > [“This is perhaps what has made some suspect that the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil was really a banana.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-grigson/this-is-perhaps-what-has-made-some-suspect-that-the-tree-of-knowledge/) [Jane Grigson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-grigson/) > [“We learn that there are in creation, Beings - perhaps very numerous - both good and evil.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-whatley/we-learn-that-there-are-in-creation-beings-perhaps-very-numerous-both/) [Richard Whatley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-whatley/) > [Compassion alone stands apart from the continuous traffic between good and evil proceeding within us.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-hoffer/compassion-alone-stands-apart-from-the-continuous-traffic-between/) [Eric Hoffer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-hoffer/) > [All of the films I have made, that I have chosen to make, are all about the thin line between good and evil. And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-friedkin/all-of-the-films-i-have-made-that-i-have-chosen-to-make-are-all-about/) [William Friedkin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-friedkin/) > [The meaning of good and bad, of better and worse, is simply helping or hurting.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/the-meaning-of-good-and-bad-of-better-and-worse-is-simply-helping-or/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [In fine, a life of good or evil, the hope of Heaven or the despair of Hell, Faustus stands as a reminder that the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/in-fine-a-life-of-good-or-evil-the-hope-of-heaven-or-the-despair-of/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“He was not Evil, for even Evil has a certain vitality — Bel-Shamharoth was the flip side of the coin of which Good and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-pratchett/he-was-not-evil-for-even-evil-has-a-certain-vitality-bel-shamharoth/) [Terry Pratchett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-pratchett/) > [I believe it's true that there's good and evil in everyone and it's a constant struggle to have your better angels prevail.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-friedkin/i-believe-it-s-true-that-there-s-good-and-evil-in-everyone-and-it-s-a/) [William Friedkin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-friedkin/) > [What is done out of love always takes place beyond good and evil.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/what-is-done-out-of-love-always-takes-place-beyond-good-and-evil/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) ## More by Bruno Dumont > [My thinking was that today's spectator is so well-versed in film language that all theories about suspense, as argued by Dreyer and Hitchcock, on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruno-dumont/my-thinking-was-that-today-s-spectator-is-so-well-versed-in-film/) [Bruno Dumont](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruno-dumont/) > [Cinema is my religion. It is a way to make people sensitive, through emotions. To make them feel, experience empathy. People are touched and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruno-dumont/cinema-is-my-religion-it-is-a-way-to-make-people-sensitive-through/) [Bruno Dumont](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruno-dumont/) > [Cinema is made to film material: the body. By filming the material, the mechanical, the worker, we arrive at the spiritual.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruno-dumont/cinema-is-made-to-film-material-the-body-by-filming-the-material-the/) [Bruno Dumont](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruno-dumont/) > [ There's a longstanding myth about the United States that is still very prevalent in Europe \[despite recent developments\]. Historically the "America" of this myth… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruno-dumont/there-s-a-longstanding-myth-about-the-united-states-that-is-still/) [Bruno Dumont](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruno-dumont/) > [The people follow what the media say. So if you said that Bruno Dumont is fantastic, it follows that more people would go to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruno-dumont/the-people-follow-what-the-media-say-so-if-you-said-that-bruno-dumont/) [Bruno Dumont](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruno-dumont/) > [When you make movies, you have to be preoccupied with the social problems, otherwise there is no point in making a movie. To have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruno-dumont/when-you-make-movies-you-have-to-be-preoccupied-with-the-social/) [Bruno Dumont](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruno-dumont/) > [The actor already comes with emotions to the scene: fear, the fear of being in front of the camera. It is this fear that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruno-dumont/the-actor-already-comes-with-emotions-to-the-scene-fear-the-fear-of/) [Bruno Dumont](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruno-dumont/) > [At the root of the Noble Savage myth is this basic truth: the savage is good, but he's also violent. This is why Rousseau…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruno-dumont/at-the-root-of-the-noble-savage-myth-is-this-basic-truth-the-savage/) [Bruno Dumont](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruno-dumont/) > [I'm not Catholic. I don't believe in God. But at the same time, I'm obsessed by the sacred, by spirituality. The question of redemption…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruno-dumont/i-m-not-catholic-i-don-t-believe-in-god-but-at-the-same-time-i-m/) [Bruno Dumont](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruno-dumont/) > [Matching character and actor is what a good director does.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruno-dumont/matching-character-and-actor-is-what-a-good-director-does/) [Bruno Dumont](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruno-dumont/) > [I don't watch my own past films: when I watch them, I find they don't work very well, because I have changed. If I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruno-dumont/i-don-t-watch-my-own-past-films-when-i-watch-them-i-find-they-don-t/) [Bruno Dumont](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruno-dumont/) > [The landscape is a reflection of the inner life. Since I can't shoot the inner life, all I can shoot is the exterior but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruno-dumont/the-landscape-is-a-reflection-of-the-inner-life-since-i-can-t-shoot/) [Bruno Dumont](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruno-dumont/) > [Hollywood films are alienating to the spectator because they use too much dialogue, too much explication and leave no space for the viewer. They…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruno-dumont/hollywood-films-are-alienating-to-the-spectator-because-they-use-too/) [Bruno Dumont](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruno-dumont/) > [To retain his dignity, an artist must live in opposition. He must be critical of his country. If not, then he is worthless.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruno-dumont/to-retain-his-dignity-an-artist-must-live-in-opposition-he-must-be/) [Bruno Dumont](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruno-dumont/) > [I feel I have a political duty to reach out to the general public. I want to make films that the people want to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruno-dumont/i-feel-i-have-a-political-duty-to-reach-out-to-the-general-public-i/) [Bruno Dumont](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruno-dumont/) [Explore all 39 Bruno Dumont quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruno-dumont/) ## More Concepts quotes > [Capability is just a concept of what is it we're looking at. Now how far we can go along that and what new capabilities…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amartya-sen/capability-is-just-a-concept-of-what-is-it-we-re-looking-at-now-how/) [Amartya Sen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amartya-sen/) > [Our concept of a family holiday was going to a guest house in the Lake district or Wales where walking was part of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roger-bannister/our-concept-of-a-family-holiday-was-going-to-a-guest-house-in-the/) [Roger Bannister](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roger-bannister/) > [What is music? Music is language. A human being wants to express ideas in this language, but not ideas that can be translated into…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anton-webern/what-is-music-music-is-language-a-human-being-wants-to-express-ideas/) [Anton Webern](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anton-webern/) > [We do not want to be reminded that it is we, the indigenous people, who are poor and exploited in the land of our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-biko/we-do-not-want-to-be-reminded-that-it-is-we-the-indigenous-people-who/) [Steven Biko](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-biko/) > [The whole concept of stage fright is fascinating. Actors get stage fright, but they wouldn't be on the stage in the first place if…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-greene/the-whole-concept-of-stage-fright-is-fascinating-actors-get-stage/) [Robert Greene](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-greene/) > [I do like talking with friends about big concepts, you know, the stuff that will ruin a party. To me, the party hasn't begun…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-mercer/i-do-like-talking-with-friends-about-big-concepts-you-know-the-stuff/) [James Mercer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-mercer/) > [You imagine that I look back on my life's work with calm satisfaction. But from nearby it looks quite different. There is not a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-einstein/you-imagine-that-i-look-back-on-my-life-s-work-with-calm-satisfaction/) [Albert Einstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-einstein/) > [For a physicist mathematics is not just a tool by means of which phenomena can be calculated, it is the main source of concepts…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/freeman-dyson/for-a-physicist-mathematics-is-not-just-a-tool-by-means-of-which/) [Freeman Dyson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/freeman-dyson/) > [One of the most powerful concepts, one which is a sure cure for lack of confidence, is the thought that God is with you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/norman-vincent-peale/one-of-the-most-powerful-concepts-one-which-is-a-sure-cure-for-lack/) [Norman Vincent Peale](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/norman-vincent-peale/) > [All significant concepts of the modern theory of the state are secularized theological concepts.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-schmitt/all-significant-concepts-of-the-modern-theory-of-the-state-are/) [Carl Schmitt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-schmitt/) > [If you are trying to live a life in accordance with the Bible, the concept and call to justice are inescapable. We do justice…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/timothy-keller/if-you-are-trying-to-live-a-life-in-accordance-with-the-bible-the/) [Timothy Keller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/timothy-keller/) > [So many times we come to Jesus in worship and ask Him for things that He already IS and has already done... What a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christy-nockels/so-many-times-we-come-to-jesus-in-worship-and-ask-him-for-things-that/) [Christy Nockels](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christy-nockels/) > [ I don't think in national categories. For me it \[policy\] is about concepts and substance. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jean-claude-juncker/i-don-t-think-in-national-categories-for-me-it-policy-is-about/) [Jean-Claude Juncker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jean-claude-juncker/) > [In the very beginning, Yelp started as a service where we really didn't think people would write reviews for fun. The whole concept of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeremy-stoppelman/in-the-very-beginning-yelp-started-as-a-service-where-we-really-didn/) [Jeremy Stoppelman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeremy-stoppelman/) > [To pray without expectation is to misunderstand the whole concept of prayer and relationship with God.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aiden-wilson-tozer/to-pray-without-expectation-is-to-misunderstand-the-whole-concept-of/) [Aiden Wilson Tozer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aiden-wilson-tozer/) [Browse all 2,468 Concepts quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/concepts/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Good and evil are polar concepts - one can't exist without the other.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Bruno Dumont" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruno-dumont/good-and-evil-are-polar-concepts-one-can-t-exist-without-the-other/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Concepts" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruno-dumont/good-and-evil-are-polar-concepts-one-can-t-exist-without-the-other/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e6d/bruno-dumont-16688_concepts_good-and-evil-are-polar-concepts-one-can_1304125.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e6d/bruno-dumont-16688_concepts_good-and-evil-are-polar-concepts-one-can_1304125.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e6d/bruno-dumont-16688_concepts_good-and-evil-are-polar-concepts-one-can_1304125.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Good and evil are polar concepts - one can't exist without the other.” — Bruno Dumont", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Bruno Dumont", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruno-dumont/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Good and evil are polar concepts...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruno-dumont/good-and-evil-are-polar-concepts-one-can-t-exist-without-the-other/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruno-dumont/good-and-evil-are-polar-concepts-one-can-t-exist-without-the-other/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```