--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: It comes as no surprise to find [Norman]…" description: "\"“It comes as no surprise to find [Norman] Mailer embracing [in the book On God ] a form of Manicheanism, pitting the forces of light and darkness again..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/90c/christopher-hitchens-117_book-review_it-comes-as-no-surprise-to-find-norman-m_1244888.jpg" --- # It comes as no surprise to find \[Norman\] Mailer embracing… ![“It comes as no surprise to find [Norman] Mailer embracing [in the book On God ] a form of Manicheanism, pitting the forces of light and darkness against each other in a permanent stand-off, with humanity as the battlefield. (When asked if Jesus is part of this battle, he responds rather loftily…” quote by Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/90c/christopher-hitchens-117_book-review_it-comes-as-no-surprise-to-find-norman-m_1244888.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/90c/christopher-hitchens-117_book-review_it-comes-as-no-surprise-to-find-norman-m_1244888.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/90c/christopher-hitchens-117_book-review_it-comes-as-no-surprise-to-find-norman-m_1244888.jpg) > ““It comes as no surprise to find \[Norman\] Mailer embracing \[in the book On God \] a form of Manicheanism, pitting the forces of light and darkness against each other in a permanent stand-off, with humanity as the battlefield. (When asked if Jesus is part of this battle, he responds rather loftily that he thinks it is a distinct possibility.) But it is at points like this that he talks as if all the late-night undergraduate talk sessions on the question of theism had become rolled into one. 'How can we not face up to the fact that if God is All-Powerful, He cannot be All-Good. Or She cannot be All-Good.' Mailer says that questions such as this have bedevilled 'theologians', whereas it would be more accurate to say that such questions, posed by philosophers, have attempted to put theologians out of business. A long exchange on the probability of reincarnation (known to Mailer sometimes as “karmic reassignment”) manages to fall slightly below the level of those undergraduate talk sessions. The Manichean stand-off leads Mailer, in closing, to speculate on what God might desire politically and to say: 'In different times, the heavens may have been partial to monarchy, to communism, and certainly the Lord was interested in democracy, in capitalism. (As was the Devil!)' I think it was at this point that I decided I would rather remember Mailer as the author of Harlot's Ghost and The Armies of the Night .”” [Christopher Hitchens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-hitchens/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Analyzes Mailer's binary view of good vs evil and its theological implications. **In simple terms:** Mailer's stark moral framing. Key Takeaway Question binary thinking. Themes philosophy theology literature Mood critical intellectual Type analytical skeptical When to use this quote - academic debate - religious discourse - literary criticism Key Concepts Manicheanism theodicy political theology Questions to Reflect On - Can moral complexity be captured in dualism? - What are limits of such dichotomies? A Different Perspective Binary frames oversimplify complex realities. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) [Capitalism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/capitalism/) [Communism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/communism/) [Democracy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/democracy/) [Devil](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/devil/) [God](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/god/) [Good and evil](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/good-and-evil/) [Jesus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/jesus/) [Light and darkness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/light-and-darkness/) [Monarchy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/monarchy/) [Omnipotence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/omnipotence/) [Philosophy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/philosophy/) [Politics](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/politics/) [Reincarnation](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/reincarnation/) [Religion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/religion/) [Theism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/theism/) [Theology](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/theology/) ## Related quotes > [“Reasonableness is a matter of degree. 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(When asked if Jesus is part of this battle, he responds rather loftily that he thinks it is a distinct possibility.) But it is at points like this that he talks as if all the late-night undergraduate talk sessions on the question of theism had become rolled into one. 'How can we not face up to the fact that if God is All-Powerful, He cannot be All-Good. Or She cannot be All-Good.' Mailer says that questions such as this have bedevilled 'theologians', whereas it would be more accurate to say that such questions, posed by philosophers, have attempted to put theologians out of business. A long exchange on the probability of reincarnation (known to Mailer sometimes as “karmic reassignment”) manages to fall slightly below the level of those undergraduate talk sessions. 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