--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: If we had not been dealing with the devil…" description: "\"If we had not been dealing with the devil in person, we could have saved Algeria.\" — Georges Bidault" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8f3/georges-bidault-64384_algeria_if-we-had-not-been-dealing-with-the-devi_948877.png" --- # If we had not been dealing with the devil in person, we… ![“If we had not been dealing with the devil in person, we could have saved Algeria.” quote by Georges Bidault](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8f3/georges-bidault-64384_algeria_if-we-had-not-been-dealing-with-the-devi_948877.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8f3/georges-bidault-64384_algeria_if-we-had-not-been-dealing-with-the-devi_948877.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8f3/georges-bidault-64384_algeria_if-we-had-not-been-dealing-with-the-devi_948877.png) > “If we had not been dealing with the devil in person, we could have saved Algeria.” [Georges Bidault](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/georges-bidault/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Reflects on the moral cost of confronting evil directly versus indirect strategies. **In simple terms:** Directly fighting evil can be costly. Key Takeaway Consider indirect solutions. Themes ethics politics conflict resolution Mood reflective serious Type political historical When to use this quote - war - humanitarian crises - policy making - diplomacy Key Concepts moral philosophy strategic planning Questions to Reflect On - Can indirect approaches ever replace direct confrontation? - What are the risks of inaction? A Different Perspective May underestimate the urgency of direct action. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Algeria](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/algeria/) [Devil](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/devil/) ## Related quotes > [Between you and your lover; Devil was the third person](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/between-you-and-your-lover-devil-was-the-third-person/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“I didn't understand how someone could be both God and the devil. How the same person could destroy you and save you. When everything…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maggie-stiefvater/i-didn-t-understand-how-someone-could-be-both-god-and-the-devil-how/) [Maggie Stiefvater](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maggie-stiefvater/) > [“As soon as a person gives place to the devil in his life, the devil has this person hooked”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sunday-adelaja/as-soon-as-a-person-gives-place-to-the-devil-in-his-life-the-devil/) [Sunday Adelaja](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sunday-adelaja/) > [You can't call any one person the devil. Because no one person has the power to be the devil.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dmx/you-can-t-call-any-one-person-the-devil-because-no-one-person-has-the/) [DMX](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dmx/) > [“A glass devil is a person in whom evil becomes transparent. People simply don't see it, despite the fact that it's there all the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/helen-tursten/a-glass-devil-is-a-person-in-whom-evil-becomes-transparent-people/) Helen Tursten > [“I didn’t understand how someone could be God and the devil. How the same person could destroy you and save you." —Sam Roth”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maggie-stiefvater/i-didn-t-understand-how-someone-could-be-god-and-the-devil-how-the/) [Maggie Stiefvater](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maggie-stiefvater/) > [Algeria, the second-largest country in Africa, has been dogged by terrorism. But while dangers remain, they are far outweighed by the hospitality of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carol-drinkwater/algeria-the-second-largest-country-in-africa-has-been-dogged-by/) [Carol Drinkwater](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carol-drinkwater/) > [“You think about bathing in the sea – thick as velvet, supple and smooth as a wild animal. You think about swimming naked, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-camus/you-think-about-bathing-in-the-sea-thick-as-velvet-supple-and-smooth/) [Albert Camus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-camus/) > [I am the son of poor peasants who came at a very young age to live in Algeria. I only recently saw the place…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ahmed-ben-bella/i-am-the-son-of-poor-peasants-who-came-at-a-very-young-age-to-live-in/) [Ahmed Ben Bella](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ahmed-ben-bella/) > [I can say now: all the combatants who participated in the fight for freedom in South America came to Algeria; it's from there that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ahmed-ben-bella/i-can-say-now-all-the-combatants-who-participated-in-the-fight-for/) [Ahmed Ben Bella](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ahmed-ben-bella/) > [In a general way, if one cannot attribute to the Jew the whole responsibility of the situation, economic, political, and social, by which Algeria…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chuck-hagel/in-a-general-way-if-one-cannot-attribute-to-the-jew-the-whole/) [Chuck Hagel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chuck-hagel/) > [Women in the Arab world have a rich history in their active participation in political change from the Algeria revolution against the French occupation…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zainab-salbi/women-in-the-arab-world-have-a-rich-history-in-their-active/) [Zainab Salbi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zainab-salbi/) > [I have seen children shot in El Salvador, Algeria, Guatemala, Sarajevo, but I have never before watched soldiers entice children like mice into a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-hedges/i-have-seen-children-shot-in-el-salvador-algeria-guatemala-sarajevo/) [Chris Hedges](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-hedges/) > [Algeria is what allowed me to accept myself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pierre-bourdieu/algeria-is-what-allowed-me-to-accept-myself/) [Pierre Bourdieu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pierre-bourdieu/) > [Anyone who follows the Middle East and Islamic world in general can't deny it is often a very violent place, that a band of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-engel/anyone-who-follows-the-middle-east-and-islamic-world-in-general-can-t/) [Richard Engel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-engel/) ## More by Georges Bidault > [Freedom is when one hears the bell at seven o'clock in the morning and knows it is the milkman and not the Gestapo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/georges-bidault/freedom-is-when-one-hears-the-bell-at-seven-o-clock-in-the-morning/) [Georges Bidault](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/georges-bidault/) > [I have plumbed the depth of human cowardice and I realized that there is only one way to be right, and that is to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/georges-bidault/i-have-plumbed-the-depth-of-human-cowardice-and-i-realized-that-there/) [Georges Bidault](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/georges-bidault/) > [Africa is destined to anarchy. It is turning into 36 Haitis, with 36 Duvaliers, full of Cadillacs, beggars and snarling dogs.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/georges-bidault/africa-is-destined-to-anarchy-it-is-turning-into-36-haitis-with-36/) [Georges Bidault](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/georges-bidault/) > [The weak have one weapon: the errors of those who think they are strong.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/georges-bidault/the-weak-have-one-weapon-the-errors-of-those-who-think-they-are-strong/) [Georges Bidault](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/georges-bidault/) [Explore all 5 Georges Bidault quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/georges-bidault/) ## More Algeria quotes > [Anyone who follows the Middle East and Islamic world in general can't deny it is often a very violent place, that a band of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-engel/anyone-who-follows-the-middle-east-and-islamic-world-in-general-can-t/) [Richard Engel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-engel/) > [Algeria is what allowed me to accept myself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pierre-bourdieu/algeria-is-what-allowed-me-to-accept-myself/) [Pierre Bourdieu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pierre-bourdieu/) > [I have seen children shot in El Salvador, Algeria, Guatemala, Sarajevo, but I have never before watched soldiers entice children like mice into a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-hedges/i-have-seen-children-shot-in-el-salvador-algeria-guatemala-sarajevo/) [Chris Hedges](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-hedges/) > [Women in the Arab world have a rich history in their active participation in political change from the Algeria revolution against the French occupation…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zainab-salbi/women-in-the-arab-world-have-a-rich-history-in-their-active/) [Zainab Salbi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zainab-salbi/) > [In a general way, if one cannot attribute to the Jew the whole responsibility of the situation, economic, political, and social, by which Algeria…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chuck-hagel/in-a-general-way-if-one-cannot-attribute-to-the-jew-the-whole/) [Chuck Hagel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chuck-hagel/) > [I can say now: all the combatants who participated in the fight for freedom in South America came to Algeria; it's from there that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ahmed-ben-bella/i-can-say-now-all-the-combatants-who-participated-in-the-fight-for/) [Ahmed Ben Bella](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ahmed-ben-bella/) > [I am the son of poor peasants who came at a very young age to live in Algeria. I only recently saw the place…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ahmed-ben-bella/i-am-the-son-of-poor-peasants-who-came-at-a-very-young-age-to-live-in/) [Ahmed Ben Bella](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ahmed-ben-bella/) > [“You think about bathing in the sea – thick as velvet, supple and smooth as a wild animal. You think about swimming naked, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-camus/you-think-about-bathing-in-the-sea-thick-as-velvet-supple-and-smooth/) [Albert Camus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-camus/) > [Algeria, the second-largest country in Africa, has been dogged by terrorism. But while dangers remain, they are far outweighed by the hospitality of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carol-drinkwater/algeria-the-second-largest-country-in-africa-has-been-dogged-by/) [Carol Drinkwater](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carol-drinkwater/) > [“If Algeria introduced a resolution that the earth was flat and that Israel had flattened it, it would pass by a vote of 164…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abba-eban/if-algeria-introduced-a-resolution-that-the-earth-was-flat-and-that/) [Abba Eban](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abba-eban/) > [What is the Obama Doctrine? It seems to be one of disengagement, to try to ignore the hot, religious, dry, poor countries from Algeria…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-engel/what-is-the-obama-doctrine-it-seems-to-be-one-of-disengagement-to-try/) [Richard Engel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-engel/) > [ \[Albert\] Camus' was born in Algeria of French nationality, and was assimilated into the French colony, although the French colonists rejected him absolutely because… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/catherine-camus/albert-camus-was-born-in-algeria-of-french-nationality-and-was/) [Catherine Camus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/catherine-camus/) > [In the 1990s, Islamists in Algeria won elections like the Brotherhood did in Egypt. The Algerian military refused to allow the Islamists to take…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-engel/in-the-1990s-islamists-in-algeria-won-elections-like-the-brotherhood/) [Richard Engel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-engel/) > [In Algeria, I had begun to get into literature and philosophy. I dreamed of writing-and already models were instructing the dream, a certain language…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacques-derrida/in-algeria-i-had-begun-to-get-into-literature-and-philosophy-i/) [Jacques Derrida](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacques-derrida/) > [ \[Albert Camus\] really did know Algeria. He was an exile from his country, but still living in its language. Solitaire et solidaire. It's not… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/catherine-camus/albert-camus-really-did-know-algeria-he-was-an-exile-from-his-country/) [Catherine Camus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/catherine-camus/) [Browse all 45 Algeria quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/algeria/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "If we had not been dealing with the devil in person, we could have saved Algeria.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Georges Bidault" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/georges-bidault/if-we-had-not-been-dealing-with-the-devil-in-person-we-could-have/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Algeria" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/georges-bidault/if-we-had-not-been-dealing-with-the-devil-in-person-we-could-have/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8f3/georges-bidault-64384_algeria_if-we-had-not-been-dealing-with-the-devi_948877.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8f3/georges-bidault-64384_algeria_if-we-had-not-been-dealing-with-the-devi_948877.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8f3/georges-bidault-64384_algeria_if-we-had-not-been-dealing-with-the-devi_948877.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“If we had not been dealing with the devil in person, we could have saved Algeria.” — Georges Bidault", "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": "Georges Bidault", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/georges-bidault/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "If we had not been dealing...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/georges-bidault/if-we-had-not-been-dealing-with-the-devil-in-person-we-could-have/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/georges-bidault/if-we-had-not-been-dealing-with-the-devil-in-person-we-could-have/#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 } } ] } ```