--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I have always felt as though I needed a…" description: "\"I have always felt as though I needed a weapon against evil.\" — Gordon Parks" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d6a/gordon-parks-14120_evil_i-have-always-felt-as-though-i-needed-a_2785404.jpg" --- # I have always felt as though I needed a weapon against evil. ![“I have always felt as though I needed a weapon against evil.” quote by Gordon Parks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d6a/gordon-parks-14120_evil_i-have-always-felt-as-though-i-needed-a_2785404.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d6a/gordon-parks-14120_evil_i-have-always-felt-as-though-i-needed-a_2785404.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d6a/gordon-parks-14120_evil_i-have-always-felt-as-though-i-needed-a_2785404.jpg) > “I have always felt as though I needed a weapon against evil.” [Gordon Parks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gordon-parks/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Feeling vulnerable to evil drives a desire for protection and empowerment. **In simple terms:** Need for a protective tool against evil. Key Takeaway Seek constructive ways to confront fear. Themes vulnerability protection empowerment Mood reflective determined Type advice philosophical When to use this quote - personal safety - self‑defense - mental health - creative expression Key Concepts psychology personal safety Questions to Reflect On - How can you cultivate inner strength? - What non‑violent tools empower you? A Different Perspective Relying on external weapons can ignore inner resilience. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Evil](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/evil/) [Weapon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/weapon/) [Weapons](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/weapons/) ## Related quotes > [I knew we needed a weapon to break through to the US market, and it had to be something different, something that nobody else…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/akio-morita/i-knew-we-needed-a-weapon-to-break-through-to-the-us-market-and-it/) [Akio Morita](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/akio-morita/) > [“What he really needed was a weapon. A big, threatening, FU kind of weapon that would show everyone the Monkey King meant business.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/f-c-yee/what-he-really-needed-was-a-weapon-a-big-threatening-fu-kind-of/) [F.C. Yee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/f-c-yee/) > [This is it... the ultimate weapon against evil. The power of l-l-l...liking someone a lot!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ramandeep-singh/this-is-it-the-ultimate-weapon-against-evil-the-power-of-l-l-l-liking/) [Ramandeep Singh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ramandeep-singh/) > [I'd done my time in corporate America, from McDonald's making shakes to Morgan Stanley making deals and, yet, I felt awfully constrained by the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chip-conley/i-d-done-my-time-in-corporate-america-from-mcdonald-s-making-shakes/) [Chip Conley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chip-conley/) > [I always pushed myself. Whenever I felt I needed to stop, I made myself run faster.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cecelia-ahern/i-always-pushed-myself-whenever-i-felt-i-needed-to-stop-i-made-myself/) [Cecelia Ahern](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cecelia-ahern/) > [Fervor is the weapon of choice for the impotent.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frantz-fanon/fervor-is-the-weapon-of-choice-for-the-impotent/) [Frantz Fanon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frantz-fanon/) > [I possess no weapon but love. With that I have come to do battle. Help me!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nikos-kazantzakis/i-possess-no-weapon-but-love-with-that-i-have-come-to-do-battle-help/) [Nikos Kazantzakis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nikos-kazantzakis/) > [Your mind is the most powerful weapon you have.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/your-mind-is-the-most-powerful-weapon-you-have/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“I thought if I loved you enough I could change you. I was so stupid.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-ramirez/i-thought-if-i-loved-you-enough-i-could-change-you-i-was-so-stupid/) [Steven Ramirez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-ramirez/) > [If I love you, is that a fact or a weapon?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-atwood/if-i-love-you-is-that-a-fact-or-a-weapon/) [Margaret Atwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-atwood/) > [“September put her hand on the grip of the Rivet Gun. She’d only just gotten it, and she’d promised to take copious notes for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/catherynne-m-valente/september-put-her-hand-on-the-grip-of-the-rivet-gun-she-d-only-just/) [Catherynne M. Valente](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/catherynne-m-valente/) > [Any weapon is a good weapon as long as ye can use it with honor and skill.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-jacques/any-weapon-is-a-good-weapon-as-long-as-ye-can-use-it-with-honor-and/) [Brian Jacques](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brian-jacques/) > [You would love the way he sees you. He uses you as a weapon against himself and not merely because you did](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elliot-perlman/you-would-love-the-way-he-sees-you-he-uses-you-as-a-weapon-against/) [Elliot Perlman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elliot-perlman/) > [The engine of the tank is a weapon just as the main-gun.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/heinz-guderian/the-engine-of-the-tank-is-a-weapon-just-as-the-main-gun/) [Heinz Guderian](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/heinz-guderian/) > [A wall is a very big weapon. It's one of the nastiest things you can hit someone with.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/banksy/a-wall-is-a-very-big-weapon-it-s-one-of-the-nastiest-things-you-can/) [Banksy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/banksy/) ## More by Gordon Parks > [You know, the camera is not meant just to show misery.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gordon-parks/you-know-the-camera-is-not-meant-just-to-show-misery/) [Gordon Parks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gordon-parks/) > [The camera could be a very powerful instrument against discrimination, against poverty, against racism.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gordon-parks/the-camera-could-be-a-very-powerful-instrument-against-discrimination/) [Gordon Parks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gordon-parks/) > [I bought my first camera in Seattle, Washington. Only paid about seven dollars and fifty cents for it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gordon-parks/i-bought-my-first-camera-in-seattle-washington-only-paid-about-seven/) [Gordon Parks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gordon-parks/) > [But I do feel a little teeny right now that I'm just about ready to start, and winter is entering. Half past autumn has…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gordon-parks/but-i-do-feel-a-little-teeny-right-now-that-i-m-just-about-ready-to/) [Gordon Parks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gordon-parks/) > [I was born to a black childhood of confusion and poverty. The memory of that beginning influences my work today, It is impossible now…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gordon-parks/i-was-born-to-a-black-childhood-of-confusion-and-poverty-the-memory/) [Gordon Parks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gordon-parks/) > [I had known poverty firsthand, but there I learned how to fight its evil - along with the evil of racism - with a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gordon-parks/i-had-known-poverty-firsthand-but-there-i-learned-how-to-fight-its/) [Gordon Parks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gordon-parks/) > [Many times I wondered whether my achievement was worth the loneliness I experienced, but now I realize the price was small.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gordon-parks/many-times-i-wondered-whether-my-achievement-was-worth-the-loneliness/) [Gordon Parks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gordon-parks/) > [I do find a certain fascination with the unpredictable. The transitory years we wade through are what they are- what we make of them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gordon-parks/i-do-find-a-certain-fascination-with-the-unpredictable-the-transitory/) [Gordon Parks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gordon-parks/) > [At first I wasn't sure that I had the talent, but I did know I had a fear of failure, and that fear compelled…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gordon-parks/at-first-i-wasn-t-sure-that-i-had-the-talent-but-i-did-know-i-had-a/) [Gordon Parks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gordon-parks/) > [The man at Kodak told me the shots were very good and if I kept it up, they would give me an exhibition. Later,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gordon-parks/the-man-at-kodak-told-me-the-shots-were-very-good-and-if-i-kept-it-up/) [Gordon Parks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gordon-parks/) > [Nothing came easy. I was just born with a need to explore every part of my mind. And with long searching and hard work,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gordon-parks/nothing-came-easy-i-was-just-born-with-a-need-to-explore-every-part/) [Gordon Parks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gordon-parks/) > [Washington, D.C. in 1942 was not the easiest place in the world for a Negro to get along.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gordon-parks/washington-d-c-in-1942-was-not-the-easiest-place-in-the-world-for-a/) [Gordon Parks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gordon-parks/) > [I suffered evils, but without allowing them to rob me of the freedom to expand.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gordon-parks/i-suffered-evils-but-without-allowing-them-to-rob-me-of-the-freedom/) [Gordon Parks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gordon-parks/) > [I have never known anyone important enough to consume me in anger beyond a few hours. Better to depart their existence before they poison…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gordon-parks/i-have-never-known-anyone-important-enough-to-consume-me-in-anger/) [Gordon Parks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gordon-parks/) > [Enthusiasm is the electricity of life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gordon-parks/enthusiasm-is-the-electricity-of-life/) [Gordon Parks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gordon-parks/) [Explore all 48 Gordon Parks quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gordon-parks/) ## More Evil quotes > [I've always been fascinated by the idea that there's no such thing as evil; it's all in your point of view. To one group…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eli-roth/i-ve-always-been-fascinated-by-the-idea-that-there-s-no-such-thing-as/) [Eli Roth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eli-roth/) > [If ever I did a man any goodof course it was something exceptional and insignificant compared with the good or evil which I am…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/if-ever-i-did-a-man-any-goodof-course-it-was-something-exceptional/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) > [Every action that helps us manifest our divine nature more and more is good; every action that retards it is evil.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/swami-vivekananda/every-action-that-helps-us-manifest-our-divine-nature-more-and-more/) [Swami Vivekananda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/swami-vivekananda/) > [I do conscientiously and sincerely believe that the Order of Freemasonry, if not the greatest, is one of the greatest moral and political evils…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-quincy-adams/i-do-conscientiously-and-sincerely-believe-that-the-order-of/) [John Quincy Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-quincy-adams/) > [The Republicans do not look on the Democrats as the evil empire.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-safire/the-republicans-do-not-look-on-the-democrats-as-the-evil-empire/) [William Safire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-safire/) > [Let us remember that every worldview-not just Christianity's-must give an explanation or an answer for evil and suffering...this is not just a problem distinctive…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ravi-zacharias/let-us-remember-that-every-worldview-not-just-christianity-s-must/) [Ravi Zacharias](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ravi-zacharias/) > [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/) > [ Evil cannot be "treated" -- nor should it be. Evil has to \[be\] confronted and destroyed and it matters not why the evil is… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-o-reilly/evil-cannot-be-treated-nor-should-it-be-evil-has-to-be-confronted-and/) [Bill O'Reilly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-o-reilly/) > [The evil which does me no harm is like the good which in no wise avails me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonardo-da-vinci/the-evil-which-does-me-no-harm-is-like-the-good-which-in-no-wise/) [Leonardo da Vinci](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonardo-da-vinci/) > [Attack the evil that is within yourself, rather than attacking the evil that is in others.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/confucius/attack-the-evil-that-is-within-yourself-rather-than-attacking-the/) [Confucius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/confucius/) > [Somewhere somebody must have some sense. Men must see that force begets force, hate begets hate, toughness begets toughness. And it is all a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-luther-king-jr/somewhere-somebody-must-have-some-sense-men-must-see-that-force/) [Martin Luther King, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-luther-king-jr/) > [There is a spirit which I feel that delights to do no evil, nor to revenge any wrong, but delights to endure all things,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-nayler/there-is-a-spirit-which-i-feel-that-delights-to-do-no-evil-nor-to/) James Nayler > [The politician attempts to remedy the evil by increasing the very thing that caused the evil in the first place: legal plunder.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederic-bastiat/the-politician-attempts-to-remedy-the-evil-by-increasing-the-very/) [Frederic Bastiat](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederic-bastiat/) > [“Water is so friendly when you have it on your palms, but so evil when they have you on theirs.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/m-f-moonzajer/water-is-so-friendly-when-you-have-it-on-your-palms-but-so-evil-when/) [M.F. Moonzajer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/m-f-moonzajer/) > [THE ART OF PEACE is not easy. It is a fight to the finish, the slaying of evil desires and all falsehood within. On…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/morihei-ueshiba/the-art-of-peace-is-not-easy-it-is-a-fight-to-the-finish-the-slaying/) [Morihei Ueshiba](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/morihei-ueshiba/) [Browse all 11,163 Evil quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/evil/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I have always felt as though I needed a weapon against evil.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Gordon Parks" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gordon-parks/i-have-always-felt-as-though-i-needed-a-weapon-against-evil/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Evil" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gordon-parks/i-have-always-felt-as-though-i-needed-a-weapon-against-evil/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d6a/gordon-parks-14120_evil_i-have-always-felt-as-though-i-needed-a_2785404.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d6a/gordon-parks-14120_evil_i-have-always-felt-as-though-i-needed-a_2785404.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d6a/gordon-parks-14120_evil_i-have-always-felt-as-though-i-needed-a_2785404.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“I have always felt as though I needed a weapon against evil.” — Gordon Parks", "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": "Gordon Parks", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gordon-parks/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "I have always felt as though...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gordon-parks/i-have-always-felt-as-though-i-needed-a-weapon-against-evil/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gordon-parks/i-have-always-felt-as-though-i-needed-a-weapon-against-evil/#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 } } ] } ```