--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The terrorist and the policeman both come…" description: "\"The terrorist and the policeman both come from the same basket. 'The Secret Agaent' (1907)\" — Joseph Conrad" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e33/joseph-conrad-336_terrorism_the-terrorist-and-the-policeman-both-com_1744045.jpg" --- # The terrorist and the policeman both come from the same… ![“The terrorist and the policeman both come from the same basket. 'The Secret Agaent' (1907)” quote by Joseph Conrad](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e33/joseph-conrad-336_terrorism_the-terrorist-and-the-policeman-both-com_1744045.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e33/joseph-conrad-336_terrorism_the-terrorist-and-the-policeman-both-com_1744045.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e33/joseph-conrad-336_terrorism_the-terrorist-and-the-policeman-both-com_1744045.jpg) > “The terrorist and the policeman both come from the same basket. 'The Secret Agaent' (1907)” [Joseph Conrad](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-conrad/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. It suggests that even opposing roles may share common origins, blurring moral binaries. **In simple terms:** Opposite roles can share the same roots. Key Takeaway Recognize shared humanity across conflict. Themes conflict identity morality humanity Mood thoughtful critical Type philosophical analytical When to use this quote - political activism - law enforcement - community dialogue - peacebuilding Key Concepts social class shared origins role reversal Questions to Reflect On - What common ground exists between opposing sides? - How does recognizing shared origins affect conflict resolution? A Different Perspective Oversimplifies complex socio-political dynamics. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Terrorism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/terrorism/) ## Related quotes > [The terrorist and the policeman both come from the same basket. Revolution, legality--counter-moves in the same game; forms of idleness at bottom identical.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-conrad/the-terrorist-and-the-policeman-both-come-from-the-same-basket/) [Joseph Conrad](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-conrad/) > [The terrorist and the policeman both come from the same basket.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-terrorist-and-the-policeman-both-come-from-the-same-basket-2/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“The terrosirt and the policeman both come form the same basket. Revolution, legality - countermoves in the same game; forms of idleness at bottom…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-conrad/the-terrosirt-and-the-policeman-both-come-form-the-same-basket/) [Joseph Conrad](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-conrad/) > [When you say that terrorism, particularly ISIS, radicals or terrorists being contained, that are the jayvee team, we don't have to worry about them…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kellyanne-conway/when-you-say-that-terrorism-particularly-isis-radicals-or-terrorists/) [Kellyanne Conway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kellyanne-conway/) > [How does the phrase radical Islamic terrorism link all the believers of a faith to terrorism? If I said radical Christian terrorism, does that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sebastian-gorka/how-does-the-phrase-radical-islamic-terrorism-link-all-the-believers/) [Sebastian Gorka](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sebastian-gorka/) > [During Congress rule terrorism was countered effectively and firmly, whereas during the BJP regime terrorists were treated like guests and released in their own…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sonia-gandhi/during-congress-rule-terrorism-was-countered-effectively-and-firmly/) [Sonia Gandhi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sonia-gandhi/) > [“Unfortunately, you are far more likely to be harmed or die prematurely as a direct result of modern society than you are from any…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-magee/unfortunately-you-are-far-more-likely-to-be-harmed-or-die-prematurely/) [Steven Magee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-magee/) > [The real targets of terrorism are the rest of us: the billions of us who are not killed but are terrorized because of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-schneier/the-real-targets-of-terrorism-are-the-rest-of-us-the-billions-of-us/) [Bruce Schneier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-schneier/) > [Terrorists have no religion, belief, or race. Having been a target of a number of terrorist attacks myself, I personally empathize with the victims…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sheikh-hasina/terrorists-have-no-religion-belief-or-race-having-been-a-target-of-a/) [Sheikh Hasina](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sheikh-hasina/) > [Democracies don't go to war against each other, and by and large they don't sponsor terrorism. They're more likely to respect the environment and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-j-clinton/democracies-don-t-go-to-war-against-each-other-and-by-and-large-they/) [William J. Clinton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-j-clinton/) > [In '94, I started writing a novel about an enormous terrorist act that destroyed the United States. The novel takes place twenty years after…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/junot-diaz/in-94-i-started-writing-a-novel-about-an-enormous-terrorist-act-that/) [Junot Diaz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/junot-diaz/) > [God's irony, that in order to fight and defeat the threat of terrorism, we shall have to be clear about the principle of justice…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-keyes/god-s-irony-that-in-order-to-fight-and-defeat-the-threat-of-terrorism/) [Alan Keyes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-keyes/) > [I am not a terrorist, but neither am I a pacifist. I am simply a regular guy from the Palestinian street advocating only what…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marwan-barghouti/i-am-not-a-terrorist-but-neither-am-i-a-pacifist-i-am-simply-a/) Marwan Barghouti > [I've never met anyone who wanted to be a terrorist. They are desperate people.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-perkins/i-ve-never-met-anyone-who-wanted-to-be-a-terrorist-they-are-desperate/) [John Perkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-perkins/) > [I have clearly said we faced terrorist enemies who use Islam to justify slaughtering innocent people and we have to stop them and we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hillary-clinton/i-have-clearly-said-we-faced-terrorist-enemies-who-use-islam-to/) [Hillary Clinton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hillary-clinton/) ## More by Joseph Conrad > [“Hunters for gold or pursuers of fame, they all had gone out on that stream, bearing the sword, and often the torch, messengers of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-conrad/hunters-for-gold-or-pursuers-of-fame-they-all-had-gone-out-on-that/) [Joseph Conrad](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-conrad/) > [The good author is he who contemplates without marked joy or excessive sorrow the adventures of his soul amongst criticisms.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-conrad/the-good-author-is-he-who-contemplates-without-marked-joy-or/) [Joseph Conrad](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-conrad/) > [“Let the earth and the sea each have its own.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-conrad/let-the-earth-and-the-sea-each-have-its-own/) [Joseph Conrad](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-conrad/) > [He hated all this, and somehow he couldn't get away.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-conrad/he-hated-all-this-and-somehow-he-couldn-t-get-away/) [Joseph Conrad](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-conrad/) > [“A fool, what with sheer fright and fine sentiments, is always safe.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-conrad/a-fool-what-with-sheer-fright-and-fine-sentiments-is-always-safe/) [Joseph Conrad](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-conrad/) > [“The mind of man is capable of anything-because everything is in it, all the past as well as all the future. What was there…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-conrad/the-mind-of-man-is-capable-of-anything-because-everything-is-in-it/) [Joseph Conrad](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-conrad/) > [Few men realize that their life, the very essence of their character, their capabilities and their audacities, are only the expression of their belief…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-conrad/few-men-realize-that-their-life-the-very-essence-of-their-character/) [Joseph Conrad](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-conrad/) > [“Perhaps on some quiet night the tremor of far-off drums, sinking, swelling, a tremor vast, faint; a sound weird, appealing, suggestive and wild -…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-conrad/perhaps-on-some-quiet-night-the-tremor-of-far-off-drums-sinking/) [Joseph Conrad](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-conrad/) > [“All that mysterious life of the wilderness that stirs in the forest, in the jungles, in the hearts of wild men.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-conrad/all-that-mysterious-life-of-the-wilderness-that-stirs-in-the-forest/) [Joseph Conrad](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-conrad/) > [“The fascination of the abomination—you know.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-conrad/the-fascination-of-the-abomination-you-know/) [Joseph Conrad](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-conrad/) > [It's only those who do nothing that make no mistakes, I suppose.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-conrad/it-s-only-those-who-do-nothing-that-make-no-mistakes-i-suppose/) [Joseph Conrad](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-conrad/) > [“Thieving was not a sheer absurdity. It was a form of human industry, perverse indeed, but still an industry exercised in an industrious world;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-conrad/thieving-was-not-a-sheer-absurdity-it-was-a-form-of-human-industry/) [Joseph Conrad](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-conrad/) > [I found myself back in the sepulchral city resenting the sight of people hurrying through the streets to filch a little money from each…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-conrad/i-found-myself-back-in-the-sepulchral-city-resenting-the-sight-of/) [Joseph Conrad](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-conrad/) > [Society was calling to its accomplished child to come, to be taken care of, to be instructed, to be judged, to be condemned; it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-conrad/society-was-calling-to-its-accomplished-child-to-come-to-be-taken/) [Joseph Conrad](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-conrad/) > [I was constantly watching myself, my secret self, as dependent on my actions as my own personality](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-conrad/i-was-constantly-watching-myself-my-secret-self-as-dependent-on-my/) [Joseph Conrad](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-conrad/) [Explore all 645 Joseph Conrad quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-conrad/) ## More Policeman quotes > [“If a policeman is serious about his profession but says he has time, he lies.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henning-mankell/if-a-policeman-is-serious-about-his-profession-but-says-he-has-time/) [Henning Mankell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henning-mankell/) > [The policeman on the beat or in the patrol car makes more decisions and exercises broader discretion affecting the daily lives of people every…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/warren-e-burger/the-policeman-on-the-beat-or-in-the-patrol-car-makes-more-decisions/) [Warren E. Burger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/warren-e-burger/) > [Follow your inclinations with due regard to the policeman round the corner.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-somerset-maugham/follow-your-inclinations-with-due-regard-to-the-policeman-round-the/) [W. Somerset Maugham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/w-somerset-maugham/) > [He was a long, stripy policeman, who flowed out of his uniform at odd spots, as if Nature, setting out to make a constable,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/p-g-wodehouse-2/he-was-a-long-stripy-policeman-who-flowed-out-of-his-uniform-at-odd/) [P. G. Wodehouse](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/p-g-wodehouse-2/) > [I became a policeman because I wanted to be in a business where the customer is always wrong.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/azgraybebly-josland/i-became-a-policeman-because-i-wanted-to-be-in-a-business-where-the/) Azgraybebly Josland > [A policeman must know everything - and not tell. He must know where all the sin is and not partake.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-harvey/a-policeman-must-know-everything-and-not-tell-he-must-know-where-all/) [Paul Harvey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-harvey/) > [We met in Cracker. I played a maniac fan who murders a policeman and she did my makeup. I thought anyone interested in me…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-carlyle/we-met-in-cracker-i-played-a-maniac-fan-who-murders-a-policeman-and/) [Robert Carlyle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-carlyle/) > [“Police not enforcing laws results in a high crime rate that is formally reported as a low crime rate in police statistics.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-magee/police-not-enforcing-laws-results-in-a-high-crime-rate-that-is/) [Steven Magee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-magee/) > [There is no human situation so miserable that it cannot be made worse by the presence of a policeman.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brendan-behan/there-is-no-human-situation-so-miserable-that-it-cannot-be-made-worse/) [Brendan Behan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brendan-behan/) > [“they met a policeman and brought him back. The man rang the bell several times, but there was no answer. Except for a light…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-wilde/they-met-a-policeman-and-brought-him-back-the-man-rang-the-bell/) [Oscar Wilde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oscar-wilde/) > [The policeman must be a minister, a social worker, a diplomat, a tough guy, and a gentleman. And, of course, he'd have to be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-harvey/the-policeman-must-be-a-minister-a-social-worker-a-diplomat-a-tough/) [Paul Harvey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-harvey/) > [“Sometimes a policeman must confront people about lying. No one likes to be called a liar. But it is what it is! A fact…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/sometimes-a-policeman-must-confront-people-about-lying-no-one-likes/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Listen, Dundy, it's been a long time since I burst into tears because a policeman didn't like me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dashiell-hammett/listen-dundy-it-s-been-a-long-time-since-i-burst-into-tears-because-a/) [Dashiell Hammett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dashiell-hammett/) > [There is nothing more unaesthetic than a policeman.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-conan-doyle/there-is-nothing-more-unaesthetic-than-a-policeman/) [Arthur Conan Doyle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-conan-doyle/) > [“If you are a policeman and if an order is given to you to attack brutally the peaceful protesters, only one option will keep…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mehmet-murat-ildan/if-you-are-a-policeman-and-if-an-order-is-given-to-you-to-attack/) [Mehmet Murat ildan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mehmet-murat-ildan/) Browse all 160 Policeman quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "The terrorist and the policeman both come from the same basket. 'The Secret Agaent' (1907)", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Joseph Conrad" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-conrad/the-terrorist-and-the-policeman-both-come-from-the-same-basket-the/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Policeman" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-conrad/the-terrorist-and-the-policeman-both-come-from-the-same-basket-the/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e33/joseph-conrad-336_terrorism_the-terrorist-and-the-policeman-both-com_1744045.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e33/joseph-conrad-336_terrorism_the-terrorist-and-the-policeman-both-com_1744045.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e33/joseph-conrad-336_terrorism_the-terrorist-and-the-policeman-both-com_1744045.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“The terrorist and the policeman both come from the same basket. 'The Secret Agaent' (1907)” — Joseph Conrad", "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": "Joseph Conrad", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-conrad/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "The terrorist and the policeman both...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-conrad/the-terrorist-and-the-policeman-both-come-from-the-same-basket-the/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-conrad/the-terrorist-and-the-policeman-both-come-from-the-same-basket-the/#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 } } ] } ```