--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I had always believed that right was like…" description: "\"“I had always believed that right was like north to my father: a thing as real as sunlight, a place on the map, the arrow on a compass.”\" — Marcel Theroux" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/849/marcel-theroux-26386_parenting_i-had-always-believed-that-right-was-lik_1768151.jpg" --- # I had always believed that right was like north to my… ![“I had always believed that right was like north to my father: a thing as real as sunlight, a place on the map, the arrow on a compass.” quote by Marcel Theroux](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/849/marcel-theroux-26386_parenting_i-had-always-believed-that-right-was-lik_1768151.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/849/marcel-theroux-26386_parenting_i-had-always-believed-that-right-was-lik_1768151.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/849/marcel-theroux-26386_parenting_i-had-always-believed-that-right-was-lik_1768151.jpg) > ““I had always believed that right was like north to my father: a thing as real as sunlight, a place on the map, the arrow on a compass.”” [Marcel Theroux](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcel-theroux/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The narrator equates moral direction with a compass, suggesting that personal ethics are as fixed and guiding as cardinal points. **In simple terms:** Moral guidance is like a compass pointing north. Key Takeaway Use a clear moral compass to navigate decisions. Themes ethics direction family identity guidance Mood reflective thoughtful inspirational Type philosophical motivational When to use this quote - personal decision making - family discussions - ethical dilemmas - education - self‑reflection Key Concepts moral philosophy personal values symbolic geography Questions to Reflect On - How do you define your personal 'north'? - What happens when moral compasses conflict? A Different Perspective Moral certainty can be challenged by complex situations. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Arrow Compass](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/arrow-compass-1752852/) [Believed Right](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/believed-right-1288200/) [Compass](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/compass/) [Like North](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/like-north-349120/) [North Father](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/north-father-1752853/) [Parenting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/parenting/) ## Related quotes > [In a compass, we got north, south, east and west, right? 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'Lots of planets have a north!”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/russell-t-davies/if-you-are-an-alien-how-come-you-sound-like-you-re-from-the-north/) [Russell T Davies](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/russell-t-davies/) ## More by Marcel Theroux > [“We don't get much of a spring or fall to speak of. Up here, for ten months a year, the weather has teeth in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcel-theroux/we-don-t-get-much-of-a-spring-or-fall-to-speak-of-up-here-for-ten/) [Marcel Theroux](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcel-theroux/) > [“I had the feeling of something inside me that flipped like a fish in a net. It was hope. As much as I bad-mouth…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcel-theroux/i-had-the-feeling-of-something-inside-me-that-flipped-like-a-fish-in/) [Marcel Theroux](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcel-theroux/) > [“I loved my father, but I was not like him. I never needed to believe the best of people. 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What no one expects is to be at the end of everything.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcel-theroux/everyone-expects-to-be-at-the-end-of-something-what-no-one-expects-is/) [Marcel Theroux](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcel-theroux/) > [“It's a kind of heresy to say so, but I think our race has made forms more beautiful than what was here before us.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcel-theroux/it-s-a-kind-of-heresy-to-say-so-but-i-think-our-race-has-made-forms/) [Marcel Theroux](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcel-theroux/) > [“no one tells you this, how having children multiplies your capacity for suffering.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcel-theroux/no-one-tells-you-this-how-having-children-multiplies-your-capacity/) [Marcel Theroux](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcel-theroux/) [Explore all 21 Marcel Theroux quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcel-theroux/) ## More Compass quotes > [It signified nothing that the raw, male magnetism that emanated from him probably made compasses malfunction in his presence.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gaelen-foley/it-signified-nothing-that-the-raw-male-magnetism-that-emanated-from/) [Gaelen Foley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gaelen-foley/) > [Whether you are buying a car or casting a ballot, choosing a job or planning a family, follow your moral compass. 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But in between that, you got things like north-east - now that, to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bj-the-chicago-kid/in-a-compass-we-got-north-south-east-and-west-right-but-in-between/) [BJ the Chicago Kid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bj-the-chicago-kid/) > [The only two good words that can be said for a hurricane are that it gives sufficient warning of its approach, and that it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gertrude-atherton/the-only-two-good-words-that-can-be-said-for-a-hurricane-are-that-it/) [Gertrude Atherton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gertrude-atherton/) > [put the car in "d" set the compass to "n" and get the "f"out of there](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seth-grahame-smith/put-the-car-in-d-set-the-compass-to-n-and-get-the-f-out-of-there/) [Seth Grahame-Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seth-grahame-smith/) > [Anger is an emotion, not a compass.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-tancredo/anger-is-an-emotion-not-a-compass/) [Tom Tancredo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-tancredo/) > [“Why a compass?” Ty asked. He hadn’t taken his eyes off Zane’s yet. Zane smiled and ran his thumb across the pendant. “Because you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abigail-roux/why-a-compass-ty-asked-he-hadn-t-taken-his-eyes-off-zane-s-yet-zane/) [Abigail Roux](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abigail-roux/) > [I take no pleasure in seeing DeLay swing gently in the wind. But the thing I believe in the most is ethics. If someone…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-delay/i-take-no-pleasure-in-seeing-delay-swing-gently-in-the-wind-but-the/) [Tom DeLay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-delay/) > [There is an ancient Indian saying: "We do not inherit the earth from our ancestors; we borrow it from our children." 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Anthony](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-b-anthony/) [Browse all 569 Compass quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/compass/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“I had always believed that right was like north to my father: a thing as real as sunlight, a place on the map, the arrow on a compass.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Marcel Theroux" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcel-theroux/i-had-always-believed-that-right-was-like-north-to-my-father-a-thing/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Compass" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcel-theroux/i-had-always-believed-that-right-was-like-north-to-my-father-a-thing/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/849/marcel-theroux-26386_parenting_i-had-always-believed-that-right-was-lik_1768151.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/849/marcel-theroux-26386_parenting_i-had-always-believed-that-right-was-lik_1768151.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/849/marcel-theroux-26386_parenting_i-had-always-believed-that-right-was-lik_1768151.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“I had always believed that right was like north to my father: a thing as real as sunlight, a place on the…” — Marcel Theroux", "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": "Marcel Theroux", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcel-theroux/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“I had always believed that right...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcel-theroux/i-had-always-believed-that-right-was-like-north-to-my-father-a-thing/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcel-theroux/i-had-always-believed-that-right-was-like-north-to-my-father-a-thing/#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 } } ] } ```