--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Civilization and violence are…" description: "\"Civilization and violence are antithetical concepts.\" — Martin Luther King, Jr" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e7c/martin-luther-king-jr-127_civilization_civilization-and-violence-are-antithetic_1739995.png" --- # Civilization and violence are antithetical concepts. ![“Civilization and violence are antithetical concepts.” quote by Martin Luther King, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e7c/martin-luther-king-jr-127_civilization_civilization-and-violence-are-antithetic_1739995.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e7c/martin-luther-king-jr-127_civilization_civilization-and-violence-are-antithetic_1739995.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e7c/martin-luther-king-jr-127_civilization_civilization-and-violence-are-antithetic_1739995.png) > “Civilization and violence are antithetical concepts.” [Martin Luther King, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-luther-king-jr/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Civilization and violence oppose each other; true progress requires peace. **In simple terms:** Civilization thrives without violence. Key Takeaway Promote peace. Themes civilization violence ethics Mood hopeful serious Type political philosophical When to use this quote - policy making - conflict resolution - education reform - community building - activism Key Concepts social contract non‑violence human rights Questions to Reflect On - How can societies reduce violence? - What role does education play? A Different Perspective Violence sometimes persists despite ideals. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Antithetical](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/antithetical-951240/) [Antithetical Concepts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/antithetical-concepts-1511644/) [Civilization](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/civilization/) [Civilization Violence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/civilization-violence-1511642/) [Concepts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/concepts/) [Inspirational](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/inspirational/) [Peace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/peace/) [Violence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/violence/) [Violence Antithetical](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/violence-antithetical-1511643/) ## Related quotes > [The concept that one ought to restrict one's political involvement to one's own state was deeply antithetical to those who were pursuing the accumulation…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/immanuel-wallerstein/the-concept-that-one-ought-to-restrict-one-s-political-involvement-to/) [Immanuel Wallerstein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/immanuel-wallerstein/) > [To speak plainly and truthfully about the state of our world - to say, for instance, that the Bible and the Koran both contain…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-harris/to-speak-plainly-and-truthfully-about-the-state-of-our-world-to-say/) [Sam Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-harris/) > [“There is no such thing as a "just" war. It's just war. And it's antithetical to the Gospel.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-d-flowers/there-is-no-such-thing-as-a-just-war-it-s-just-war-and-it-s/) [David D. Flowers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-d-flowers/) > [“. The whole idea of heaven and hell is a perfect illustration of just how the core of Christian doctrine is antithetical to reason,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/al-stefanelli/the-whole-idea-of-heaven-and-hell-is-a-perfect-illustration-of-just/) [Al Stefanelli](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/al-stefanelli/) > [“It will be seen how subjectivism and objectivism, spiritualism and materialism, activity and suffering, only lose their antithetical character, and thus their existence, as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-c-tucker/it-will-be-seen-how-subjectivism-and-objectivism-spiritualism-and/) [Robert C. Tucker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-c-tucker/) > [Organized religion, wielding power over the community, is antithetical to the process of what modern democracy should define as liberty. The sooner we are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lawrence-m-krauss/organized-religion-wielding-power-over-the-community-is-antithetical/) [Lawrence M. Krauss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lawrence-m-krauss/) > [“ 'Let your yes be yes and your no be no for anything other than that is evil' NT (passim). This quote is not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/r-alan-woods/let-your-yes-be-yes-and-your-no-be-no-for-anything-other-than-that-is/) [R. Alan Woods](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/r-alan-woods/) > [Creative people do not belong in the university because the process is antithetical to the analytical process so necessary for proper scholarship.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rita-mae-brown/creative-people-do-not-belong-in-the-university-because-the-process/) [Rita Mae Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rita-mae-brown/) > [We're antithetical. You use your mind one way; I use mine another. I recognize what you're doing, but I can't imagine it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-welliver/we-re-antithetical-you-use-your-mind-one-way-i-use-mine-another-i/) [Neil Welliver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-welliver/) > [A canon is antithetical to everything the New York art world has been about for the past 40 years, during which we went from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jerry-saltz/a-canon-is-antithetical-to-everything-the-new-york-art-world-has-been/) [Jerry Saltz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jerry-saltz/) > [“The problem with our “change the world” rhetoric is that it is too often a thinly veiled grasp for power and a quest for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-zahnd/the-problem-with-our-change-the-world-rhetoric-is-that-it-is-too/) [Brian Zahnd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brian-zahnd/) > [Socialism is antithetical to freedom, because when it breeds and thrives, people die.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lisa-kennedy-montgomery/socialism-is-antithetical-to-freedom-because-when-it-breeds-and/) [Lisa Kennedy Montgomery](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lisa-kennedy-montgomery/) > [My philosophy - inclusive and pluralist Islam, dedicated to service to human beings from every faith - is antithetical to armed rebellion.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fethullah-gulen/my-philosophy-inclusive-and-pluralist-islam-dedicated-to-service-to/) [Fethullah Gulen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fethullah-gulen/) > [Things that Hillary Clinton advocates are antithetical to Christian values: killing babies, redefining institutions established by God.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-carson/things-that-hillary-clinton-advocates-are-antithetical-to-christian/) [Benjamin Carson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-carson/) > [What an antithetical mind! - tenderness, roughness - delicacy, coarseness - sentiment, sensuality - soaring and groveling, dirt and deity - all mixed up…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lord-byron/what-an-antithetical-mind-tenderness-roughness-delicacy-coarseness/) [Lord Byron](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lord-byron/) ## More by Martin Luther King, Jr > [The strong man holds in a living blend strongly marked opposites.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-luther-king-jr/the-strong-man-holds-in-a-living-blend-strongly-marked-opposites/) [Martin Luther King, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-luther-king-jr/) > [Our nation was born in genocide when it embraced the doctrine that the original American, the Indian, was an inferior race. ... We are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-luther-king-jr/our-nation-was-born-in-genocide-when-it-embraced-the-doctrine-that/) [Martin Luther King, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-luther-king-jr/) > [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/) > [Every genuine expression of love grows out of a consistent and total surrender to God.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-luther-king-jr/every-genuine-expression-of-love-grows-out-of-a-consistent-and-total/) [Martin Luther King, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-luther-king-jr/) > [We must remember that intelligence is not enough. Intelligence plus character--that is the goal of true education. The complete education gives one not only…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-luther-king-jr/we-must-remember-that-intelligence-is-not-enough-intelligence-plus/) [Martin Luther King, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-luther-king-jr/) > [I’ve been to the Mountaintop](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-luther-king-jr/i-ve-been-to-the-mountaintop/) [Martin Luther King, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-luther-king-jr/) > [The supreme task is to organize and unite people so that their anger becomes a transforming force.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-luther-king-jr/the-supreme-task-is-to-organize-and-unite-people-so-that-their-anger/) [Martin Luther King, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-luther-king-jr/) > [The great issue of life is to harness the drum major instinct.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-luther-king-jr/the-great-issue-of-life-is-to-harness-the-drum-major-instinct/) [Martin Luther King, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-luther-king-jr/) > [Somebody must have sense enough and morality enough to cut off the chain of hate and the chain of evil in the universe. And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-luther-king-jr/somebody-must-have-sense-enough-and-morality-enough-to-cut-off-the/) [Martin Luther King, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-luther-king-jr/) > [Darkness is only driven out with light, not more darkness.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-luther-king-jr/darkness-is-only-driven-out-with-light-not-more-darkness/) [Martin Luther King, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-luther-king-jr/) > [What seems so necessary today may not even be desirable tomorrow.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-luther-king-jr/what-seems-so-necessary-today-may-not-even-be-desirable-tomorrow/) [Martin Luther King, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-luther-king-jr/) > [The Negro cannot win the respect of his oppressor by acquiescing; he merely increases the oppressor's arrogance and contempt.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-luther-king-jr/the-negro-cannot-win-the-respect-of-his-oppressor-by-acquiescing-he/) [Martin Luther King, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-luther-king-jr/) > [The majority of the Negroes who took part in the year-long boycott of Montgomery's buses were poor and untutored; but they understood the essence…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-luther-king-jr/the-majority-of-the-negroes-who-took-part-in-the-year-long-boycott-of/) [Martin Luther King, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-luther-king-jr/) > [Whenever you are engaged in work that serves humanity and is for the building of humanity, it has dignity and it has worth,](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-luther-king-jr/whenever-you-are-engaged-in-work-that-serves-humanity-and-is-for-the/) [Martin Luther King, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-luther-king-jr/) > [I have a dream that one day even the state of Mississippi, a desert state, sweltering with the heat of injustice and oppression, will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-luther-king-jr/i-have-a-dream-that-one-day-even-the-state-of-mississippi-a-desert/) [Martin Luther King, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-luther-king-jr/) [Explore all 1,210 Martin Luther King, Jr quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-luther-king-jr/) ## More Civilization quotes > [What sets worlds in motion is the interplay of differences, their attractions and repulsions. Life is plurality, death is uniformity. By suppressing differences and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/octavio-paz/what-sets-worlds-in-motion-is-the-interplay-of-differences-their/) [Octavio Paz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/octavio-paz/) > [Sentiment is the mightiest force in civilization; not sentimentality, but sentiment. Women will bring this into politics. Home, sweet home, is as powerful on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/judith-ellen-foster/sentiment-is-the-mightiest-force-in-civilization-not-sentimentality/) [Judith Ellen Foster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/judith-ellen-foster/) > [Violence is not necessary to destroy a civilization. Each civilization dies from indifference toward the unique values which created it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicolas-gomez-davila/violence-is-not-necessary-to-destroy-a-civilization-each-civilization/) [Nicolas Gomez Davila](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicolas-gomez-davila/) > [“The voice in the head that never stops speaking becomes a civilization that is obsessed with form and therefore knows nothing of the most…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eckhart-tolle/the-voice-in-the-head-that-never-stops-speaking-becomes-a/) [Eckhart Tolle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eckhart-tolle/) > [We released 400,000 classified documents, the most extraordinary history of a war to ever have been released in our civilization. Those documents cover 109,000…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julian-assange/we-released-400-000-classified-documents-the-most-extraordinary/) [Julian Assange](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julian-assange/) > [Wine is one of the most civilized things in the world and one of the most natural things of the world that has been…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernest-hemingway/wine-is-one-of-the-most-civilized-things-in-the-world-and-one-of-the/) [Ernest Hemingway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernest-hemingway/) > [Whenever we touch nature we get clean. People who have got dirty through too much civilization take a walk in the woods, or a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-jung/whenever-we-touch-nature-we-get-clean-people-who-have-got-dirty/) [Carl Jung](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-jung/) > [The invention of gunpowder and the constant improvement of firearms are enough in themselves to show that the advance of civilization has done nothing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carl-von-clausewitz/the-invention-of-gunpowder-and-the-constant-improvement-of-firearms/) [Carl von Clausewitz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/carl-von-clausewitz/) > [Another success is the post-office, with its educating energy augmented by cheapness and guarded by a certain religious sentimentin mankind; so that the power…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/another-success-is-the-post-office-with-its-educating-energy/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [“The mission is, not to replace old world mindlessness with new world mindlessness, but to put an end to all forms of brainless authoritarianism.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abhijit-naskar/the-mission-is-not-to-replace-old-world-mindlessness-with-new-world/) [Abhijit Naskar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abhijit-naskar/) > [We are somehow the children of the planet, we are somehow its finest hour; we bind time, we bind the past, we anticipate the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terence-mckenna/we-are-somehow-the-children-of-the-planet-we-are-somehow-its-finest/) [Terence McKenna](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terence-mckenna/) > [Our civilization, bequeathed to us by fierce adventurers, eaters of meat and hunters, is so full of hurry and combat, so busy about many…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-joyce/our-civilization-bequeathed-to-us-by-fierce-adventurers-eaters-of/) [James Joyce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-joyce/) > [Coal lay in ledges under the ground since the Flood, until a laborer with pick and windlass brings it to the surface. We may…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ralph-waldo-emerson/coal-lay-in-ledges-under-the-ground-since-the-flood-until-a-laborer/) [Ralph Waldo Emerson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ralph-waldo-emerson/) > [Once we allow ourselves to be disobedient to the test of an accountant's profit, we have begun to change our civilization.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-maynard-keynes/once-we-allow-ourselves-to-be-disobedient-to-the-test-of-an/) [John Maynard Keynes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-maynard-keynes/) > [Our laws and our institutions must necessarily be based upon and embody the teachings of the Redeemer of mankind. It is impossible that it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-josiah-brewer/our-laws-and-our-institutions-must-necessarily-be-based-upon-and/) [David Josiah Brewer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-josiah-brewer/) [Browse all 4,084 Civilization quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/civilization/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Civilization and violence are antithetical concepts.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Martin Luther King, Jr" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-luther-king-jr/civilization-and-violence-are-antithetical-concepts/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Civilization" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-luther-king-jr/civilization-and-violence-are-antithetical-concepts/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e7c/martin-luther-king-jr-127_civilization_civilization-and-violence-are-antithetic_1739995.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e7c/martin-luther-king-jr-127_civilization_civilization-and-violence-are-antithetic_1739995.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e7c/martin-luther-king-jr-127_civilization_civilization-and-violence-are-antithetic_1739995.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Civilization and violence are antithetical concepts.” — Martin Luther King, Jr", "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": "Martin Luther King, Jr", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-luther-king-jr/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Civilization and violence are antithetical concepts.", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-luther-king-jr/civilization-and-violence-are-antithetical-concepts/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-luther-king-jr/civilization-and-violence-are-antithetical-concepts/#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 } } ] } ```