--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The choice is not between violence and…" description: "\"The choice is not between violence and nonviolence but between nonviolence and nonexistence.\" — Martin Luther King, Jr" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8f8/martin-luther-king-jr-127_choices_the-choice-is-not-between-violence-and-n_2388076.png" --- # The choice is not between violence and nonviolence but… ![“The choice is not between violence and nonviolence but between nonviolence and nonexistence.” quote by Martin Luther King, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8f8/martin-luther-king-jr-127_choices_the-choice-is-not-between-violence-and-n_2388076.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8f8/martin-luther-king-jr-127_choices_the-choice-is-not-between-violence-and-n_2388076.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8f8/martin-luther-king-jr-127_choices_the-choice-is-not-between-violence-and-n_2388076.png) > “The choice is not between violence and nonviolence but between nonviolence and nonexistence.” [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. The real dilemma is choosing between nonviolent resistance and the loss of existence, not violence versus peace. **In simple terms:** Choose nonviolence or risk disappearing. Key Takeaway Embrace nonviolence to preserve life. Themes nonviolence existence ethical choice civil rights Mood determined reflective Type philosophical motivational When to use this quote - social movements - peaceful protest - personal activism - policy advocacy Key Concepts philosophy political theory Questions to Reflect On - Can nonviolence succeed against violent regimes? - What alternatives exist when nonviolence fails? A Different Perspective Nonviolence may be challenged by extreme oppression. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Choice Violence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/choice-violence-773675/) [Choices](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/choices/) [Civil rights](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/civil-rights/) [Greatness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/greatness/) [Nonviolence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nonviolence/) [Nonviolence Nonexistence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nonviolence-nonexistence-1025561/) [Nonviolence Nonviolence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nonviolence-nonviolence-5938453/) [Peacebuilding](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/peacebuilding/) [Powerful](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/powerful/) [Violence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/violence/) [Violence Nonviolence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/violence-nonviolence-774609/) [War](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/war/) ## Related quotes > [It is no longer a choice between violence and nonviolence in this world; it's nonviolence or nonexistence. That is where we are today.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-luther-king-jr/it-is-no-longer-a-choice-between-violence-and-nonviolence-in-this/) [Martin Luther King, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-luther-king-jr/) > [ Black Power If the motive is good, and there are no other possibilities, then seen most deeply it \[violence\] is nonviolence, because its aim… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dalai-lama/black-power-if-the-motive-is-good-and-there-are-no-other/) [Dalai Lama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dalai-lama/) > [I think that violence and nonviolence are not moral principles, they’re tactics.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jerry-vlasak/i-think-that-violence-and-nonviolence-are-not-moral-principles-they/) [Jerry Vlasak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jerry-vlasak/) > [Nonviolence is an imperative in order to bring about ultimate community.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-luther-king-jr/nonviolence-is-an-imperative-in-order-to-bring-about-ultimate/) [Martin Luther King, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-luther-king-jr/) > [I'm grateful to God that, through the Negro church, the dimension of nonviolence entered our struggle.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-luther-king-jr/i-m-grateful-to-god-that-through-the-negro-church-the-dimension-of/) [Martin Luther King, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-luther-king-jr/) > [The end of violence or the aftermath of violence is bitterness. The aftermath of nonviolence is reconciliation and the creation of a beloved community.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-luther-king-jr/the-end-of-violence-or-the-aftermath-of-violence-is-bitterness-the/) [Martin Luther King, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-luther-king-jr/) > [Nonviolence means avoiding not only external physical violence but also internal violence of spirit. You not only refuse to shoot a man, but you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-luther-king-jr/nonviolence-means-avoiding-not-only-external-physical-violence-but/) [Martin Luther King, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-luther-king-jr/) > [ \[Nonviolence\] is directed against forces of evil rather than against persons who happen to be doing the evil. It is evil that the nonviolent… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-luther-king-jr/nonviolence-is-directed-against-forces-of-evil-rather-than-against/) [Martin Luther King, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-luther-king-jr/) > [ \[nonviolence\] seeks to secure moral ends through moral means. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-luther-king-jr/nonviolence-seeks-to-secure-moral-ends-through-moral-means/) [Martin Luther King, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-luther-king-jr/) > [Nonviolence is the answer to the crucial political moral questions of our time.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-luther-king-jr/nonviolence-is-the-answer-to-the-crucial-political-moral-questions-of/) [Martin Luther King, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-luther-king-jr/) > [Here is the true meaning and value of compassion and nonviolence, when it helps us to see the enemy's point of view, to hear…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-luther-king-jr/here-is-the-true-meaning-and-value-of-compassion-and-nonviolence-when/) [Martin Luther King, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-luther-king-jr/) > [Nonviolence is the most potent technique for oppressed people. Unearned suffering is redemptive.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-luther-king-jr/nonviolence-is-the-most-potent-technique-for-oppressed-people/) [Martin Luther King, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-luther-king-jr/) > [If your opponent has a conscience, then follow Gandhi and nonviolence. But if your enemy has no conscience like Hitler, then follow Bonhoeffer.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-luther-king-jr/if-your-opponent-has-a-conscience-then-follow-gandhi-and-nonviolence/) [Martin Luther King, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-luther-king-jr/) > [Nonviolence is a powerful and just weapon. which cuts without wounding and ennobles the man who wields it. It is a sword that heals.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-luther-king-jr/nonviolence-is-a-powerful-and-just-weapon-which-cuts-without-wounding/) [Martin Luther King, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-luther-king-jr/) > [I have consistently preached that nonviolence demands that the means we use must be as pure as the ends we seek.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-luther-king-jr/i-have-consistently-preached-that-nonviolence-demands-that-the-means/) [Martin Luther King, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-luther-king-jr/) ## 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 Choices quotes > [Of all the people who have affected my life and influenced the choices I've made, none has been more important than my father. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/teddy-atlas/of-all-the-people-who-have-affected-my-life-and-influenced-the/) [Teddy Atlas](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/teddy-atlas/) > [“Don’t allow anyone to pressure you into taking a job in a field that doesn’t feel right in your gut. You are the one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alison-james/don-t-allow-anyone-to-pressure-you-into-taking-a-job-in-a-field-that/) [Alison James](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alison-james/) > [When you have a choice, choose happy!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pancho-barnes/when-you-have-a-choice-choose-happy/) [Pancho Barnes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pancho-barnes/) > [By making conscious choices in our behavior and where we focus our attention, we can transform our experience of our body, decrease our biological…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deepak-chopra/by-making-conscious-choices-in-our-behavior-and-where-we-focus-our/) [Deepak Chopra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/deepak-chopra/) > [Movies have power. Power to impact society and the choices we make. I want to entertain, but I also want to say something to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gina-prince-bythewood/movies-have-power-power-to-impact-society-and-the-choices-we-make-i/) [Gina Prince-Bythewood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gina-prince-bythewood/) > [If you have a different mindset, you will have a different outcome: if you make different choices from your peers, your life will then…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-ma/if-you-have-a-different-mindset-you-will-have-a-different-outcome-if/) [Jack Ma](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-ma/) > [Personally, I prefer contemporary films, but the market calls for more period choices, especially since China opened up a cinema market in Hong Kong.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donnie-yen/personally-i-prefer-contemporary-films-but-the-market-calls-for-more/) [Donnie Yen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donnie-yen/) > [Clarissa," he said, "here with the vampire, I see. When things have settled a bit, we really must discuss you choice in pets..](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cassandra-clare/clarissa-he-said-here-with-the-vampire-i-see-when-things-have-settled/) [Cassandra Clare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cassandra-clare/) > [Change is inevitable but personal growth is a choice.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-proctor/change-is-inevitable-but-personal-growth-is-a-choice/) [Bob Proctor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-proctor/) > [Time hath not yet so dried this blood of mine, Nor age so eat up my invention, Nor fortune made such havoc of my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shakespeare/time-hath-not-yet-so-dried-this-blood-of-mine-nor-age-so-eat-up-my/) [William Shakespeare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shakespeare/) > [If you choose to draw from the inner well of free will, then you can make choices that are outside your current karmic patterns.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-lenz/if-you-choose-to-draw-from-the-inner-well-of-free-will-then-you-can/) [Frederick Lenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-lenz/) > [Act always so as to increase the number of choices](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/heinz-von-foerster/act-always-so-as-to-increase-the-number-of-choices/) [Heinz von Foerster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/heinz-von-foerster/) > [Give me a platter of choice finnan haddie, freshly cooked in its bath of water and milk, add melted butter, a slice or two…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/craig-claiborne/give-me-a-platter-of-choice-finnan-haddie-freshly-cooked-in-its-bath/) [Craig Claiborne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/craig-claiborne/) > [I don't know that any woman could ever not think about that at some point - even making the choice not to do it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/naomi-watts/i-don-t-know-that-any-woman-could-ever-not-think-about-that-at-some/) [Naomi Watts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/naomi-watts/) > [In this choice of inheritance we have given to our frame of polity the image of a relation in blood; binding up the constitution…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edmund-burke/in-this-choice-of-inheritance-we-have-given-to-our-frame-of-polity/) [Edmund Burke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edmund-burke/) [Browse all 11,466 Choices quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/choices/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "The choice is not between violence and nonviolence but between nonviolence and nonexistence.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Martin Luther King, Jr" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-luther-king-jr/the-choice-is-not-between-violence-and-nonviolence-but-between/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Choices" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-luther-king-jr/the-choice-is-not-between-violence-and-nonviolence-but-between/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8f8/martin-luther-king-jr-127_choices_the-choice-is-not-between-violence-and-n_2388076.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8f8/martin-luther-king-jr-127_choices_the-choice-is-not-between-violence-and-n_2388076.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8f8/martin-luther-king-jr-127_choices_the-choice-is-not-between-violence-and-n_2388076.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“The choice is not between violence and nonviolence but between nonviolence and nonexistence.” — 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": "The choice is not between violence...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-luther-king-jr/the-choice-is-not-between-violence-and-nonviolence-but-between/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-luther-king-jr/the-choice-is-not-between-violence-and-nonviolence-but-between/#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 } } ] } ```