--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: If you want to scare people, you talk…" description: "\"If you want to scare people, you talk about evil.\" — Noam Chomsky" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/35b/noam-chomsky-42_evil_if-you-want-to-scare-people-you-talk-abo_3209612.jpg" --- # If you want to scare people, you talk about evil. ![“If you want to scare people, you talk about evil.” quote by Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/35b/noam-chomsky-42_evil_if-you-want-to-scare-people-you-talk-abo_3209612.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/35b/noam-chomsky-42_evil_if-you-want-to-scare-people-you-talk-abo_3209612.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/35b/noam-chomsky-42_evil_if-you-want-to-scare-people-you-talk-abo_3209612.jpg) > “If you want to scare people, you talk about evil.” [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Fear is used as a tool by highlighting evil to manipulate audiences. **In simple terms:** Evil is invoked to scare people. Key Takeaway Recognize fear tactics in discourse. Themes propaganda psychology political rhetoric Mood critical analytical Type philosophical educational When to use this quote - political campaigns - advertising - public debates Key Concepts fear appeal social control media influence Questions to Reflect On - When is fear justified? - How can we discern genuine warnings? A Different Perspective Not all discussions of evil are manipulative; some warn of real threats. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Evil](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/evil/) [Ifs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ifs/) [Nihilism](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nihilism/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [People Talk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people-talk/) [Scare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/scare/) [Scare People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/scare-people-362206/) [Talk Evil](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/talk-evil-2486071/) [Want](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/want/) [Want Scare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/want-scare-1522478/) ## Related quotes > [I don't want to scare them. I don't want their heads spinning.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-calipari/i-don-t-want-to-scare-them-i-don-t-want-their-heads-spinning/) [John Calipari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-calipari/) > [I never want to scare anyone.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tyler-henry/i-never-want-to-scare-anyone/) [Tyler Henry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tyler-henry/) > [“I know you don't want to scare her, but you can't pretend that her life isn't going to be hard. It's not fair.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alexandra-bracken/i-know-you-don-t-want-to-scare-her-but-you-can-t-pretend-that-her/) [Alexandra Bracken](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alexandra-bracken/) > [Want to scare every guy you know this Halloween? Dress as a replacement ref.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/want-to-scare-every-guy-you-know-this-halloween-dress-as-a/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Psychology doesn't like to talk about evil. It likes to talk about bad childhoods. But I very much believe that some people are evil…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-schlessinger/psychology-doesn-t-like-to-talk-about-evil-it-likes-to-talk-about-bad/) [Laura Schlessinger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-schlessinger/) > [You cannot talk about evil without assuming a moral framework.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ravi-zacharias/you-cannot-talk-about-evil-without-assuming-a-moral-framework/) [Ravi Zacharias](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ravi-zacharias/) > [Well, for one, you have to remember not to scream. Once you have their attention, whispering is much more effective. Screaming ghosts scare people,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gabrielle-zevin/well-for-one-you-have-to-remember-not-to-scream-once-you-have-their/) [Gabrielle Zevin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gabrielle-zevin/) > [You know what scare people to much... it's SUCCESS!!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/junior-d-r-l-testament/you-know-what-scare-people-to-much-it-s-success/) [Junior Dè Rèál Testament](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/junior-d-r-l-testament/) > [“At this point, he looks enough like the Prince of Darkness to throw a scare into people who might have once made some rash…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/at-this-point-he-looks-enough-like-the-prince-of-darkness-to-throw-a/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I have a quality where I sort of scare people. But I am who I am.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicolas-ghesquiere/i-have-a-quality-where-i-sort-of-scare-people-but-i-am-who-i-am/) [Nicolas Ghesquiere](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicolas-ghesquiere/) > [Perhaps I scare people. I don't know why.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/max-von-sydow/perhaps-i-scare-people-i-don-t-know-why/) [Max von Sydow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/max-von-sydow/) > [If you're really special, meaning you're doing something unique and original, it could scare people.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicolas-cage/if-you-re-really-special-meaning-you-re-doing-something-unique-and/) [Nicolas Cage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicolas-cage/) > [Sometimes you do have to scare people a little bit: if someone is not acting in the best interest of the show, then maybe…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-levitan/sometimes-you-do-have-to-scare-people-a-little-bit-if-someone-is-not/) [Steven Levitan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-levitan/) > [We were not folk-rock. We would scare people.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-densmore/we-were-not-folk-rock-we-would-scare-people/) [John Densmore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-densmore/) > [Well, you know, they use those words so that they can scare people "terror" and "cell."](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rosie-o-donnell/well-you-know-they-use-those-words-so-that-they-can-scare-people/) [Rosie O'Donnell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rosie-o-donnell/) ## More by Noam Chomsky > [The costs of the Bush-Obama wars in Iraq and Afghanistan are now estimated to run as high as $4.4 trillion - a major victory…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/the-costs-of-the-bush-obama-wars-in-iraq-and-afghanistan-are-now/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [If you believe in democracy, why shouldn't you know what the government is doing?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/if-you-believe-in-democracy-why-shouldn-t-you-know-what-the/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [It’s a shameful moment for U.S. media when it insists on being subservient to the grotesque propaganda agencies of a violent, aggressive state.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/it-s-a-shameful-moment-for-u-s-media-when-it-insists-on-being/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [There are questions as to whether it should even exist. Who should corporations be responsive to, the management of a corporation? Theoretically they are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/there-are-questions-as-to-whether-it-should-even-exist-who-should/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [Governments regard their own citizens as their main enemy, and they have to be - protect themselves. That's why you have state secret laws.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/governments-regard-their-own-citizens-as-their-main-enemy-and-they/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [I don't join the New Atheists. So, for example, I wouldn't have the arrogance to lecture some mother who hopes to see her dying…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/i-don-t-join-the-new-atheists-so-for-example-i-wouldn-t-have-the/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [The first thing you ought to do is verify what I present. Just because I say it doesn't make it true. So check it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/the-first-thing-you-ought-to-do-is-verify-what-i-present-just-because/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [ I wrote an article about the marine landing \[in Haiti\] right away, but barely mentioned the oil, because my article would come out two… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/i-wrote-an-article-about-the-marine-landing-in-haiti-right-away-but/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [American society is now remarkably atomized. Political organizations have collapsed. In fact, it seems like even bowling leagues are collapsing. The left has a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/american-society-is-now-remarkably-atomized-political-organizations/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [Discovery is the ability to be puzzled by simple things. Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/discovery-is-the-ability-to-be-puzzled-by-simple-things-noam-chomsky/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [There's an interesting book about that called The Third Reich and the Ivory Tower, written by Stephen H. Norwood. It has a long discussion…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/there-s-an-interesting-book-about-that-called-the-third-reich-and-the/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [This is class war on an international scale, and power is in the hands of those who control the international economic system.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/this-is-class-war-on-an-international-scale-and-power-is-in-the-hands/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [There are big, extremely irrational parts of the society, and they have now been mobilized politically by the Republican establishment, hoping that these people…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/there-are-big-extremely-irrational-parts-of-the-society-and-they-have/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [There's plenty to criticize about the mass media, but they are the source of regular information about a wide range of topics. You can't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/there-s-plenty-to-criticize-about-the-mass-media-but-they-are-the/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [The 50,000 Korean mercenaries we had in Vietnam were professional killers and just massacred people outright. And the American army did plenty of that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/the-50-000-korean-mercenaries-we-had-in-vietnam-were-professional/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) [Explore all 2,129 Noam Chomsky quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) ## 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](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/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": "If you want to scare people, you talk about evil.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Noam Chomsky" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/if-you-want-to-scare-people-you-talk-about-evil/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Evil" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/if-you-want-to-scare-people-you-talk-about-evil/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/35b/noam-chomsky-42_evil_if-you-want-to-scare-people-you-talk-abo_3209612.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/35b/noam-chomsky-42_evil_if-you-want-to-scare-people-you-talk-abo_3209612.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/35b/noam-chomsky-42_evil_if-you-want-to-scare-people-you-talk-abo_3209612.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“If you want to scare people, you talk about evil.” — Noam Chomsky", "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": "Noam Chomsky", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "If you want to scare people,...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/if-you-want-to-scare-people-you-talk-about-evil/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/if-you-want-to-scare-people-you-talk-about-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 } } ] } ```