--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Now, as Crowley would be the first to…" description: "\"“Now, as Crowley would be the first to protest, most demons weren’t deep down evil. In the great cosmic game they felt they occupied the same position ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ebd/terry-pratchett-19_demons_now-as-crowley-would-be-the-first-to-pro_2650172.jpg" --- # Now, as Crowley would be the first to protest, most demons… ![“Now, as Crowley would be the first to protest, most demons weren’t deep down evil. In the great cosmic game they felt they occupied the same position as tax inspectors—doing an unpopular job, maybe, but essential to the overall operation of the whole thing. If it came to that, some angels weren’t…” quote by Terry Pratchett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ebd/terry-pratchett-19_demons_now-as-crowley-would-be-the-first-to-pro_2650172.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ebd/terry-pratchett-19_demons_now-as-crowley-would-be-the-first-to-pro_2650172.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/ebd/terry-pratchett-19_demons_now-as-crowley-would-be-the-first-to-pro_2650172.jpg) > ““Now, as Crowley would be the first to protest, most demons weren’t deep down evil. In the great cosmic game they felt they occupied the same position as tax inspectors—doing an unpopular job, maybe, but essential to the overall operation of the whole thing. If it came to that, some angels weren’t paragons of virtue; Crowley had met one or two who, when it came to righteously smiting the ungodly, smote a good deal harder than was strictly necessary. On the whole, everyone had a job to do, and just did it. And on the other hand, you got people like Ligur and Hastur, who took such a dark delight in unpleasantness you might even have mistaken them for human.”” [Terry Pratchett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-pratchett/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The quote suggests that beings labeled as demons or angels are not inherently evil or good but fulfill necessary roles in a larger cosmic system, sometimes acting beyond expected moral bounds. **In simple terms:** Demons and angels are job‑takers, not pure evil or pure good. Key Takeaway Recognize that roles can be morally ambiguous. Themes morality cosmic order role ambiguity good vs evil fictional satire Mood thoughtful ironic critical Type literary satirical philosophical When to use this quote - Literary analysis - role‑playing games - ethical debates - world‑building - fantasy writing Key Concepts Theology ethical relativism character archetypes Questions to Reflect On - How do we judge actions when roles demand harshness? - Can duty justify excess? A Different Perspective Not all beings fit simple moral categories; context matters. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Crowley Protest](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/crowley-protest-2343457/) [Demons](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/demons/) [Demons Weren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/demons-weren-2343456/) [Evil Great](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/evil-great-422095/) [Protest Demons](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/protest-demons-2343455/) ## Related quotes > [“Be quiet, Tizzy. He is, of course, sort of right. You see we are all demons now, but we weren’t always. Everyone here once…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-l-langland/be-quiet-tizzy-he-is-of-course-sort-of-right-you-see-we-are-all/) [J.L. Langland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-l-langland/) > [It is the law of our humanity that man must know good through evil. No great principle ever triumphed but through much evil. No…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-william-robertson/it-is-the-law-of-our-humanity-that-man-must-know-good-through-evil-no/) [Frederick William Robertson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-william-robertson/) > [I hold with Henry George, that at the back of every great social evil will be found a great political wrong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfred-russel-wallace/i-hold-with-henry-george-that-at-the-back-of-every-great-social-evil/) [Alfred Russel Wallace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfred-russel-wallace/) > [Aren't there gradations of evil? Is evil a great perilous gulf into which one falls with the first sin, plummeting to the depth?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anne-rice/aren-t-there-gradations-of-evil-is-evil-a-great-perilous-gulf-into/) [Anne Rice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anne-rice/) > [... good and evil are so interwoven in life that every good, traced up far enough, is found to involve evil. This is the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amelia-barr/good-and-evil-are-so-interwoven-in-life-that-every-good-traced-up-far/) [Amelia Barr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amelia-barr/) > [“Good and evil are a great deal more complex than a princess and a dragon, or a wolf and a scarlet-clad little girl. And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erin-morgenstern/good-and-evil-are-a-great-deal-more-complex-than-a-princess-and-a-3/) [Erin Morgenstern](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erin-morgenstern/) > [“Good and evil are a great deal more complex than a princess and a dragon, or a wolf and a scarlet-clad little girl.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erin-morgenstern/good-and-evil-are-a-great-deal-more-complex-than-a-princess-and-a-2/) [Erin Morgenstern](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erin-morgenstern/) > [The forces that tend for evil are great and terrible, but the forces of truth and love and courage and honesty and generosity and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/theodore-roosevelt/the-forces-that-tend-for-evil-are-great-and-terrible-but-the-forces/) [Theodore Roosevelt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/theodore-roosevelt/) > [Little progress can be made by merely attempting to repress what is evil. Our great hope lies in developing what is good.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/calvin-coolidge/little-progress-can-be-made-by-merely-attempting-to-repress-what-is/) [Calvin Coolidge](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/calvin-coolidge/) > [God will not damn a lunatic's soul. He knows that the powers of evil are too great for those of us with weak minds.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/garrett-fort/god-will-not-damn-a-lunatic-s-soul-he-knows-that-the-powers-of-evil/) [Garrett Fort](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/garrett-fort/) > [That evil can never be great which is the last.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cornelius-nepos/that-evil-can-never-be-great-which-is-the-last/) [Cornelius Nepos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cornelius-nepos/) > [“I admire Tolkien greatly. His books had enormous influence on me. And the trope that he sort of established—the idea of the Dark Lord…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-r-r-martin/i-admire-tolkien-greatly-his-books-had-enormous-influence-on-me-and/) [George R.R. Martin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-r-r-martin/) > [No evil is great if it is the last.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cornelius-nepos/no-evil-is-great-if-it-is-the-last/) [Cornelius Nepos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cornelius-nepos/) > [“Demons can’t call things weird. I mean, what’s weird to a demon?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-pratchett/demons-can-t-call-things-weird-i-mean-what-s-weird-to-a-demon/) [Terry Pratchett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-pratchett/) > [Demons were like genies or philosophy professors - if you didn't word things exactly right, they delighted in giving you absolutely accurate and completely…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-pratchett/demons-were-like-genies-or-philosophy-professors-if-you-didn-t-word/) [Terry Pratchett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-pratchett/) ## More by Terry Pratchett > [“This one’s mental.’ ‘Eccentric.’ ‘What’s the difference?’ ‘A bag of cash.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-pratchett/this-one-s-mental-eccentric-what-s-the-difference-a-bag-of-cash/) [Terry Pratchett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-pratchett/) > [“But I did not return until half past four this morning and I distinctly remember stubbing my toe on the stairs. I am as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-pratchett/but-i-did-not-return-until-half-past-four-this-morning-and-i/) [Terry Pratchett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-pratchett/) > [“The universe contains any amount of horrible ways to be woken up, such as the noise of the mob breaking down the front door,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-pratchett/the-universe-contains-any-amount-of-horrible-ways-to-be-woken-up-such/) [Terry Pratchett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-pratchett/) > [“Someone broke from the scrum and, punching and kicking, staggered towards the Klatchian goal. "Isn't that man your butler?" said Ahmed. "Yes." "One of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-pratchett/someone-broke-from-the-scrum-and-punching-and-kicking-staggered/) [Terry Pratchett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-pratchett/) > [It's an interesting fact that fewer than 17 % of Real cats end their lives with the same name they started with. Much family…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-pratchett/it-s-an-interesting-fact-that-fewer-than-17-of-real-cats-end-their/) [Terry Pratchett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-pratchett/) > [You can't trust folk songs. They always sneak up on you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-pratchett/you-can-t-trust-folk-songs-they-always-sneak-up-on-you/) [Terry Pratchett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-pratchett/) > [Either dragons should exist completely or fail to exist at all, he felt. A dragon only half-existing was worse than the extremes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-pratchett/either-dragons-should-exist-completely-or-fail-to-exist-at-all-he/) [Terry Pratchett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-pratchett/) > [“Magrat wondered what it was like, spending your whole life doing something you didn’t want to do. Like being dead, she considered, only worse,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-pratchett/magrat-wondered-what-it-was-like-spending-your-whole-life-doing/) [Terry Pratchett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-pratchett/) > [A hardback's harder at Christmas time because that's a good hardback buying time.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-pratchett/a-hardback-s-harder-at-christmas-time-because-that-s-a-good-hardback/) [Terry Pratchett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-pratchett/) > [“There were more old people. The world was full of them,' said the wizard. 'Yes, I know. And now it's full of young people.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-pratchett/there-were-more-old-people-the-world-was-full-of-them-said-the-wizard/) [Terry Pratchett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-pratchett/) > [“Hobson was big and heavyset, but not exactly fat; he was probably what you’d get if you shaved a bear.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-pratchett/hobson-was-big-and-heavyset-but-not-exactly-fat-he-was-probably-what/) [Terry Pratchett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-pratchett/) > [“There is a night that never comes to an end… The clock of the world turns under its own shadow. Midnight is a moving…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-pratchett/there-is-a-night-that-never-comes-to-an-end-the-clock-of-the-world/) [Terry Pratchett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-pratchett/) > [“You'd like Freedom, Truth, and Justice, wouldn't you, Comrade Sergeant?' said Reg encouragingly. 'I'd like a hard-boiled egg,' said Vimes, shaking the match out.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-pratchett/you-d-like-freedom-truth-and-justice-wouldn-t-you-comrade-sergeant/) [Terry Pratchett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-pratchett/) > [“You are not apprehensive, are you? I can't detect no trace of fear none whatsoever Roomy cranium all possible videos of all possible outcomes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-pratchett/you-are-not-apprehensive-are-you-i-can-t-detect-no-trace-of-fear-none/) [Terry Pratchett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-pratchett/) > [Imagination, not intelligence, made us human.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terry-pratchett/imagination-not-intelligence-made-us-human/) [Terry Pratchett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-pratchett/) [Explore all 3,328 Terry Pratchett quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terry-pratchett/) ## More Demons quotes > [It is no secret that I have read 'The Da Vinci Code' several times. I genuinely believe that 'The Da Vinci Code' and 'Angels…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ashwin-sanghi/it-is-no-secret-that-i-have-read-the-da-vinci-code-several-times-i/) [Ashwin Sanghi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ashwin-sanghi/) > [I think I need the demons in order to write, but the demons have gone. It bothers me a lot. I've tried and tried,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brian-wilson/i-think-i-need-the-demons-in-order-to-write-but-the-demons-have-gone/) [Brian Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brian-wilson/) > [“Unfortunately for you love, I take my pleasure with a shot of pain”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/keri-lake/unfortunately-for-you-love-i-take-my-pleasure-with-a-shot-of-pain/) [Keri Lake](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/keri-lake/) > [“His hand came out and captured her by the chin. She froze, finding it hard to breathe as he gently raised her face to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lia-davis/his-hand-came-out-and-captured-her-by-the-chin-she-froze-finding-it/) [Lia Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lia-davis/) > [“One person's strange is another person's normal.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dani-harper/one-person-s-strange-is-another-person-s-normal/) [Dani Harper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dani-harper/) > [“Intellectualism is a poor master over passion”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/twe-stephens/intellectualism-is-a-poor-master-over-passion/) [Twe Stephens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/twe-stephens/) > [I did a lot of struggling with my identity trying to figure out who the heck I was. I had to face my demons.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-carter-cash/i-did-a-lot-of-struggling-with-my-identity-trying-to-figure-out-who/) [John Carter Cash](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-carter-cash/) > [“They are part of his imagination, part of his story, and so, part of him. If he would not hurt you, then it only…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kelly-creagh/they-are-part-of-his-imagination-part-of-his-story-and-so-part-of-him/) [Kelly Creagh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kelly-creagh/) > [“All right. You want to know about Nigel. I’ll tell you about Nigel. He’s come a long way since that so-called accident, Jon. Heck,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shawn-corey/all-right-you-want-to-know-about-nigel-i-ll-tell-you-about-nigel-he-s/) [Shawn Corey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shawn-corey/) > [“And then I met this girl.” He paused, his fingers finding mine in a tight squeeze. “And she made all my dark corners light”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gwen-hayes/and-then-i-met-this-girl-he-paused-his-fingers-finding-mine-in-a/) [Gwen Hayes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gwen-hayes/) > [“You want me to join your group of demon hunters," I can’t believe I just said that out loud, "because of a can of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-blais/you-want-me-to-join-your-group-of-demon-hunters-i-can-t-believe-i/) [Bill Blais](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-blais/) > [“In real life, love and hate are often only separable if we’re willing to recognize our demons and choose to become better people.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-l-monk/in-real-life-love-and-hate-are-often-only-separable-if-we-re-willing/) [John L. Monk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-l-monk/) > [I've been killing demons for a third of my life i've sent over 500 of them back to whatever hellish dimension they crawled out of](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nikolas-sixx/i-ve-been-killing-demons-for-a-third-of-my-life-i-ve-sent-over-500-of/) [NIKOLAS SIXX](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nikolas-sixx/) > [“Do you remember the section on controlling demons in Demonologies ? I believe it's in chapter five." "Um...no." Irritation flashed over his face. "Honestly,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachel-hawkins/do-you-remember-the-section-on-controlling-demons-in-demonologies-i/) [Rachel Hawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachel-hawkins/) > [“We all have our demons, I just happen to exorcise mine by writing them out.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sai-marie-johnson/we-all-have-our-demons-i-just-happen-to-exorcise-mine-by-writing-them/) [Sai Marie Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sai-marie-johnson/) [Browse all 868 Demons quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/demons/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“Now, as Crowley would be the first to protest, most demons weren’t deep down evil. In the great cosmic game they felt they occupied the same position as tax inspectors—doing an unpopular job, maybe, but essential to the overall operation of the whole thing. If it came to that, some angels weren’t paragons of virtue; Crowley had met one or two who, when it came to righteously smiting the ungodly, smote a good deal harder than was strictly necessary. On the whole, everyone had a job to do, and just did it. 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