--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: What is evil?\" asked the younger man. The…" description: "\"“What is evil?\" asked the younger man. The round web, with its black center, seemed to watch them both. \"A web we men weave.\" Ged answered.”\" — Ursula ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/291/ursula-k-le-guin-138_evil_what-is-evil-asked-the-younger-man-the-r_993015.jpg" --- # What is evil?" asked the younger man. The round web, with… ![“What is evil?" asked the younger man. The round web, with its black center, seemed to watch them both. "A web we men weave." Ged answered.” quote by Ursula K. Le Guin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/291/ursula-k-le-guin-138_evil_what-is-evil-asked-the-younger-man-the-r_993015.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/291/ursula-k-le-guin-138_evil_what-is-evil-asked-the-younger-man-the-r_993015.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/291/ursula-k-le-guin-138_evil_what-is-evil-asked-the-younger-man-the-r_993015.jpg) > ““What is evil?" asked the younger man. The round web, with its black center, seemed to watch them both. "A web we men weave." Ged answered.”” [Ursula K. Le Guin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ursula-k-le-guin/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Evil is portrayed as a self‑created trap, a web woven by human choices that ensnares both the asker and the answerer. **In simple terms:** Evil is a trap we make ourselves. Key Takeaway Recognize and avoid self‑inflicted harm. Themes morality choice consequence self‑destruction Mood thoughtful cautionary Type literary philosophical When to use this quote - personal decision‑making - conflict mediation - leadership - counseling Key Concepts ethical philosophy human agency mythic symbolism Questions to Reflect On - How do your choices create hidden traps? - Can you untangle a self‑made web of harm? A Different Perspective Denial of personal responsibility can perpetuate harm. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Asked Younger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/asked-younger-2045902/) [Evil](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/evil/) [Evil Asked](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/evil-asked-2045900/) [Men Weave](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/men-weave-2045901/) [Younger Man](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/younger-man-475989/) ## Related quotes > [So you think that money is the root of all evil. 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They…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kiersten-white/why-does-ipca-use-them-if-they-re-evil-he-asked-confused-they-aren-t/) [Kiersten White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kiersten-white/) > [“If people don't do their part to stop the spread of evil when they're asked to, it just gets stronger and then no one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-meissner/if-people-don-t-do-their-part-to-stop-the-spread-of-evil-when-they-re/) [Susan Meissner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-meissner/) > [And with his arm around the younger man's shoulders still, he led him away from the bow and back to the small group by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-flanagan/and-with-his-arm-around-the-younger-man-s-shoulders-still-he-led-him/) [John Flanagan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-flanagan/) > [If I were a younger man, I would write a history of human stupidity; and I would climb to the top of Mount McCabe…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kurt-vonnegut/if-i-were-a-younger-man-i-would-write-a-history-of-human-stupidity/) [Kurt Vonnegut](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kurt-vonnegut/) > [We who have seen him now, light on his feet, smooth moving as a leopard, a young man with an old man's science, the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ernest-hemingway/we-who-have-seen-him-now-light-on-his-feet-smooth-moving-as-a-leopard/) [Ernest Hemingway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ernest-hemingway/) > [I never felt that my life was not complete without a child. I don't know if that, as a younger man, I'd have had…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kyle-maclachlan/i-never-felt-that-my-life-was-not-complete-without-a-child-i-don-t/) [Kyle MacLachlan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kyle-maclachlan/) > [A woman going out with a younger man feels like the last taboo.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-taylor-johnson/a-woman-going-out-with-a-younger-man-feels-like-the-last-taboo/) [Sam Taylor-Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-taylor-johnson/) > [I tell you, if I'm going to go through a divorce, I would date again a younger man. 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Working takes over my whole body and I become a younger man - that's why I won't stop.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bruce-forsyth/on-stage-i-think-i-m-35-working-takes-over-my-whole-body-and-i-become/) [Bruce Forsyth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bruce-forsyth/) > [I'm certainly not the first person to be in a relationship with a younger man, but somehow I was plucked out as a bit…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/demi-moore/i-m-certainly-not-the-first-person-to-be-in-a-relationship-with-a/) [Demi Moore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/demi-moore/) ## More by Ursula K. Le Guin > [“...I wore his blood for clothing, on my legs and thighs and hands: a dry, stiff, brown garment with no warmth in it.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ursula-k-le-guin/i-wore-his-blood-for-clothing-on-my-legs-and-thighs-and-hands-a-dry/) [Ursula K. Le Guin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ursula-k-le-guin/) > [Translation is entirely mysterious. Increasingly I have felt that the art of writing is itself translating, or more like translating than it is like…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ursula-k-le-guin/translation-is-entirely-mysterious-increasingly-i-have-felt-that-the/) [Ursula K. Le Guin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ursula-k-le-guin/) > [“Aeneas' mother is a star?" "No; a goddess." I said cautiously, "Venus is the power that we invoke in spring, in the garden, when…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ursula-k-le-guin/aeneas-mother-is-a-star-no-a-goddess-i-said-cautiously-venus-is-the/) [Ursula K. Le Guin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ursula-k-le-guin/) > [“Meaning - this is perhaps the common note, the bane I am seeking. What is the Meaning of this book, this event in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ursula-k-le-guin/meaning-this-is-perhaps-the-common-note-the-bane-i-am-seeking-what-is/) [Ursula K. Le Guin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ursula-k-le-guin/) > [For fantasy is true, of course. It isn't factual, but it is true. Children know that. Adults know it too, and that is precisely…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ursula-k-le-guin/for-fantasy-is-true-of-course-it-isn-t-factual-but-it-is-true/) [Ursula K. Le Guin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ursula-k-le-guin/) > [“. . . chronosophy does involve ethics. Because our sense of time involves our ability to separate cause and effect, means and end. The…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ursula-k-le-guin/chronosophy-does-involve-ethics-because-our-sense-of-time-involves/) [Ursula K. Le Guin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ursula-k-le-guin/) > [“If both you and your plane are on time, the airport is merely a diffuse, short, miserable prelude to the intense, long, miserable plane…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ursula-k-le-guin/if-both-you-and-your-plane-are-on-time-the-airport-is-merely-a/) [Ursula K. Le Guin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ursula-k-le-guin/) > [“The author is not impartial. Dystopia is not tragedy.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ursula-k-le-guin/the-author-is-not-impartial-dystopia-is-not-tragedy/) [Ursula K. Le Guin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ursula-k-le-guin/) > [Between thought and spoken word is a gap where intention can enter, the symbol be twisted aside, and the lie come to be.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ursula-k-le-guin/between-thought-and-spoken-word-is-a-gap-where-intention-can-enter/) [Ursula K. Le Guin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ursula-k-le-guin/) > [I have no control over my writing. I have lots of good intentions, but no control. There's a story that wants to be told.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ursula-k-le-guin/i-have-no-control-over-my-writing-i-have-lots-of-good-intentions-but/) [Ursula K. Le Guin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ursula-k-le-guin/) > [“I did a lot today. That is, I did something. The only thing I have ever done. I pressed a button. It took the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ursula-k-le-guin/i-did-a-lot-today-that-is-i-did-something-the-only-thing-i-have-ever/) [Ursula K. Le Guin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ursula-k-le-guin/) > [To me the female principle is, or at least historically has been, basically anarchic. It values order without constraint, rule by custom not by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ursula-k-le-guin/to-me-the-female-principle-is-or-at-least-historically-has-been/) [Ursula K. Le Guin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ursula-k-le-guin/) > [“Hector had no virtue?” “Of course he did. He won all his battles, till the last one.” “We all do,” Aeneas remarked.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ursula-k-le-guin/hector-had-no-virtue-of-course-he-did-he-won-all-his-battles-till-the/) [Ursula K. Le Guin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ursula-k-le-guin/) > [“I was willing to believe him that most modern writing was trash, on the evidence that so much old writing was trash; but I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ursula-k-le-guin/i-was-willing-to-believe-him-that-most-modern-writing-was-trash-on/) [Ursula K. Le Guin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ursula-k-le-guin/) > [“Can women operate as women in a male institution without becoming imitation men?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ursula-k-le-guin/can-women-operate-as-women-in-a-male-institution-without-becoming/) [Ursula K. Le Guin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ursula-k-le-guin/) [Explore all 1,114 Ursula K. Le Guin quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ursula-k-le-guin/) ## 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. 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