The shadows of human nature have always fascinated us. There’s something chilling yet captivating about the words used to describe evil. They hold a power that can both repel and mesmerize, making us question the depths of our own souls.
In this article, we have gathered some of the most striking evil quotes. These words, whether from literature, film, or history, reveal dark truths and reflect the complex facets of human nature. Get ready to explore a world where darkness speaks volumes.
Origins of Evil Quotes
“The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing.” — Edmund Burke
“We stopped checking for monsters under our bed when we realized they were inside us.” — Anonymous
“The darkest places in hell are reserved for those who maintain their neutrality in times of moral crisis.” — Dante Alighieri
“Evil begins when you begin to treat people as things.” — Terry Pratchett
“There is no good and evil, there is only power and those too weak to seek it.” — J.K. Rowling, Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone
“To see evil and do nothing is the greatest treason.” — Anonymous
“The road to hell is paved with good intentions.” — Saint Bernard of Clairvaux
“Fear is the path to the dark side. Fear leads to anger. Anger leads to hate. Hate leads to suffering.” — Yoda, Star Wars
“The world will not be destroyed by those who do evil, but by those who watch them without doing anything.” — Albert Einstein
“Evil is always devising more corrosive misery through man’s restless need to exact revenge out of his hate.” — Ralph Steadman
“The question isn’t who is going to let me; it’s who is going to stop me.” — Ayn Rand
“All that we see or seem is but a dream within a dream.” — Edgar Allan Poe
“Men never do evil so completely and cheerfully as when they do it from religious conviction.” — Blaise Pascal
“The devil’s finest trick is to persuade you that he does not exist.” — Charles Baudelaire
“Beware that, when fighting monsters, you yourself do not become a monster.” — Friedrich Nietzsche
“In the absence of light, darkness prevails.” — Anonymous
“We must learn to live together as brothers or perish together as fools.” — Martin Luther King Jr.
“He who fights with monsters might take care lest he thereby become a monster.” — Friedrich Nietzsche
“Evil is a point of view. God kills indiscriminately, and so shall we.” — Anne Rice, Interview with the Vampire
“If you’re going through hell, keep going.” — Winston Churchill
“There’s no such thing as evil; it’s just a matter of perspective.” — Anonymous
“When choosing between two evils, I always like to try the one I’ve never tried before.” — Mae West
“The line between good and evil is permeable and almost anyone can be induced to cross it when pressured by situational forces.” — Philip Zimbardo
“True evil needs no reason.” — Anonymous
“The heart of the wicked is beyond understanding.” — Proverbs 26:23
“The evil that men do lives after them; The good is oft interred with their bones.” — William Shakespeare, Julius Caesar
“I have seen the dark universe yawning, Where the black planets roll without aim.” — H.P. Lovecraft
“Evil is unspectacular and always human, And shares our bed and eats at our own table.” — W.H. Auden
“The sad truth is that most evil is done by people who never make up their minds to be good or evil.” — Hannah Arendt
“The more we deny that we have a dark side, the more power it has over us.” — Sheryl Lee
“Monsters are real, and ghosts are real too. They live inside us, and sometimes, they win.” — Stephen King
“we will remember not the words of our enemies, but the silence of our friends.” — Martin Luther King Jr.
Evil Quotes from Literature
“The only way to get rid of a temptation is to yield to it.” – Oscar Wilde, The Picture of Dorian Gray
“It is a man’s own mind, not his enemy or foe, that lures him to evil ways.” – Buddha
“The darkest places in hell are reserved for those who maintain their neutrality in times of moral crisis.” – Dante Alighieri, Inferno
“To be wicked is never excusable, but there is some merit in knowing that you are.” – Françoise Sagan
“Better reign in Hell, than serve in Heaven.” – John Milton, Paradise Lost
“We stopped checking for monsters under our bed when we realized they were inside us.” – Charles Darwin
“Beware, for I am fearless and therefore powerful.” – Mary Shelley, Frankenstein
“There are crimes of passion and crimes of logic. The boundary between them is not clearly defined.” – Albert Camus, The Stranger
“The road to hell is paved with good intentions.” – Saint Bernard of Clairvaux
“To do evil a human being must first of all believe that what he’s doing is good.” – Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn
“Hell is empty and all the devils are here.” – William Shakespeare, The Tempest
“Nothing is easier than to denounce the evildoer; nothing is more difficult than to understand him.” – Fyodor Dostoevsky
“Monsters are real, and ghosts are real too. They live inside us, and sometimes, they win.” – Stephen King
“Evil begins when you begin to treat people as things.” – Terry Pratchett, I Shall Wear Midnight
“There is no denying that there is evil in this world but the light will always conquer the darkness.” – Idowu Koyenikan
“Every man has his secret sorrows which the world knows not; and often times we call a man cold when he is only sad.” – Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
“He who fights with monsters should be careful lest he thereby become a monster.” – Friedrich Nietzsche
“The line separating good and evil passes not through states, nor between classes, nor between political parties either—but right through every human heart.” – Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn
“Evil is always unspectacular and always human. And shares our bed and eats at our own table.” – W.H. Auden
“I am in blood stepped in so far that, should I wade no more, returning were as tedious as go o’er.” – William Shakespeare, Macbeth
“The world is not divided into good people and Death Eaters. We’ve all got both light and dark inside us. What matters is the part we choose to act on.” – J.K. Rowling, Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix
“Evil when we are in its power is not felt as evil but as a necessity, or even a duty.” – Simone Weil
“True evil needs no reason.” – Gena Showalter
“What we call evil is simply ignorance bumping its head in the dark.” – Henry Ford
“Fear leads to anger, anger leads to hate, hate leads to suffering.” – Yoda, Star Wars: The Phantom Menace
“The greatest evil is physical pain.” – Saint Augustine
“Evil is like water, it abounds, is cheap, soon fouls, but runs itself clear of taint.” – Samuel Butler
“The face of evil is always the face of total need.” – William S. Burroughs
“Be careful not to choke on your aspirations.” – Darth Vader, Star Wars: Rogue One
“Evil has to exist alongside goodness, for how else could we differentiate between them?” – Edmund Burke
“Evil is always possible. And goodness is eternally difficult.” – Anne Rice, Interview with the Vampire
“No one is born evil, it’s the world that corrupts us.” – Author Unknown
“To see and listen to the wicked is already the beginning of wickedness.” – Confucius
Historical Evil Quotes
“The road to hell is paved with good intentions.” – Proverb
“Beware that, when fighting monsters, you yourself do not become a monster.” – Friedrich Nietzsche
“The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing.” – Edmund Burke
“So we shall let the reader answer this question for himself: who is the happier man, he who has braved the storm of life and lived or he who has stayed securely on shore and merely existed?” – Hunter S. Thompson
“Power tends to corrupt, and absolute power corrupts absolutely.” – Lord Acton
“The evil that men do lives after them; the good is oft interred with their bones.” – William Shakespeare, Julius Caesar
“All that is necessary for the forces of evil to win in the world is for enough good men to do nothing.” – Edmund Burke
“The world is a dangerous place to live; not because of the people who are evil, but because of the people who don’t do anything about it.” – Albert Einstein
“Hell is empty and all the devils are here.” – William Shakespeare, The Tempest
“Evil begins when you begin to treat people as things.” – Terry Pratchett
“To see and listen to the wicked is already the beginning of wickedness.” – Confucius
“Look like the innocent flower, but be the serpent under it.” – William Shakespeare, Macbeth
“All things truly wicked start from an innocence.” – Ernest Hemingway
“False face must hide what the false heart doth know.” – William Shakespeare, Macbeth
“The soul that has conceived one wickedness can nurse no good thereafter.” – Sophocles
“There is no evil in sorcery, only in the hearts of men.” – Merlin, The Sword in the Stone (Disney’s adaptation)
“I am for the most part so convinced that everything is but one and the same thing, that it matters little to me whether I live or die, day to day, or century to century.” – Emily Brontë
“The less we deserve good fortune, the more we hope for it.” – Lucius Annaeus Seneca
“The devil’s finest trick is to persuade you that he does not exist.” – Charles Baudelaire
“When you look long into an abyss, the abyss looks into you.” – Friedrich Nietzsche
“Those who fight monsters should see to it that they themselves do not become monsters.” – Friedrich Nietzsche
“But I have promises to keep, and miles to go before I sleep.” – Robert Frost
“Men never do evil so completely and cheerfully as when they do it from religious conviction.” – Blaise Pascal
“The heart of a fool is in his mouth, but the mouth of a wise man is in his heart.” – Benjamin Franklin
“To forgive is to set a prisoner free and discover that the prisoner was you.” – Lewis B. Smedes
“Good men and bad men are less than they seem.” – Samuel Taylor Coleridge
“For the love of money is the root of all evil.” – 1 Timothy 6:10 (The Bible)
“It is better to be feared than loved, if you cannot be both.” – Niccolò Machiavelli
“Conscience is but a word that cowards use, devised at first to keep the strong in awe.” – William Shakespeare, Richard III
“Evil is easy, and has infinite forms.” – Blaise Pascal
“The best lack all conviction, while the worst are full of passionate intensity.” – W.B. Yeats
Evil Quotes in Pop Culture
“The greatest trick the Devil ever pulled was convincing the world he didn’t exist.” — Verbal Kint, The Usual Suspects
“Some men just want to watch the world burn.” — Alfred Pennyworth, The Dark Knight
“I became Insane, with long intervals of horrible sanity.” — Edgar Allan Poe
“There is no good and evil, there is only power and those too weak to seek it.” — J.K. Rowling, Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone
“The evil that men do lives after them; The good is oft interred with their bones.” — William Shakespeare, Julius Caesar
“We stopped checking for monsters under our bed when we realized they were inside us.” — Anonymous
“All things truly wicked start from innocence.” — Ernest Hemingway, A Moveable Feast
“Fear profits a man nothing.” — The 13th Warrior
“Evil is a point of view.” — Anne Rice, Interview with the Vampire
“It’s not who I am underneath, but what I do that defines me.” — Batman Begins
“Better to reign in Hell, than serve in Heaven.” — John Milton, Paradise Lost
“To do evil a human being must first of all believe that what he’s doing is good.” — Alexander Solzhenitsyn
“In wine, there is truth. In government, there is lies.” — Matt Taylor
“The devil’s finest trick is to persuade you that he does not exist.” — Charles Baudelaire
“Hell is empty and all the devils are here.” — William Shakespeare, The Tempest
“Every saint has a past, and every sinner has a future.” — Oscar Wilde
“People never notice anything.” — J.D. Salinger, The Catcher in the Rye
“Monsters are real, and ghosts are real too. They live inside us, and sometimes, they win.” — Stephen King
“He who fights with monsters should be careful lest he thereby become a monster.” — Friedrich Nietzsche
“Heaven has no rage like love to hatred turned, nor Hell a fury like a woman scorned.” — William Congreve, The Mourning Bride
“Not all treasure is silver and gold, mate.” — Captain Jack Sparrow, Pirates of the Caribbean
“We are each our own devil, and we make this world our hell.” — Oscar Wilde
“Evil can have no conversation with good.” — Thomas Browne
“Evil isn’t born, it’s made.” — Regina Mills, Once Upon A Time
“Nothing in the world is more dangerous than sincere ignorance and conscientious stupidity.” — Martin Luther King Jr.
“Men occasionally stumble over the truth, but most of them pick themselves up and hurry off as if nothing had happened.” — Winston Churchill
“The road to hell is paved with good intentions.” — Unknown
“When there is no enemy within, the enemies outside cannot hurt you.” — African Proverb
“Evil begins when you begin to treat people as things.” — Terry Pratchett, I Shall Wear Midnight
“He who does not punish evil, commands it to be done.” — Leonardo da Vinci
“No man chooses evil because it is evil; he only mistakes it for happiness.” — Mary Wollstonecraft
“Even the devil was once an angel.” — Unknown
Famous Villains and Their Quotes
“I’ll be back.” – The Terminator, The Terminator
“Why so serious?” – The Joker, The Dark Knight
“We all go a little mad sometimes.” – Norman Bates, Psycho
“I’m your father.” – Darth Vader, Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back
“Some men just want to watch the world burn.” – Alfred Pennyworth, The Dark Knight
“Elementary, my dear Watson.” – Professor Moriarty, Sherlock Holmes
“Welcome to my world, won’t you come on in?” – Freddy Krueger, A Nightmare on Elm Street
“Even the devil was once an angel.” – Unknown
“The greatest trick the Devil ever pulled was convincing the world he didn’t exist.” – Verbal Kint, The Usual Suspects
“I have such sights to show you.” – Pinhead, Hellraiser
“We accept the love we think we deserve.” – Lord Voldemort, Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix
“Power is the ultimate aphrodisiac.” – Frank Underwood, House of Cards
“You either die a hero, or you live long enough to see yourself become the villain.” – Harvey Dent, The Dark Knight
“The end justifies the means.” – Machiavelli, The Prince
“He who fights with monsters should be careful lest he thereby becomes a monster.” – Friedrich Nietzsche
“What is better – to be born good, or to overcome your evil nature through great effort?” – Paarthurnax, The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim
“It’s not about money. It’s about sending a message.” – The Joker, The Dark Knight
“I will be the one to inherit the world.” – Light Yagami, Death Note
“Do you want to play a game?” – Jigsaw, Saw
“There is no good and evil, there is only power and those too weak to seek it.” – Lord Voldemort, Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone
“Will you join me in a dance of death?” – Count Dracula, Dracula
“Hate has a reason for everything, but love is unreasonable.” – Friedrich Nietzsche
“The heart has reasons that reason cannot know.” – Blaise Pascal
“You have nothing, nothing to threaten me with. Nothing to do with all your strength.” – The Joker, The Dark Knight
“Every fairytale needs a good old-fashioned villain.” – Moriarty, Sherlock
“A lie told often enough becomes the truth.” – Vladimir Lenin
“He who controls the past controls the future. He who controls the present controls the past.” – George Orwell, 1984
“Evil is a point of view.” – Anne Rice, Interview with the Vampire
“The world is cruel, and the only morality in a cruel world is chance.” – Harvey Dent, The Dark Knight
“Sometimes humanity is the greatest villain.” – Unknown
“Fear leads to anger. Anger leads to hate. Hate leads to suffering.” – Yoda, Star Wars
Evil Wisdom: Philosophical Quotes
“The only way to deal with an unfree world is to become so absolutely free that your very existence is an act of rebellion.” – Albert Camus
“The greatest trick the devil ever pulled was convincing the world he didn’t exist.” – Charles Baudelaire
“We stopped checking for monsters under our bed when we realized they were inside us.” – Charles Darwin
“To do evil a human being must first of all believe that what he’s doing is good.” – Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn
“For when we are no longer able to change a situation, we are challenged to change ourselves.” – Viktor E. Frankl
“No man chooses evil because it is evil; he only mistakes it for happiness, the good he seeks.” – Mary Wollstonecraft
“The evil that men do lives after them; the good is oft interred with their bones.” – William Shakespeare
“He who fights with monsters should be careful lest he thereby become a monster. And if you gaze long enough into an abyss, the abyss will gaze back into you.” – Friedrich Nietzsche
“The road to hell is paved with good intentions.” – Saint Bernard of Clairvaux
“If only it were all so simple! If only there were evil people somewhere insidiously committing evil deeds, and it were necessary only to separate them from the rest of us and destroy them.” – Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn
“Perhaps it’s impossible to wear an identity without becoming what you pretend to be.” – Orson Scott Card
“The world will not be destroyed by those who do evil, but by those who watch them without doing anything.” – Albert Einstein
“A man who procrastinates in his choosing will inevitably have his choice made for him by circumstance.” – Hunter S. Thompson
“There are evils—indeed, great and serious evils—which no man can foresee or guard against.” – Edmund Burke
“The line separating good and evil passes not through states, nor between classes, nor between political parties either — but right through every human heart.” – Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn
“All that is necessary for evil to triumph is for good men to do nothing.” – Edmund Burke
“Evil begins when you begin to treat people as things.” – Terry Pratchett
“The sad truth is that most evil is done by people who never make up their minds to be good or evil.” – Hannah Arendt
“Monsters are real, and ghosts are real too. They live inside us, and sometimes, they win.” – Stephen King
“Nothing is easier than to denounce the evildoer; nothing is more difficult than to understand him.” – Fyodor Dostoyevsky
“Fear is the path to the dark side. Fear leads to anger. Anger leads to hate. Hate leads to suffering.” – Yoda, Star Wars
“When the whole world is running towards a cliff, he who is running in the opposite direction appears to have lost his mind.” – C.S. Lewis
“We are each our own devil, and we make this world our hell.” – Oscar Wilde
“The darkest places in hell are reserved for those who maintain their neutrality in times of moral crisis.” – Dante Alighieri
“Evil, when we are in its power, is not felt as evil, but as a necessity, or even a duty.” – Simone Weil
“The devil has the power to assume a pleasing shape.” – William Shakespeare
“An evil man will burn his own nation to the ground to rule over the ashes.” – Sun Tzu
“Beware that, when fighting monsters, you yourself do not become a monster.” – Friedrich Nietzsche
“The function of wisdom is to discriminate between good and evil.” – Marcus Tullius Cicero
“Evil is always unspectacular and always human. And shares our bed and eats at our own table.” – W.H. Auden
“It is a man’s own mind, not his enemy or foe, that lures him to evil ways.” – Buddha
Chilling Evil Quotes from Movies
“I am your father.” – Darth Vader, Star Wars: Episode V – The Empire Strikes Back
“Whatever you do, don’t fall asleep.” – Freddy Krueger, A Nightmare on Elm Street
“We all go a little mad sometimes.” – Norman Bates, Psycho
“All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy.” – Jack Torrance, The Shining
“I see dead people.” – Cole Sear, The Sixth Sense
“Do you want to play a game?” – Jigsaw, Saw
“A boy’s best friend is his mother.” – Norman Bates, Psycho
“Be afraid… Be very afraid.” – Veronica Quaife, The Fly
“It rubs the lotion on its skin or else it gets the hose again.” – Buffalo Bill, The Silence of the Lambs
“I have such sights to show you.” – Pinhead, Hellraiser
“You’re gonna need a bigger boat.” – Chief Brody, Jaws
“Here’s Johnny!” – Jack Torrance, The Shining
“You can’t handle the truth!” – Col. Nathan R. Jessep, A Few Good Men
“In space, no one can hear you scream.” – Alien
“I’m having an old friend for dinner.” – Hannibal Lecter, The Silence of the Lambs
“We accept the love we think we deserve.” – Stephen Chbosky, The Perks of Being a Wallflower
“I ate his liver with some fava beans and a nice Chianti.” – Hannibal Lecter, The Silence of the Lambs
“They’re here.” – Carol Anne, Poltergeist
“Sometimes dead is better.” – Jud Crandall, Pet Sematary
“It’s alive! It’s alive!” – Dr. Frankenstein, Frankenstein
“I am a goddamn marvel of modern science.” – Charlize Theron, Young Adult (original quote)
“When there’s no more room in hell, the dead will walk the earth.” – Peter, Dawn of the Dead
“I am the devil, and I am here to do the devil’s work.” – Otis Driftwood, The Devil’s Rejects
“You’re all my children now.” – Freddy Krueger, A Nightmare on Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors
“I have a bad feeling about this.” – Multiple Characters, Star Wars Series
“Death has come to your little town, Sheriff.” – Dr. Loomis, Halloween
“We have such sights to show you.” – Pinhead, Hellraiser
“They’re all going to laugh at you!” – Margaret White, Carrie
“You think darkness is your ally. But you merely adopted the dark; I was born in it!” – Bane, The Dark Knight Rises
“Your suffering will be legendary even in hell.” – Pinhead, Hellraiser
“Whatever you found, it’s behind you now.” – Unknown Origin (original quote)
“It’s not who I am underneath, but what I do that defines me.” – Bruce Wayne, Batman Begins
Final Thoughts
So there you have it—a collection of some of the best quotes about evil. These quotes capture the dark side of human nature and provide much to think about. They remind us that evil can come in many forms and often challenges our understanding of good and bad.
By reflecting on these words, we can gain insight into the complex nature of right and wrong. Quotes about evil serve as a reminder to stay vigilant and conscious of our actions. They help us recognize the importance of making choices that lead to a better world.
