They say I am evil: a corrupt influence, a monster.
But while it's true that I have many hands and faces,
I am no more evil than those around me; I reflect their vice or virtue.
Yet still they curse me, submitting me to grisly executions.
I am drawn and quartered, cut in half, my head is taken off, and I still live.
I have realized one thing in my long life:
Many claim to have been hurt by me,
But these are the ones who need me the most.
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10 Answers
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5
I think it is
a deck of cards
They say I am evil: a corrupt influence, a monster.
a lot of people dislike cards for their role in gambling
But while it's true that I have many hands and faces,
from a deck of cards, you can deal hands, and the jack to king cards are known as face cards
I am no more evil than those around me; I reflect their vice or virtue.
cards don't make people gamble, and people can play cards without gambling or cheating.
Yet still they curse me, submitting me to grisly executions.
people can get pretty upset at card games nonetheless
I am drawn and quartered, cut in half, my head is taken off, and I still live.
cards are often drawn, and in many games, the entire deck is dealt out to 4 people, thus giving each person a quarter. in some games, cutting the deck in half is used for tiebreakers, by getting a card and seeing if it is higher than someone another person gets. drawing the top card could be seen as taking the head. none of these actions destroy the cards, and the game is still playable
I have realized one thing in my long life:
Many claim to have been hurt by me,
Many people have gambling addictions and waste a lot of their money
But these are the ones who need me the most.
they really need some good cards or they'll lose more money. and if the cards didn't exist, they might gamble on something else
answered Jun 20, 2018 at 23:41
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1$\begingroup$ Nice! I was worried that I had made the clues too general. $\endgroup$ Commented Jun 20, 2018 at 23:59
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$\begingroup$ How does this satisfy "submitting me to grisly executions."? $\endgroup$– gmathtCommented Jun 22, 2018 at 16:10
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$\begingroup$ @gmatht - perhaps the usage of cutting cards - in specific 'cutting a King' of spades...is eligible for such description. $\endgroup$ Commented Jun 22, 2018 at 17:42
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$\begingroup$ @gmatht double meaning of the word "executions." The surface meaning is killing someone in a gruesome way, but "execution" can also refer to a method of doing something. The list of "executions" in the next line are based on terminology associated with the things you can do to the answer, so they carry the double meaning. $\endgroup$ Commented Jun 22, 2018 at 17:44
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$\begingroup$ As to cut in half, it is standard in most games with a shuffler/dealer, for the dealer to let the person on his left cut the deck. That is, a random number of cards is taken from the top of the deck and the lower cards placed on top. Likewise, to randomly select a player the deck is laid on the table, and each player takes a few random cards, showing the bottom card, and high/low card wins/loses. This is often done to select the first dealer, and is called cutting for deal/dealer. $\endgroup$ Commented Jun 23, 2018 at 22:30
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4
I think it is
time
They say I am evil: a corrupt influence, a monster.
Time makes things and people age, thus causing a "corrupt" influence.
But while it's true that I have many hands and faces,
Hands and faces of clocks
I am no more evil than those around me; I reflect their vice or virtue.
You can spend your time doing good or bad things, that's time spent well or badly
Yet still they curse me, submitting me to grisly executions.
I am drawn and quartered, cut in half, my head is taken off, and I still live.
Time is cut into minutes, hours, etc. Also, hours are cut into quarters. We also often kill time.
I have realized one thing in my long life:
Many claim to have been hurt by me,
But these are the ones who need me the most.
Those who were hurt by time, also need more time to forget.
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8$\begingroup$ This is of course notoriously the answer to every riddle :-). $\endgroup$– Gareth McCaughan ♦Commented Jun 20, 2018 at 23:05
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2$\begingroup$ But It actually fits (mostly) so well. I'd even say as well as the actual answer... $\endgroup$– J.ECommented Jun 21, 2018 at 8:56
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$\begingroup$ @GarethMcCaughan, idoes puzzling have a meme meta so I can learn more about this time, perhaps the first attempt etc..like meta meme $\endgroup$ Commented Jun 21, 2018 at 13:00
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$\begingroup$ Nope, I don't think there's anything like that for Puzzling. $\endgroup$– Gareth McCaughan ♦Commented Jun 21, 2018 at 17:02
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3
I'd say you are
Money
I don't have all the links yet, but:
They say I am evil: a corrupt influence, a monster.
Money is the root of all evil, and a source of corruption.
But while it's true that I have many hands and faces,
Different faces appear on money bills and coins
I am no more evil than those around me; I reflect their vice or virtue.
Evil people will spenmd money for evil purposes; good people will do so with virtuous purposes
Yet still they curse me, submitting me to grisly executions.
Refers to the people against capitalism?
I am drawn and quartered, cut in half, my head is taken off, and I still live.
Even if you destroy a paper bill, money still exists
I have realized one thing in my long life: Many claim to have been hurt by me, But these are the ones who need me the most.
The poor often complain about the capitalism system and unfair sharing of money, and yet they need more money to improve their situation.
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$\begingroup$ i think quartering money means just getting change for a dollar $\endgroup$– AndreyCommented Jun 22, 2018 at 20:23
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2$\begingroup$ Note that the actual quote/assertion is that love of money is the root of all evil. Not money itself. $\endgroup$ Commented Jun 24, 2018 at 15:41
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$\begingroup$ @ToddWilcox I quite agree. Love of money ties in with greed, and besides, it depends on what you use the money for. I could spend my money for good... or for eeeevviiiilll ;D $\endgroup$– Mr PieCommented Aug 30, 2018 at 13:01
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1
Similar to Sergei's answer, I think it is:
Alarm Clock
They say I am evil. Hated by the world.
For obvious reasons in the morning
Many hands and faces:
Clocks have hands and faces.
Yet still they curse me, submitting me to grisly executions.
People sometimes throw an alarm clock across the room or break it for waking them up.
I am drawn and quartered, cut in half, my head is taken off, and I still live.
Sounds a little like the snooze button
I have realized one thing in my long life:
Alarm clocks can last a long time
Many claim to have been hurt by me,
The sound of an alarm clock is painful in the morning.
But these are the ones who need me the most.
People who have trouble in the morning really need an alarm clock.
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8$\begingroup$ Because it is fun to have multiple answers that fit the given clues. $\endgroup$ Commented Jun 21, 2018 at 19:17
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4
I realize an answer has already been selected, but I think a better answer is:
Beer.
Each line is directly applicable to this answer, unlike the selected answer, which relies on many lines being applicable to something sort of related to the answer.
They say I am evil: a corrupt influence, a monster.
Yep.
But while it's true that I have many hands and faces,
Beer passes through many hands and is available with many faces, or logos, on it.
I am no more evil than those around me; I reflect their vice or virtue.
Beer only reduces your inhibitions. You are arguably more your true self under its influence.
Yet still they curse me, submitting me to grisly executions.
I am drawn and quartered, cut in half, my head is taken off, and I still live.
Beer is drawn from a tap, as a liquid it can easily be quartered, and it's not uncommon to split a beer. Beer has a head that might be slurped or blown off.
I have realized one thing in my long life:
Many claim to have been hurt by me,
But these are the ones who need me the most.
Alcoholics are hurt most by beer, and need it the most.
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$\begingroup$ I disagree, I think that this answer doesn't address lines 2 and 4 adequately. When constructing this riddle, I used terminology associated with the answer, the words "hand," "face," "drawn," and "cut" are all intended to be clues. This is not used in your answer. It's true that your answer is more 'direct,' but the point of this riddle is to use metaphor to abstract the solution. $\endgroup$ Commented Jun 22, 2018 at 3:19
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$\begingroup$ I suppose I could summarize by saying, "I see your point, but I still like my answer better." :) $\endgroup$ Commented Jun 22, 2018 at 3:20
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1$\begingroup$ I agree. Especially with the last line, "...these are the ones who need me the most." It fits a LOT better with beer. $\endgroup$– AryamanCommented Jun 24, 2018 at 10:52
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1$\begingroup$ This is the same one I came up with when first reading the question :) $\endgroup$ Commented Jun 26, 2018 at 6:30
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How about
A mirror/reflection
They say I am evil: a corrupt influence, a monster.
Vanity is a sin
But while it's true that I have many hands and faces,
I am no more evil than those around me; I reflect their vice or virtue.
These are definitely aspects of a mirror
Yet still they curse me, submitting me to grisly executions.
Many people curse their looks. In addition, when you walk away from a mirror, your reflection "dies"
I am drawn and quartered, cut in half, my head is taken off, and I still live.
Partial reflections
I have realized one thing in my long life:
Many claim to have been hurt by me,
But these are the ones who need me the most.
Those who are most hurt by their own reflection are those who are most obsessed
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Are you
Desire?
They say I am evil: a corrupt influence, a monster.
Desire can be inferred as lust in some cases
But while it's true that I have many hands and faces,
Desire comes in many forms, such as physical lusts. But there are spiritual desires as well, or even mental desires.
I am no more evil than those around me; I reflect their vice or virtue.
You could argue that someone can desire to do good. Or they could desire to do evil
Yet still they curse me, submitting me to grisly executions.
Abstinence, Celibacy, veganism, etc. These are intended to curb desires.
I am drawn and quartered, cut in half, my head is taken off, and I still live.
Drawn as in lustful pictures, quartered as in impulse control. Head taken off refers to it as desires are a matter of heart instead of the head. And desires will survive all of that.
I have realized one thing in my long life:
Many claim to have been hurt by me,
But these are the ones who need me the most.
People claim desires destroyed their life (gambling, adultery, murder), but it, in itself isn't a naturally bad thing. For example, someone can desire for change. People should also desire to do good.
answered Jun 20, 2018 at 20:09
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You are a
cockroach
They say I am evil: a corrupt influence, a monster.
I have yet to meet someone who wasn't terrified of a cockroach.
But while it's true that I have many hands and faces
All have 6 legs and with many species of cockroaches, there's also variations in their faces.
I am no more evil than those around me; I reflect their vice or virtue
They don't get a bad rap for the acts of a few bad encounter like with snakes, fish (piranha), bears, etc. They're mostly feared because they look gross and scurry out of places when you don't expect them.
Yet still they curse me, submitting me to grisly executions
poisoning, squashing, burning, decapitating, standard list of cockroach demises if found in your house/business.
I am drawn and quartered, cut in half, my head is taken off, and I still live
I'm sure plenty of insects can live without limbs, but a cockroach can live for a week with its head cut off.
I have realized one thing in my long life: Many claim to have been hurt by me, But these are the ones who need me the most.
Cockroaches generally don't bite and thus rarely actually hurt anyone. Cockroaches are usually found in places that lack cleanliness. Places in need of cleaning attention. They aren't specifically needed in these places, but their presences there does have the benefit of helping to recycling waste.
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1
This can be very true for
Internet
They say I am evil: a corrupt influence, a monster.
It's often said the Internet gives you viruses, porn, extreme ideas etc.
But while it's true that I have many hands and faces,
Content of the internet is driven by people and their desires
I am no more evil than those around me; I reflect their vice or virtue.
Same as above
Yet still they curse me, submitting me to grisly executions.
Great firewalls, content censorship, IP/URL blocking
I am drawn and quartered, cut in half, my head is taken off, and I still live.
Internet was created as ARPA network to be operable in case of nuclear war (even direct strike on a node should not affect other nodes)
I have realized one thing in my long life: Many claim to have been hurt by me, But these are the ones who need me the most.
If you're in a trouble, the most important is to have relevant information. If used properly, Internet is a great resource for education/publishing/researches/etc.
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$\begingroup$ A very nice answer. Welcome to puzzling stack exchange. Here is a tour of the site, puzzling.stackexchange.com/tour. $\endgroup$ Commented Jun 21, 2018 at 16:00
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Something that also fits pretty well:
Power
They say I am evil: a corrupt influence, a monster.
"Power corrupts" is a popular saying. Plenty of people have used power to do some horrible things that make some consider them monsters.
But while it's true that I have many hands and faces,
Power is given by others (hands) and many people (faces) are in positions of power and may themselves be a symbol of power.
I am no more evil than those around me; I reflect their vice or virtue.
Power in itself is not evil. Any given person can use power however they see fit.
Yet still they curse me, submitting me to grisly executions.
Plenty of people hate the government (either some specific government or as a concept) or other structures that give too much power to some (e.g. schools, companies or sororities). Plenty of people in positions of power (kings and presidents) have been executed in grisly ways. People who are given power may also come to curse it if bad things happen as a direct or indirect result of their power, and some may do reckless things that quickly removes their power (executes it) possibly in an embarrassing or otherwise uncomfortable ("grisly") way.
I am drawn
Being in a position of power isn't always fun and can be a struggle.
quartered
Being the CEO of a company, for example, wouldn't necessarily give you power anywhere else, so you can say the power is quartered (stationed / lodged) in that company.
cut in half
A part of a country or a colony can declare independence (cut ties) or a corporation can split up. This is usually done one part at a time, so the country or corporation is split in two (half).
My head is taken off
Coups or assassinations to remove the head of a country or corporation.
I still live
If any of the above happens, the power may be temporarily lessened or shifted to another, but it usually remains.
long life
Power structures have been around since the beginning of civilised society, if not before.
Many claim to have been hurt by me,
Plenty of people in positions of power have taken advantage of that power to hurt others.
But these are the ones who need me the most.
Having power would afford these people some protection from being hurt, since it makes it more difficult for others in positions of power to hurt you, and it's also easier to get revenge.
