Dichotomy
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A dichotomy is any splitting of a whole into exactly two non-overlapping parts.
In other words, it is a mutually exclusive bipartition of elements. i.e. nothing can belong simultaneously to both parts, and everything must belong to one part or the other. They are often contrasting and spoken of as "opposites." The term comes from dichotomos (divided): dich- ([in] two) temnein (to cut).
Examples
Eros and Thanatos, good and evil, night and day, war and peace, love and hate, mind and body, yin and yang, heaven and hell, sacred and profane, Apollonian and Dionysian and organic vs geometric.
See also
- Binary opposition
- Bipartite (disambiguation)
- Borderline Personality Disorder
- Class (set theory)
- Conflict
- Dialectical Behavioral Therapy
- Dichotomy paradox
- Dualism
- Polychotomy
- Trichotomy
- Yin and yang
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