History Main / LightDarknessJuxtaposition

* ''Literature/SaintessSummonsSkeletons'': Mixing [Saint] and [Necromancer] keywords produces some bizarrely contrasting skills, like a [[DemBones skeletal minion]] shining with a halo of holy power, or a pillar of holy light that heals only undead.

It can also be used in conjunction with other contrast tropes; for example, LifeDeathJuxtaposition will generally have life associated with light and death with dark. SolarAndLunar usually pairs the sun with light and the moon with dark (due to its association with night). Chinese philosophy associates this with FireWaterJuxtaposition, where the yin is associated with darkn and water, and the yang with fire and light.

* ''Fanfic/SurvivorsOfTheCalamity''. Its first installment, ''Fanfic/BreathOfTheWild'', features Zelda and Calamity Ganon, with their same roles as in canon, with Calamity Ganon's dark Malice contrasting Zelda's golden light of her sealing powers. But it goes one step further. [[spoiler:There are a grand total of four spirits that Link, Zelda, Impa, and the truly heroic Ganondorf are supposed to wield against Demise's curse. The spirits all glow brightly in different vibrant colors in contrast to the encompassing darkness of the manifestations of Demise's curse.]]

* ''Franchise/KingdomHearts'' treats Light and Darkness as opposing forces. Light is ''generally'' good and Darkness is ''generally'' evil, with the heroes often wielding light to vanquish the dark forces such as the Heartless.

A contrast between {{Heaven}} and {{Hell}} will likely have some of this mixed in, as will one between a GodOfLight and a GodOfDark. CueTheSun functions as this, with the daylight symbolizing a new beginning after an arduous night. See also NiceDayDeadlyNight. The EvilCounterpart might be the "dark" version of something. LightFeminineAndDarkFeminine is this trope applied to femininity. NightAndDayDuo is another related trope that pairs a light-themed "day" character with a (usually) dark-themed "night" character. %%See also Fire Light Contrast for another common dichotomy between light and another element.

[[caption-width-right:350:"[[Literature/BookOfGenesis [God] separated the light from the darkness.]]"[[note]]The Creation of Light", Creator/GustaveDore (detail)[[/note]]]]

It can also be used in conjunction with other contrast tropes; for example, LifeDeathJuxtaposition will generally have life associated with light and death with darkness. SolarAndLunar usually pairs the sun with light and the moon with darkness (due to its association with night). Chinese philosophy associates this with FireWaterJuxtaposition, where the yin is associated with darkness and water, and the yang with fire and light.

Light and dark can easily be treated as opposing cosmic forces. The BalanceBetweenGoodAndEvil traditionally associates [[LightIsGood light with goodness]] and [[DarkIsEvil darkness with evil]], although LightIsNotGood and DarkIsNotEvil are the increasingly common subversions to that. And since they are diametric opposites, when light and darkness clash it is generally a YinYangClash, and when people use both it's a YinYangBomb. Alternatively, ElementalRockPaperScissors will more often than not have light defeat darkness, since LightIsGood. There's a reason DarkestHour is named so; "a light in the dark" is a phrase often used to symbolize [[HopeSpringsEternal hope]]--see LightEqualsHope.

A contrast between {{Heaven}} and {{Hell}} will likely have some of this mixed in, as will one between a GodOfLight and a GodOfDarkness. CueTheSun functions as this, with the daylight symbolizing a new beginning after an arduous night. See also NiceDayDeadlyNight. The EvilCounterpart might be the "dark" version of something. LightFeminineAndDarkFeminine is this trope applied to femininity. NightAndDayDuo is another related trope that pairs a light-themed "day" character with a (usually) dark-themed "night" character. %%See also Fire Light Contrast for another common dichotomy between light and another element.

Darkness is the absence of light, and light cannot exist without darkness. The dichotomy between the two has been part of human storytelling for [[OlderThanDirt a very long time]]--many {{Creation Myth}}s often involve light emerging from darkness, and many destruction myths involve darkness engulfing light. Light and darkness also have many other symbolic means across many cultures. Thus, it is not uncommon for stories to visually, literally, or metaphorically juxtapose the two, often associating them with real-world notions (e.g. LightIsGood, DarkIsEvil) of light and dark. Shadow can be treated as more or less the same as darkness, or a mixture of both light and dark.

Because of its ubiquity, a light and darkness contrast can be lent to any number of DuoTropes. A character with LightEmUp or HolyHandGrenade powers can have a {{Foil}}, enemy, counterpart, or [[ElementalRivalry rival]] in a character who uses CastingAShadow or TheSacredDarkness. A BroodingBoyGentleGirl duo, a LightLiegeDarkDefender one, or an {{Angel Devil Ship|ping}} might have appropriate light and dark motifs.

* ''ComicBook/{{Shadowpact}}'': The eponymous Shadowpact is a superhero team whose members include a man named Nightmaster, [[ComicBook/{{Nightshade}} a woman]] with [[CastingAShadow shadow powers]], [[ComicBook/{{Ragman}} a man who wears a suit made of evil souls]] and [[ComicBook/BlueDevil a man]] who became a demon through a DealWithTheDevil. Despite what appearances would have you believe, [[DarkIsNotEvil the Shadowpact are good guys]]. Yet they were mistaken for villains by the congregation, a superhero group of {{Knight Templar}}s who wielded the power of light.

* ''ComicBook/CloakAndDagger'' are heavily associated with dark and light respectively. Cloak is a brooding dark-haired guy in black who wields a cloak of darkness, while Dagger is a perky blonde woman in white who wields daggers of HardLight. They not only work together but ''need'' each other, as Cloak hungers for light consumption while Dagger needs to constantly expel light, meaning both of them quell each other's urges.

* Franchise/{{Superman}} and Franchise/{{Batman}}. While neither actually wields light and darkness as their powers, this is reflected in their personalities and visuals. Superman is an optimistic super-powered alien who dresses in [[PrimaryColorChampion primary colors]] and is [[PowerOfTheSun powered by the sun]] while Batman is a cynical antihero normal human who dresses in black and grey and primarily operates by night.

A contrast between {{Heaven}} and {{Hell}} will likely have some of this mixed in, as will one between a GodOfLight and a GodOfDarkness. CueTheSun functions as this, with the daylight symbolizing a new beginning after an arduous night. See also NiceDayDeadlyNight. The EvilCounterpart might be the "dark" version of something. LightFeminineDarkFeminine is this trope applied to femininity. NightAndDayDuo is another related trope that pairs a light-themed "day" character with a (usually) dark-themed "night" character. %%See also Fire Light Contrast for another common dichotomy between light and another element.

* In ''LightNovel/SwordArtOnline'', Kirito gains this dynamic with the first two {{Big Bad}}s, Heathcliff/Kayaba and Oberon/Sugou, with Kirito being DarkIsNotEvil while the villains being LightIsNotGood. Kirito is TheHero who always dresses in black, earning him the name the "Black Swordsman" and has swords named after dark themes like "Dark Repulsor" and "Night Sky Sword". Heathcliff is a [[ThePaladin paladin]] with his attacks including the "Holy Sword" and "Spiritual Light". Meanwhile, Sugou made himself into the King of the Fairies and the God of Alfheim Online, giving himself a divine appearance with blonde hair and ornamented with gold.

* ''Series/ShadowAndBone'': Alina is the Sun Summoner, a light-using Grisha whom many believe can destroy the Shadow Fold. She is at first mentored by the Shadow Summoner General Kirigan.