Dichotomy and the splitting an element into two parts, in general contrary, like night and day, good and evil, black and white, heaven and hell, etc.
Originating in Greek dichotomy, a dichotomy indicates a classification that is based on a division between two elements.
In the field of theology, dichotomists believe that the human being is divided into two parts: body and soul (for them, soul and spirit are synonymous). On the other hand, trichotomists contemplate the human being in three aspects: body, soul and spirit. Greek philosophers believed that the body was at the service of the soul that was submissive to divine interests.
In the context of right, many authors address the dichotomy between public and private law.
Swiss linguist Ferdinand de Saussure addressed 4 dichotomies: synchrony and diachrony, language and speech, meaning and signifier, syntagma and paradigm.
In botany, there is also a dichotomy, where there is the division of a cell into two, each giving rise to other cells. Still in botany, trichotomy indicates an organ of a plant that is subdivided into three.
A dichotomy is also the sharing of medical fees, without the patient's consent, between the attending physician and another person called by him.
there is the false dichotomy, which shows a situation with two alternative points of view, and are put as if they were the only options, when in reality there may be other options that have not been taken into account, or both can be chosen together.