On the crest of the School for Good and Evil is a black and a white swan. The black swan represents the School for Evil, and the white swan represents the School for Good. Together, they intertwine to form the crest of the school. Each student has a silver swan on their uniform identifying them as a student. They can’t get rid of the swan:

Sophie watched students on both sides trying to cover the glittering silver swans on their uniforms. Mimicking them, she folded the droopy collar of her tunic to obscure her own swan—instantly the crest vanished off the robe and appeared on her chest. Stunned, she ran her finger over the swan, but it was embedded in her skin like a tattoo (87).

Although the School for Good and Evil separates its students, the silver swan on their uniforms marks them as united. Unbeknownst to them, the swan is a symbol of the good that is in each student. This is made clear at the end of the book when the swans come off each student’s uniform and coalesce into the Good brother.

Professor Sader writes in his history book about the brother who died in the Great War and how he protected the balance of Good and Evil: “For the dying brother used his final embers of magic to create a last spell against his twin: a way to prove Good and Evil still equal” (215).