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Men As A Whole Judge More With Their Eyes Than With Their Hands.
-Niccolo Machiavelli
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Men As A Whole

Niccolo Machiavelli
...
Men As A Whole Judge More With Their Eyes Than With Their Hands.

Understanding the Quote: "men as a whole judge more with their eyes than with their..."

This quote by Niccolo Machiavelli reflects deeply on the theme of eye. It connects to the universal human journey of purpose, motivation, and reflection. Often categorized under Eye, Men, Hands, the quote offers insight, emotional clarity, and intellectual inspiration to readers worldwide.

Whether you’re a student exploring new ideas, a leader trying to motivate your team, or someone seeking direction in life — this quote provides value. It resonates because it’s more than words — it’s a bridge between experience and wisdom. It shows how Niccolo Machiavelli interprets life's core challenges and triumphs.

Lessons From the Quote

This quote teaches resilience and focus. It reminds readers that no matter where they stand in life, reflection and self-awareness lead to growth. Each word has meaning, and when studied, it becomes clear how impactful thoughtful language can be.

About Niccolo Machiavelli

Niccolo Machiavelli is celebrated for insightful thoughts on eye and men. Their legacy lives on through writings that guide, comfort, and inspire. Discover more on their profile page.

Actionable Takeaways

  • Reflect on how this quote applies to your current life path.
  • Share the message with someone who needs inspiration.
  • Write your thoughts on this quote in a journal or blog post.
  • Use it as a daily affirmation or reminder.

Closing Thoughts

Quotes like this endure because they capture universal truths. They comfort us in solitude and empower us in groups. Carry this quote forward — live by its wisdom, share its message, and keep its essence alive.

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Topic
Eye
Men
Hands
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One Can Say This In General Of Men: They Are Ungrateful, Disloyal, Insincere And Deceitful, Timid Of Danger And Avid Of Profit...love Is A Bond Of Obligation That These Miserable Creatures Break Whenever It Suits Them To Do So; But Fear Holds Them Fast By A Dread Of Punishment That Never Passes.
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People Should Either Be Caressed Or Crushed. If You Do Them Minor Damage They Will Get Their Revenge; But If You Cripple Them There Is Nothing They Can Do. If You Need To Injure Someone, Do It In Such A Way That You Do Not Have To Fear Their Vengeance.
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I Hold Strongly To This: That It Is Better To Be Impetuous Than Circumspect; Because Fortune Is A Woman And If She Is To Be Submissive It Is Necessary To Beat And Coerce Her.
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Where The Willingness Is Great, The Difficulties Cannot Be Great.
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So Long As The Great Majority Of Men Are Not Deprived Of Either Property Or Honor, They Are Satisfied.
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...the Incredulity Of Mankind, Who Do Not Truly Believe In Anything New Until They Have Had Actual Experience Of It.
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Men Ought Either To Be Indulged Or Utterly Destroyed, For If You Merely Offend Them They Take Vengeance, But If You Injure Them Greatly They Are Unable To Retaliate, So That The Injury Done To A Man Ought To Be Such That Vengeance Cannot Be Feared.
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The Sinews Of War Are Not Gold, But Good Soldiers.
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It May Be Observed, That Provinces Amid The Vicissitudes To Which They Are Subject, Pass From Order Into Confusion, And Afterward Recur To A State Of Order Again; For The Nature Of Mundane Affairs Not Allowing Them To Continue In An Even Course, When They Have Arrived At Their Greatest Perfection, They Soon Begin To Decline.
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Any Harm You Do To A Man Should Be Done In Such A Way That You Need Not Fear His Revenge.
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For The Mob Is Always Impressed By Appearances And By Results, And The World Is Composed Of The Mob.
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A Prince Never Lacks Legitimate Reasons To Break His Promise.
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An Armed Republic Submits Less Easily To The Rule Of One Of Its Citizens Than A Republic Armed By Foreign Forces. Rome And Sparta Were For Many Centuries Well Armed And Free. The Swiss Are Well Armed And Enjoy Great Freedom. Among Other Evils Caused By Being Disarmed, It Renders You Contemptible. It Is Not Reasonable To Suppose That One Who Is Armed Will Obey Willingly One Who Is Unarmed; Or That Any Unarmed Man Will Remain Safe Among Armed Servants.
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If Someone Puts Up The Argument That King Louis Gave The Romagna To Pope Alexander, And The Kingdom Of Naples To Spain, In Order To Avoid A War, I Would Answer As I Did Before: That You Should Never Let Things Get Out Of Hand In Order To Avoid War. You Don't Avoid Such A War, You Merely Postpone It, To Your Own Disadvantage.
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By The Delusions Of Seeming Good The People Are Often Misled To Desire Their Own Ruin; And They Are Frequently Influenced By Great Hopes And Brave Promises.
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....it Cannot Be Called Ingenuity To Kill One's Fellow Citizens, To Betray Friends, To Be Without Faith, Without Mercy, Without Religion; By These Means One Can Aquire Power But Not Glory.
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A Wise Man Will See To It That His Acts Always Seem Voluntary And Not Done By Compulsion, However Much He May Be Compelled By Necessity.
Wise
Wisdom
Men
Whoever Wishes To Foresee The Future Must Consult The Past; For Human Events Ever Resemble Those Of Preceding Times. This Arises From The Fact That They Are Produced By Men Who Ever Have Been, And Ever Shall Be, Animated By The Same Passions, And Thus They Necessarily Have The Same Results.
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Sometimes It Has Been Of Great Moment While The Fight Is Going On, To Disseminate Words That Pronounce The Enemies' Captain To Be Dead, Or To Have Been Conquered By Another Part Of The Army. Many Times This Has Given Victory To Him Who Used It.
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When Neither Their Property Nor Their Honor Is Touched, The Majority Of Men Live Content.
Happiness
Happy
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States That Rise Quickly, Just As All The Other Things Of Nature That Are Born And Grow Rapidly, Cannot Have Roots And Ramifications; The First Bad Weather Kills Them
Weather
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There Is Nothing More Difficult To Take In Hand, More Perilous To Conduct, Or More Uncertain In Its Success, Than To Take The Lead In The Introduction Of A New Order Of Things.
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The World Has Always Been The Same; And There Is Always As Much Good Fortune As Bad In It.
World
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He Who Has Once Begun To Live By Rapine Always Finds Reasons For Taking What Is Not His.
Reason
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The Wise Man Should Always Follow The Roads That Have Been Trodden By The Great, And Imitate Those Who Have Most Excelled, So That If He Cannot Reach Their Perfection, He May At Least Acquire Something Of Its Savour.
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It Is Much Better To Tempt Fortune Where It Can Favor You Than To See Your Certain Ruin By Not Tempting It.
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War Should Be The Only Study Of A Prince. He Should Consider Peace Only As A Breathing-time, Which Gives Him Leisure To Contrive, And Furnishes As Ability To Execute, Military Plans.
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Tardiness Often Robs Us Opportunity, And The Dispatch Of Our Forces.
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Literature
Hence It Comes That All Armed Prophets Have Been Victorious, And All Unarmed Prophets Have Been Destroyed.
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And What Physicians Say About Disease Is Applicable Here: That At The Beginning A Disease Is Easy To Cure But Difficult To Diagnose; But As Time Passes, Not Having Been Recognized Or Treated At The Outset, It Becomes Easy To Diagnose But Difficult To Cure. The Same Thing Occurs In Affairs Of State; For By Recognizing From Afar The Diseases That Are Spreading In The State (which Is A Gift Given Only To The Prudent Ruler), They Can Be Cured Quickly; But When, Not Having Been Recognized, They Are Not Recognized And Are Left To Grow To The Extent That Everyone Recognizes Them, There Is No Longer Any Cure.
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When Every Province Of The World So Teems With Inhabitants That They Can Neither Subsist Where They Are Nor Remove Themselves Elsewhere.
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He Who Makes War His Profession Cannot Be Otherwise Than Vicious. War Makes Thieves, And Peace Brings Them To The Gallows.
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It Is Just As Difficult And Dangerous To Try To Free A People That Wants To Remain Servile As It Is To Enslave A People That Wants To Remain Free.
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With Difficulty He Is Beaten Who Can Estimate His Own Forces And Those Of His Enemy.
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For As Good Habits Of The People Require Good Laws To Support Them, So Laws, To Be Observed, Need Good Habits On The Part Of The People.
Law
People
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Conquered States That Have Been Accustomed To Liberty And The Government Of Their Own Laws Can Be Held By The Conqueror In Three Different Ways. The First Is To Ruin Them; The Second, For The Conqueror To Go And Reside There In Person; And The Third Is To Allow Them To Continue To Live Under Their Own Laws, Subject To A Regular Tribute, And To Create In Them A Government Of A Few, Who Will Keep The Country Friendly To The Conqueror
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As The Physicians Say It Happens In Hectic Fever, That In The Beginning Of The Malady It Is Easy To Cure But Difficult To Detect, But In The Course Of Time, Not Having Been Either Detected Or Treated In The Beginning, It Becomes Easy To Detect But Difficult To Cure
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...it Is A Base Thing To Look To Others For Your Defense Instead Of Depending Upon Yourself. That Defense Alone Is Effectual, Sure, And Durable Which Depends Upon Yourself And Your Own Valor.
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The Forces Of Adversaries Are More Diminished By The Loss Of Those Who Flee Than Of Those Who Are Killed.
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The People Resemble A Wild Beast, Which, Naturally Fierce And Accustomed To Live In The Woods, Has Been Brought Up, As It Were, In A Prison And In Servitude, And Having By Accident Got Its Liberty, Not Being Accustomed To Search For Its Food, And Not Knowing Where To Conceal Itself, Easily Becomes The Prey Of The First Who Seeks To Incarcerate It Again.
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I Say That Every Prince Must Desire To Be Considered Merciful And Not Cruel. He Must, However, Take Care Not To Misuse This Mercifulness.
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In The Same Manner, Having Been Reduced By Disorder, And Sunk To Their Utmost State Of Depression, Unable To Descend Lower, They, Of Necessity, Reascend; And Thus From Good They Gradually Decline To Evil, And From Evil Again Return To Good. The Reason Is, That Valor Produces Peace; Peace, Repose; Repose, Disorder; Disorder, Ruin; So From Disorder Order Springs; From Order Virtue, And From This, Glory And Good Fortune.
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All The States And Governments By Which Men Are Or Ever Have Been Ruled, Have Been And Are Either Republics Or Princedoms.
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Wisdom Consists Of Knowing How To Distinguish The Nature Of Trouble, And In Choosing The Lesser Evil.
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The Reply Is, That One Ought To Be Both Feared And Loved, But As It Is Difficult For The Two To Go Together, It Is Much Safer To Be Feared Than Loved, If One Of The Two Has To Be Wanting. For It May Be Said Of Men In General That They Are Ungrateful, Voluble, Dissemblers, Anxious To Avoid Danger, And Covetous Of Gain; As Long As You Benefit Them, They Are Entirely Yours; They Offer You Their Blood, Their Goods, Their Life, And Their Children, As I Have Before Said, When The Necessity Is Remote; But When It Approaches, They Revolt.
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If An Injury Has To Be Done To A Man It Should Be So Severe That His Vengeance Need Not Be Feared.
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God Creates Men, But They Choose Each Other.
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For Titles Do Not Reflect Honor On Men, But Rather Men On Their Titles.
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And When He Is Obliged To Take The Life Of Any One, To Do So When There Is A Proper Justification And Manifest Reason For It; But Above All He Must Abstain From Taking The Property Of Others, For Men Forget More Easily The Death Of Their Father Than The Loss Of Their Patrimony.
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There Is No Surer Sign Of Decay In A Country Than To See The Rites Of Religion Held In Contempt.
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There Is No Other Way To Guard Yourself Against Flattery Than By Making Men Understand That Telling You The Truth Will Not Offend You.
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Men May Second Fortune, But They Cannot Thwart Her.
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Occasionally Words Must Serve To Veil The Facts. But Let This Happen In Such A Way That No One Become Aware Of It; Or, If It Should Be Noticed, Excuses Must Be At Hand To Be Produced Immediately.
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Way
For A Long Time I Have Not Said What I Believed, Nor Do I Ever Believe What I Say, And If Indeed Sometimes I Do Happen To Tell The Truth, I Hide It Among So Many Lies That It Is Hard To Find.
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A Government Which Does Not Trust Its Citizens To Be Armed Is Not Itself To Be Trusted.
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If The Course Of Human Affairs Be Considered, It Will Be Seen That Many Things Arise Against Which Heaven Does Not Allow Us To Guard.
Destiny
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A Prince Is Also Respected When He Is A True Friend And A True Enemy; That Is, When He Declares Himself On The Side Of One Prince Against Another Without Any Reservation.
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Among Other Evils Which Being Unarmed Brings You, It Causes You To Be Despised.
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The Reason Is That Nature Has So Created Men That They Are Able To Desire Everything But Are Not Able To Attain Everything: So That The Desire Being Always Greater Than The Acquisition, There Results Discontent With The Possession And Little Satisfaction To Themselves From It. From This Arises The Changes In Their Fortunes; For As Men Desire, Some To Have More, Some In Fear Of Losing Their Acquisition, There Ensues Enmity And War, From Which Results The Ruin Of That Province And The Elevation Of Another.
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Nature That Framed Us Of Four Elements, Warring Within Our Breasts For Regiment, Doth Teach Us All To Have Aspiring Minds.
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A Wise Ruler Ought Never To Keep Faith When By Doing So It Would Be Against His Interests.
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The Greatest Remedy That Is Used Against A Plan Of The Enemy Is To Do Voluntarily What He Plans That You Do By Force.
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Never Lead Your Soldiers To Battle If You Have Not First Confirmed Their Spirit And Known Them To Be Without Fear And Ordered; And Never Test Them Except When You See That They Hope To Win.
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Men Walk Almost Always In The Paths Trodden By Others, Proceeding In Their Actions By Imitation.
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It Is Better To Be Adventurous Than Cautious, Because Fortune Is A Woman.
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Men Are So Simple And So Much Inclined To Obey Immediate Needs That A Deceiver Will Never Lack Victims For His Deceptions.
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A Son Could Bear With Great Complacency, The Death Of His Father, While The Loss Of His Inheritance Might Drive Him To Despair.
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All The Armed Prophets Conquered; All The Unarmed Ones Perished.
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He Who Desires Or Attempts To Reform The Government Of A State And Wishes To Have It Accepted, Must At Least Retain The Semblance Of The Old Forms; So That It May Seem To The People That There Has Been No Change In The Institutions, Even Though In Fact They Are Entirely Different From The Old Ones. For The Great Majority Of Mankind Are Satisfied With Appearances, As Though They Were Realities.
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Entrepreneurs Are Simply Those Who Understand That There Is Little Difference Between Obstacle And Opportunity And Are Able To Turn Both To Their Advantage.
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From This Arises The Question Whether It Is Better To Be Loved Rather Than Feared, Or Feared Rather Than Loved. It Might Perhaps Be Answered That We Should Wish To Be Both: But Since Love And Fear Can Hardly Exist Together, If We Must Choose Between Them, It Is Far Safer To Be Feared Than Loved.
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I Believe That It Is Possible For One To Praise, Without Concern, Any Man After He Is Dead Since Every Reason And Supervision For Adulation Is Lacking.
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It Is Necessary That The Prince Should Know How To Color His Nature Well, And How To Be A Hypocrite And Dissembler. For Men Are So Simple, And Yield So Much To Immediate Necessity, That The Deceiver Will Never Lack Dupes.
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Wars Begin When You Will, But They Do Not End When You Please.
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Knowing How To Fight Made Men More Bold, Because No One Fears Doing What It Seems To Him He Has Learned To Do. Therefore, The Ancients Wanted Their Citizens To Be Trained In Every Warlike Action.
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It Is Often Found That Modesty And Humility Not Only Do No Good, But Are Positively Hurtful, When They Are Shown To The Arrogant Who Have Taken Up A Prejudice Against You, Either From Envy Or From Any Other Cause.
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The Vulgar Crowd Always Is Taken By Appearances, And The World Consists Chiefly Of The Vulgar.
Taken
World
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Everyone Who Wants To Know What Will Happen Ought To Examine What Has Happened: Everything In This World In Any Epoch Has Their Replicas In Antiquity.
World
Want
Contemplation
It Is Much Safer For The Prince To Be Feared Than Loved, But He Ought To Avoid Making Himself Hated.
Hated
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Good Order And Discipline In Any Army Are To Be Depended Upon More Than Courage Alone.
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Any Man Who Tries To Be Good All The Time Is Bound To Come To Ruin Among The Great Number Who Are Not Good. Hence A Prince Who Wants To Keep His Authority Must Learn How Not To Be Good, And Use That Knowledge, Or Refrain From Using It, As Necessity Requires.
Men
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Trying
For The Great Majority Of Mankind Are Satisfied With Appearances, As Though They Were Realities, And Are Often More Influenced By The Things That Seem Than By Those That Are.
Truth
Reality
Empathy
Nevertheless, He Must Be Cautious In Believing And Acting, And Must Not Inspire Fear Of His Own Accord, And Must Proceed In A Temperate Manner With Prudence And Humanity, So That Too Much Confidence Does Not Render Him Incautious, And Too Much Diffidence Does Not Render Him Intolerant. From This Arises The Question Whether It Is Better To Be Loved More Than Feared, Or Feared More Than Loved.
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War
Believe
War Brings Out Thieves And Peace Hangs Them.
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Thieves
It Is A True Observation Of Ancient Writers, That As Men Are Apt To Be Cast Down By Adversity, So They, Are Easily Satiated With Prosperity, And That Joy And Grief Produce The Same Effects. For Whenever Men Are Not Obliged By Necessity To Fight They Fight From Ambition, Which Is So Powerful A Passion In The Human Breast That However High We Reach We Are Never Satisfied.
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One Man Should Not Be Afraid Of Improving His Posessions, Lest They Be Taken Away From Him, Or Another Deterred By High Taxes From Starting A New Business. Rather, The Prince Should Be Ready To Reward Men Who Want To Do These Things And Those Who Endeavour In Any Way To Increase The Prosperity Of Their City Or Their State.
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Cities
Anyone Who Becomes Master Of A City Accustomed To Freedom And Does Not Destroy It May Expect To Be Destroyed By It; For Such A City May Always Justify Rebellion In The Name Of Liberty And Its Ancient Institutions.
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No Enterprise Is More Likely To Succeed Than One Concealed From The Enemy Until It Is Ripe For Execution.
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To Be Feared Is Much Safer Then To Be Loved.
You Must Never Believe That The Enemy Does Not Know How To Conduct His Own Affairs. Indeed, If You Want To Be Deceived Less And Want To Bear Less Danger, The More The Enemy Is Weak Or The Less The Enemy Is Cautious, So Much More Must You Esteem Him.
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Every One Sees What You Appear To Be, Few Really Know What You Are, And Those Few Dare Not Oppose Themselves To The Opinion Of The Many, Who Have The Majesty Of The State To Defend Them.
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War
Majesty
A Prince Being Thus Obliged To Know Well How To Act As A Beast Must Imitate The Fox And The Lion, For The Lion Cannot Protect Himself From Snares, And The Fox Cannot Defend Himself From Wolves.
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Wish
No Proceeding Is Better Than That Which You Have Concealed From The Enemy Until The Time You Have Executed It. To Know How To Recognize An Opportunity In War, And Take It, Benefits You More Than Anything Else. Nature Creates Few Men Brave, Industry And Training Makes Many. Discipline In War Counts More Than Fury.
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Opportunity
A Battle That You Win Cancels All Your Mistakes.
Peace
War
Mistake
A Sign Of Intelligence Is An Awareness Of One's Own Ignorance.
Ignorance
Intelligence
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Whosoever Desires Constant Success Must Change His Conduct With The Times.
Change
Success
Philosophical
Men Nearly Always Follow The Tracks Made By Others And Proceed In Their Affairs By Imitation, Even Though They Cannot Entirely Keep To The Tracks Of Others Or Emulate The Prowess Of Their Models. So A Prudent Man Should Always Follow In The Footsteps Of Great Men And Imitate Those Who Have Been Outstanding.
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Imitating Others
The Ends Justifies The Means.
Mean
Ends
Ends Justify The Means
It Is A Foolish Prince Who Entrusts The Safety Of His Lands To Hired Men.
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Safety
The End Of The Republic Is To Enervate And To Weaken All Other Bodies So As To Increase Its Own Body.
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War
Body
Men Are Always Wicked At Bottom Unless They Are Made Good By Some Compulsion.
Men
Wicked
Made
And If Such Malignity Is Hidden For A Time, It Proceeds From The Unknown Reason That Would Not Be Known Because The Experience Of The Contrary Had Not Been Seen, But Time, Which Is Said To Be The Father Of Every Truth, Will Cause It To Be Discovered.
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Father
War
A Battle That You Win Cancels Any Other Bad Action Of Yours. In The Same Way, By Losing One, All The Good Things Worked By You Before Become Vain.
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Winning
Those Who Either From Imprudence Or Want Of Sagacity Avoid Doing So, Are Always Overwhelmed With Servitude And Poverty; For Faithful Servants Are Always Servants, And Honest Men Are Always Poor; Nor Do Any Ever Escape From Servitude But The Bold And Faithless, Or From Poverty, But The Rapacious And Fraudulent.
Art
War
Men
Because There Are Three Classes Of Intellects: One Which Comprehends By Itself; Another Which Appreciates What Others Comprehend; And A Third Which Neither Comprehends By Itself Nor By The Showing Of Others; The First Is The Most Excellent, The Second Is Good, The Third Is Useless.
Class
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Three
Good Order Makes Men Bold, And Confusion, Cowards.
War
Men
Order
There Is Nothing So Difficult Or So Dangerous As To Undertake To Change The Order Of Things.
Order
Dangerous
Difficult
Thus It Happens In Matters Of State; For Knowing Afar Off (which It Is Only Given A Prudent Man To Do) The Evils That Are Brewing, They Are Easily Cured. But When, For Want Of Such Knowledge, They Are Allowed To Grow So That Everyone Can Recognize Them, There Is No Longer Any Remedy To Be Found.
Men
Knowing
Evil
He Who Neglects What Is Done For What Ought To Be Done, Sooner Effects His Ruin Than His Preservation.
Done
Ruins
Neglect
God Is Not Willing To Do Everything, And Thus Take Away Our Free Will And That Share Of Glory Which Belongs To Us.
God
Philosophical
Art Of War
It Is Not Titles That Honor Men, But Men That Honor Titles.
Philosophical
Men
Honor
Ability And Perseverance Are The Weapons Of Weakness.
Perseverance
Weakness
Weapons
The Reformer Has Enemies In All Who Profit By The Old Order, And Only Lukewarm Defenders In All Those Who Would Profit By The New Order.
Change
Order
Enemy
The Unarmed Man Is Not Just Defenseless - He Is Also Contemptible.
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Second Amendment
Unarmed
Never Do An Enemy A Small Injury.
Military
Bad Ass
Enemy
When Fortune Wishes To Bring Mighty Events To A Successful Conclusion, She Selects Some Man Of Spirit And Ability Who Knows How To Seize The Opportunity She Offers.
Successful
Opportunity
Men
The Princes Who Have Done Great Things Are The Ones Who Have Taken Little Account Of Their Promises.
War
Taken
Promise
Men As A Whole Judge More With Their Eyes Than With Their Hands.
Eye
Men
Hands
When You Disarm The People, You Commence To Offend Them And Show That You Distrust Them Either Through Cowardice Or Lack Of Confidence, And Both Of These Opinions Generate Hatred.
Confidence
Gun
People
When Evening Comes, I Return Home And Go Into My Study. On The Threshold I Strip Off My Muddy, Sweaty Clothes Of Everyday, And Put On The Robes Of Court And Palace, And In This Graver Dress I Enter The Antique Courts Of The Ancients And Am Welcomed By Them, And There I Taste The Food That Alone Is Mine, And For Which I Was Born. And There I Make Bold To Speak To Them And Ask The Motives Of Their Actions, And They, In Their Humanity, Reply To Me. And For The Space Of Four Hours I Forget The World, Remember No Vexation, Fear Poverty No More, Tremble No More At Death; I Pass Indeed Into Their World.
Home
Clothes
Space
The Innovator Has For Enemies All Who Have Done Well Under The Old, And Lukewarm Defenders In Those Who May Do Well Under The New.
Enemy
Done
May
It Is The Duty Of A Man Of Honor To Teach Others The Good Which He Has Not Been Able To Do Himself Because Of The Malignity Of The Times, That This Good Finally Can Be Done By Another More Loved In Heaven.
Men
Heaven
Honor
Men Are So Simple Of Mind, And So Much Dominated By Their Immediate Needs, That A Deceitful Man Will Always Find Plenty Who Are Ready To Be Deceived.
Simple
Men
Political
One Of The Great Secrets Of The Day Is To Know How To Take Possession Of Popular Prejudices And Passions, In Such A Way As To Introduce A Confusion Of Principles Which Makes Impossible All Understanding Between Those Who Speak The Same Language And Have The Same Interests.
Passion
Confusion
Understanding
A Prince Must Not Have Any Objective Nor Any Thought, Nor Take Up Any Art, Other Than The Art Of War And Its Ordering And Discipline; Because It Is The Only Art That Pertains To Him Who Commands. And It Is Of Such Virtue That Not Only Does It Maintain Those Who Were Born Princes, But Many Times Makes Men Rise To That Rank From Private Station.
Art
War
Men
You Must Know, Then, That There Are Two Methods Of Fighting, The One By Law, The Other By Force: The First Method Is That Of Men, The Second Of Beasts; But As The First Method Is Often Insufficient, One Must Have Recourse To The Second.
Art
War
Fighting
How Laudable It Is For A Prince To Keep Good Faith And Live With Integrity, And Not With Astuteness, Every One Knows. Still The Experience Of Our Times Shows Those Princes To Have Done Great Things Who Have Had Little Regard For Good Faith, And Have Been Able By Astuteness To Confuse Men's Brains, And Who Have Ultimately Overcome Those Who Have Made Loyalty Their Foundation.
Loyalty
Art
Integrity
One Never Finds Anything Perfectly Pure And ... Exempt From Danger.
Danger
Pure
They Have Not Any Difficulties On The Way Up Because They Fly, But They Have Many When They Reach The Summit.
Achievement
Way
Difficulty
A Prince Must Not Have Any Other Object Nor Any Other Thought… But War, Its Institutions, And Its Discipline; Because That Is The Only Art Befitting One Who Commands.
Art
War
Discipline
It Ought To Be Remembered That There Is Nothing More Difficult To Take In Hand, More Perilous To Conduct, Or More Uncertain In Its Success, Than To Take The Lead In The Introduction Of A New Order Of Things. Because The Innovator Has For Enemies All Those Who Have Done Well Under The Old Conditions, And Lukewarm Defenders In Those Who May Do Well Under The New. This Coolness Arises Partly From Fear Of The Opponents, Who Have The Laws On Their Side, And Partly From The Incredulity Of Men, Who Do Not Readily Believe In New Things Until They Have Had A Long Experience Of Them.
Believe
Art Of War
Men
We Must Bear In Mind, Then, That There Is Nothing More Difficult And Dangerous, Or More Doubtful Of Success, Than An Attempt To Introduce A New Order Of Things In Any State. For The Innovator Has For Enemies All Those Who Derived Advantages From The Old Order Of Things, Whilst Those Who Expect To Be Benefited By The New Institutions Will Be But Lukewarm Defenders.
Order
Mind
Enemy
For It Must Be Noted, That Men Must Either Be Caressed Or Else Annihilated; They Will Revenge Themselves For Small Injuries, But Cannot Do So For Great Ones; The Injury Therefore That We Do To A Man Must Be Such That We Need Not Fear His Vengeance.
Revenge
Men
Needs
He Who Has Not First Laid His Foundations May Be Able With Great Ability To Lay Them Afterwards, But They Will Be Laid With Trouble To The Architect And Danger To The Building.
May
Able
Firsts
In War, Discipline Can Do More Than Fury.
Art
War
Discipline
If The Present Be Compared With The Remote Past, It Is Easily Seen That In All Cities And In All Peoples There Are The Same Desires And The Same Passions As There Always Were.
Passion
Past
Cities
Nothing Is Of Greater Importance In Time Of War Than In Knowing How To Make The Best Use Of A Fair Opportunity When It Is Offered.
Art
War
Opportunity
Men Sooner Forget The Death Of Their Father Than The Loss Of Their Patrimony
Death
Father
Loss
Necessities Can Be Many, But The One That Is Stronger Is That Which Constrains You To Win Or To Die.
Art
War
Winning
Minds Are Of Three Kinds: One Is Capable Of Thinking For Itself; Another Is Able To Understand The Thinking Of Others; And A Third Can Neither Think For Itself Nor Understand The Thinking Of Others. The First Is Of The Highest Excellence, The Second Is Excellent, And The Third Is Worthless.
Thinking
Mind
Excellence
For This Is The Tragedy Of Man Circumstances Change, But He Does Not.
Men
Tragedy
Doe
Men Shrink Less From Offending One Who Inspires Love Than One Who Inspires Fear.
Love
Philosophical
Men
The Wish To Acquire Is In Truth Very Natural And Common, And Men Always Do So When They Can.but When They Cannot Do So, Yet Wish To Do So By Any Means, Then There Is Folly And Blame.
Mean
Men
Wish
A Prince Need Trouble Little About Conspiracies When The People Are Well Disposed, But When They Are Hostile And Hold Him In Hatred, Then He Must Fear Everything And Everybody.
People
Hatred
Needs
It Makes Him Hated Above All Things, As I Have Said, To Be Rapacious, And To Be A Violator Of The Property And Women Of His Subjects, From Both Of Which He Must Abstain.
Art
War
Said
Power Is The Pivot On Which Everything Hinges. He Who Has The Power Is Always Right; The Weaker Is Always Wrong.
Always Wrong
Hinges
It Should Be Borne In Mind That There Is Nothing More Difficult To Arrange, More Doubtful Of Success, And More Dangerous To Carry Through Than Initiating Changes. The Innovator Makes Enemies Of All Those Who Prospered Under The Old Order, And Only Lukewarm Support Is Forthcoming From Those Who Would Prosper Under The New. Their Support Is Lukewarm ... Partly Because Men Are Generally Incredulous, Never Really Trusting New Things Unless They Have Tested Them By Experience.
Change
Men
Order
I Hold It To Be Of Great Prudence For Men To Abstain From Threats And Insulting Words Towards Any One, For Neither The One Nor The Other In Any Way Diminishes The Strength Of The Enemy; But The One Makes Him More Cautious, And The Other Increases His Hatred Of You, And Makes Him More Persevering In His Efforts To Injure You
Military
Men
Effort
One Should Never Permit A Disorder To Persist In Order To Avoid A War, For Wars Cannot Be Avoided And Can Only Be Deferred To The Advantage Of Others.
Peace
War
Order
It Is Better To Act And Repent Than Not To Act And Regret.
Regret
Repent
When Men Receive Favours From Someone They Expected To Do Them Ill, They Are Under A Greater Obligation To Their Benefactor.
Art
War
Men
A Blast In The Human Breast Is Nothing To Boast Of.
Blast
Breasts
Boast
Therefore It Is Unnecessary For A Prince To Have All The Good Qualities I Have Enumerated, But It Is Very Necessary To Appear To Have Them.
Peace
War
Quality
When Settling Disputes Between His Subjects, He Should Ensure That His Judgement Is Irrevocable; And He Should Be So Regarded That No One Ever Dreams Of Trying To Deceive Or Trick Him.
Dream
Art
War
He Who Becomes A Prince Through The Favour Of The People Should Always Keep On Good Terms With Them; Which It Is Easy For Him To Do, Since All They Ask Is Not To Be Oppressed
People
Favour
Easy
For One Change Always Leaves A Dovetail Into Which Another Will Fit.
Fit
Men Are So Stupid And Concerned With Their Present Needs, They Will Always Let Themselves Be Deceived.
Stupid
Men
Needs
The Nature Of Man Is Such That People Consider Themselves Put Under An Obligation As Much By The Benefits They Confer As By Those They Receive.
Art
War
Men
For Without Invention, No One Was Ever A Great Man In His Own Trade.
Men
Great Men
Invention
A Prudent Man... Must Behave Like Those Archers Who, If They Are Skillful, When The Target Seems Too Distant, Know The Capabilities Of Their Bow And Aim A Good Deal Higher Than Their Objective, Not In Order To Shoot So High But So That By Aiming High They Can Reach The Target.
Art
War
Archer
If You Only Notice Human Proceedings, You May Observe That All Who Attain Great Power And Riches, Make Use Of Either Force Or Fraud; And What They Have Acquired Either By Deceit Or Violence, In Order To Conceal The Disgraceful Methods Of Attainment, They Endeavor To Sanctify With The False Title Of Honest Gains.
Art
War
Order
He Who Blinded By Ambition, Raises Himself To A Position Whence He Cannot Mount Higher, Must Thereafter Fall With The Greatest Loss.
Fall
Ambition
Loss
Few Men Are Brave By Nature, But Good Discipline And Experience Make Many So.
Art
War
Men
Wise Men Say, And Not Without Reason, That Whosoever Wished To Foresee The Future Might Consult The Past.
Wise
Past
Men
The Main Foundations Of Every State, New States As Well As Ancient Or Composite Ones, Are Good Laws And Good Arms You Cannot Have Good Laws Without Good Arms, And Where There Are Good Arms, Good Laws Inevitably Follow.
Law
Foundation
Literature
Whoever Is The Cause Of Another Becoming Powerful, Is Ruined Himself.
Powerful
Causes
Becoming
There Is Nothing As Likely To Succeed As What The Enemy Believes You Cannot Attempt.
Art
War
Believe
Though Fraud In All Other Actions Be Odious, Yet In Matters Of War It Is Laudable And Glorious, And He Who Overcomes His Enemies By Stratagem Is As Much To Be Praised As He Who Overcomes Them By Force.
War
Enemy
Overcoming
There Is Nothing More Difficult To Plan, More Doubtful Of Success, Nor More Dangerous To Manage Than The Creation Of A New Order Of Things..... Whenever His Enemies Have Occasion To Attack The Innovator They Do So With The Passion Of Partisans, While The Others Defend Him Sluggishly So That The Innovator And His Party Alike Are Vulnerable.
Leadership
Party
Passion
In Our Own Days We Have Seen No Princes Accomplish Great Results Save Those Who Have Been Accounted Miserly.
Results
Accomplish
Has Beens
I Assert Once Again As A Truth To Which History As A Whole Bears Witness That Men May Second Their Fortune, But Cannot Oppose It; That They May Weave Its Warp, But Cannot Break It. Yet They Should Never Give Up, Because There Is Always Hope, Though They Know Not The End And More Towards It Along Roads Which Cross One Another And As Yet Are Unexplored; And Since There Is Hope, They Should Not Despair, No Matter What Fortune Brings Or In What Travail They Find Themselves.
Art
Giving Up
War
Men Generally Decide Upon A Middle Course, Which Is Most Hazardous, For They Know Neither How To Be Entirely Good Nor Entirely Bad.
Men
Decide Upon
Middle
It Is A Common Failing Of Man Not To Take Account Of Tempests During Fair Weather.
Men
Weather
Common
A Return To First Principles In A Republic Is Sometimes Caused By The Simple Virtues Of One Man. His Good Example Has Such An Influence That The Good Men Strive To Imitate Him, And The Wicked Are Ashamed To Lead A Life So Contrary To His Example.
Simple
Men
Good Man
I Am Firmly Convinced, Therefore, That To Set Up A Republic Which Is To Last A Long Time, The Way To Set About It Is To Constitute It As Sparta And Venice Were Constituted; To Place It In A Strong Position, And So To Fortify It That No One Will Dream Of Taking It By A Sudden Assault; And, On The Other Hand, Not To Make It So Large As To Appear Formidable To Its Neighbors. It Should In This Way Be Able To Enjoy Its Form Of Government For A Long Time. For War Is Made On A Commonwealth For Two Reasons: To Subjugate It, And For Fear Of Being Subjugated By It.
Dream
Art
Strong
When They Remain In Garrison, Soldiers Are Maintained With Fear And Punishment; When They Are Then Led To War, With Hope And Reward.
Art
War
Punishment
Benefits Should Be Granted Little By Little, So That They May Be Better Enjoyed.
Benefits
May
Littles
Although Deceit Is Detestable In All Other Things, Yet In The Conduct Of War It Is Laudable And Honorable; And A Commander Who Vanquishes An Enemy By Stratagem Is Equally Praised With One Who Gains Victory By Force.
War
Enemy
Victory
So In All Human Affairs One Notices, If One Examines Them Closely, That It Is Impossible To Remove One Inconvenience Without Another Emerging.
Art
War
Impossible
And Truly It Is A Very Natural And Ordinary Thing To Desire To Acquire, And Always, When Men Do It Who Can, They Will Be Praised Or Not Blamed; But When They Cannot, And Wish To Do It Anyway, Here Lies The Error And The Blame.
Lying
Men
Errors
There Is No Avoiding War; It Can Only Be Postponed To The Advantage Of Others.
Peace
Military
War
Of Mankind We May Say In General They Are Fickle, Hypocritical, And Greedy Of Gain.
Fickle
Literature
May
Never Was Anything Great Achieved Without Danger.
Success
Philosophical
Danger
We Cannot Attribute To Fortune Or Virtue That Which Is Achieved Without Either.
Philosophical
Umpires
Literature
And When Neither Their Property Nor Honour Is Touched, The Majority Of Men Live Content, And He Has Only To Contend With The Ambition Of A Few, Whom He Can Curb With Ease In Many Ways.
Art
War
Ambition
The Answer Is, Of Course, That It Would Be Best To Be Both Loved And Feared. But Since The Two Rarely Come Together, Anyone Compelled To Choose Will Find Greater Security In Being Feared Than In Being Loved.
Two
Together
Would Be
God And Nature Have Thrown All Human Fortunes Into The Midst Of Mankind; And They Are Thus Attainable Rather By Rapine Than By Industry, By Wicked Actions Rather Than By Good. Hence It Is That Men Feed Upon Each Other, And Those Who Cannot Defend Themselves Must Be Worried.
Art
War
Men
For He Who Innovates Will Have For His Enemies All Those Who Are Well Off Under The Existing Order Of Things, And Only Lukewarm Supporters In Those Who Might Be Better Off Under The New.
Order
Enemy
Might
The Peasant Wants Only To Be Left Alone To Prosper In Peace.
Want
Peasants
Left Alone
Many Have Imagined Republics And Principalities Which Have Never Been Seen Or Known To Exist In Reality; For How We Live Is So Far Removed From How We Ought To Live, That He Who Abandons What Is Done For What Ought To Be Done, Will Rather Bring About His Own Ruin Than His Preservation.
Art
War
Reality
Still, A Prince Should Make Himself Feared In Such A Way That If He Does Not Gain Love, He At Any Rate Avoids Hatred; For Fear And The Absence Of Hatred May Well Go Together, And Will Be Always Attained By One Who Abstains From Interfering With The Property Of His Citizens And Subjects Or With Their Women.
Art
War
Hatred
The Prince Must Consider, As Has Been In Part Said Before, How To Avoid Those Things Which Will Make Him Hated Or Contemptible; And As Often As He Shall Have Succeeded He Will Have Fulfilled His Part, And He Need Not Fear Any Danger In Other Reproaches.
Art
War
Needs
Hatred Is Gained As Much By Good Works As By Evil.
Hate
Philosophical
Evil
Wisdom Consists In Being Able To Distinguish Among Dangers And Make A Choice Of The Least Harmful.
Wisdom
Choices
Able
He Who Would Foresee What Is To Happen Should Look To What Has Happened: For All That Is Has Its Counterpart In Time Past.
Past
Looks
Should
To Keep Your Actions And Your Plans Secret Always Has Been A Very Good Thing . .. Marcus Crassus Said To One Who Asked Him When He Was Going To Move The Army: 'do You Believe That You Will Be The Only One Not To Hear The Trumpet?
Believe
Moving
Army
It Is Necessary For Him Who Lays Out A State And Arranges Laws For It To Presuppose That All Men Are Evil And That They Are Always Going To Act According To The Wickedness Of Their Spirits Whenever They Have Free Scope.
Men
Law
Evil
Any Man Who Tries To Be Good All The Time Is Bound To Come To Ruin Among The Great Number Who Are Not Good.
Men
Numbers
Trying
(a Ruler) Cannot And Should Not Keep His Word When To Do So Would Go Against His Interests Or When The Reason He Pledged It No Longer Holds.
Reason
Should
Interest
War Is Just When It Is Necessary; Arms Are Permissible When There Is No Hope Except In Arms.
War
Philosophical
Arms
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