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These opportunities, then, gave these men the chance they needed, and their great abilities made them recognize it.

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When evening comes, I return home and go into my study. On the threshold I strip off my muddy, sweaty, workday clothes, and put on the robes of court ...more

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Those who believe that where great personages are concerned new favors cause old injuries to be forgotten deceive themselves.

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Without an opportunity, their abilities would have been wasted, and without their abilities, the opportunity would have arisen in vain.

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From this arises the following question: whether it is better to be loved than feared, or the reverse. The answer is that one would like to be both th...more

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But confining myself more to the particular, I say that a prince may be seen happy to-day and ruined to-morrow without having shown any change of disp...more

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..it happens in all human affairs that we never seek to escape one mischief without falling into another. Prudence therefore consists in knowing how t...more

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For that reason, let a prince have the credit of conquering and holding his state, the means will always be considered honest, and he will be praised ...more

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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. And I shal...more

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I conclude therefore that, fortune being changeful and mankind steadfast in their ways, so long as the two are in agreement men are successful, but un...more

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Injuries, therefore, should be inflicted all at once, that their ill savour being less lasting may the less offend; whereas, benefits should be confer...more

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For this reason a prince ought to take care that he never lets anything slip from his lips that is not replete with the above-named five qualities, th...more

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Wisdom consists of knowing how to distinguish the nature of trouble, and in choosing the lesser evil.