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.
Niccolo MachiavelliRead
One can generally say this about men: that they are ungrateful, fickle, simulators and deceivers, avoiders of danger, greedy for gain; and while you work for their good they are completely yours, offering you their blood, their property, their lives, and their sons when danger is far away; but when it comes nearer to you, they turn away.
Interpretation
What this quote means
This quote highlights the fickle nature of human loyalty and gratitude, particularly in times of danger.
Niccolo Machiavelli's quote reflects a cynical view of human nature, suggesting that people are often ungrateful and deceptive. While individuals may appear loyal and altruistic when circumstances are safe, their true colors emerge when facing actual danger, revealing a tendency to prioritize their own survival over their obligations to others. This observation prompts a deeper consideration of trust and the transient nature of human relationships.
Themes
Human NatureLoyaltyBetrayalSelfishnessTrust
In practice
Example use cases
During a discussion on the trustworthiness of allies in a business partnership.
More from Niccolo Machiavelli
All quotes →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 by everybody because the vulgar are always taken by what a thing seems to be and by what comes of it; and in the world there are only the vulgar, for the few find a place there only when the many have no ground to rest on.
Niccolo MachiavelliRead
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.
Niccolo MachiavelliRead
Whoever conquers a free town and does not demolish it commits a great error and may expect to be ruined himself.
Niccolo MachiavelliRead
And here one must not that hatred is acquired just as much by means of good actions as by bad ones; and so, as I said above, if a prince wishes to maintain the state, he is often obliged not to be good; because whenever that group which you believe you need to support you is corrupted, whether it be the common people, the soldiers, or the nobles, it is to your advantage to follow their inclinations in order to satisfy them; and then good actions are your enemy.
Niccolo MachiavelliRead
The chief foundations of all states, new as well as old or composite, are good laws and good arms.
Niccolo MachiavelliRead
Similar quotes
The Dell Theory of Conflict Prevention argues that no two countries that are both part of the same global supply chain will ever fight a war as long as they are each part of that supply chain.
Thomas FriedmanRead
Religion has actually convinced people that there's an invisible man living in the sky.
George CarlinRead
For the traveler we see leaning on his neighbor is an honest and well-meaning man and full of melancholy, like those Chekhov characters so laden with virtues that they never know success in life.
Orhan PamukRead
We want no revolution; we want the brotherhood of men. We want men to love one another. We want all men to have what is sufficient for their needs. And now - strange thought - the devil has so maneuvered that the people turn from Him because those who profess Him are clothed in soft raiment and sit at well-spread tables and deny the poor.
Dorothy DayRead
I believe that all is illusion and vanity outside the treasure of truths slowly accumulated, and which will never again be lost. I believe that the sum of these truths, always increasing, will at last confer on man incalculable power and peace, if not happiness. Yes, I believe in the final triumph of life.
Emile ZolaRead
The yogi cannot be afraid to die, because he has brought life to every cell of his body. We are afraid to die, because we are afraid we have not lived. The yogi has lived.
B.K.S. IyengarRead