SHOULD YOU LEARN HOW NOT TO BE GOOD? - #machiavelli

Powerful quote from the Prince. “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.” – Niccolo Machiavelli, The Prince Niccolò Machiavelli was a Florentine diplomat, historian, and philosopher during the Renaissance. He is most famous for his book The Prince where he outlines political advice on how to maintain control in Italy. In the book, he argues that “the ends justify the means” when it comes to governing a state. The Prince is an example of Machiavelli's attempt to offer a manual for political conduct based on historical lessons and his own experience as Florence's foreign secretary. The Prince defied the then-dominant Catholic and Social doctrine on political authority, giving rise to the derisive term "machiavellian". Obviously, this is not a stoic quote, and Marcus Aurelius would have not supported these ideas as this is quite different to one of his quotes: “Do not act as if you were going to live ten thousand years. Death hangs over you. While you live, while it is in your power, be good.”