Niccolo Machiavelli Quote by David Mitchell

“We are much beholden to Machiavelli and others, that write what men do, and not what they ought to do . For it is…

— Anonymous

Machiavel, discoursing on these matters, finds virtue to be so essentially necessary to the establishment and preservation of liberty, that he thinks it impossible…

— Algernon Sidney

In order to achieve the most noble accomplishments, the leader may have to 'enter into evil.' This is the chilling insight that has made…

— Michael A. Ledeen

“Prudent men are wont to say--and this not rashly or without good ground--that he who would foresee what has to be should reflect on…

— Machiavelli Nicolo Machiavelli

“These wonderful narrations inspired me with strange feelings. Was man, indeed, at once so powerful, so virtuous and magnificent, yet so vicious and base?…

— Mary Shelley

“Martyrdom, sir, is what these people like: it is the only way in which a man can become famous without ability. The Devil's Disciple,…

— George Bernard Shaw

I've been fascinated by Machiavelli since I was very young. I've always felt that he had a bad rap from history, and that he…

— Salman Rushdie

“Was man, indeed, at once so powerful, so virtuous and magnificent, yet so vicious and base? He appeared at one time a mere scion…

— Mary Shelley

“It must be considered that there is nothing more difficult to carry out, nor more doubtful of success, nor more dangerous to handle, than…

— Nancy Goldstone

“Washington politician: navy tailored suit, hair graying at the temples, a smile for every constituent, blue eyes that could convey sincerity, anger, or righteous…

— R.D. Brady

“A man of nothing who has started out from nothing starting out from an unassignable place: these are, for Machiavelli, the conditions for regeneration.”

— Louis Althusser

“Power tends to corrupt, and absolute power corrupts absolutely. Great men are almost always bad men, even when they exercise influence and not authority,…

— John Emerich Edward Dalberg-Acton