Quotes About Power

Care for us! True, indeed! They ne'er cared for us yet: suffer us to famish, and their storehouses crammed with grain; make edicts for usury, to support usurers; repeal daily any wholesome act established against the rich, and provide more piercing statutes daily to chain up and restrain the poor. If the wars eat us not up, they will; and there's all the love they bear us.

By the sweet power of music: therefore the poet did feign that Orpheus drew trees, stones and floods; since nought so stockish, hard and full of rage, but music for the time doth change his nature. The man that hath no music in himself, nor is not moved with concord of sweet sounds, is fit for treasons, stratagems and spoils; The motions of his spirit are dull as night and his affections dark as Erebus: Let no such man be trusted. Mark the music.

Imperious Caesar, dead and turned to clay, Might stop a hole to keep the wind away. Oh, that that earth, which kept the world in awe, Should patch a wall t' expel the winter's flaw!

Hark, villains! I will grind your bones to dust. (Act V, Scene 2, 2503)

You are an alchemist; make gold of that.

The world is grown so bad that wrens make pray where eagles dare not perch

I'll find a day to massacre them all And raze their faction and their family, The cruel father and his traitorous sons, To whom I sued for my dear son's life, And make them know what 'tis to let a queen Kneel in the streets and beg for grace in vain.

Discharge my followers; let them hence away, From Richard's night to Bolingbrooke's fair day.

Those he commands move only in command, Nothing in love: now does he feel his title Hang loose about him, like a giant's robe Upon a dwarfish thief

The pow'r I have on you is to spare you / The malice towards you, to forgive you. Posthumus

These growing feathers pluck'd from Caesar's wing Will make him fly an ordinary pitch, Who else would soar above the view of men And keep us all in servile fearfulness.

Passion lends them power, time means to meet, tempering extremities with extremes sweet.

Believe then, if you please, that I can do strange things.

Fate, show thy force; ourselves we do not owe; what is decreed must be, and be this so.

I have no words. My voice is in my sword.

There is Throats to be cut, and Works to be done.

But, orderly to end where I begun: Our wills and fates do so contrary run That our devices still are overthrown; Our thoughts are ours, their ends none of our own. So think thou wilt no second husband wed, But die thy thoughts when thy first lord is dead.

All springs reduce their currents to mine eyes, That I, being governed by the watery moon, May send forth plenteous tears to drown the world.

William Shakespeare

It is the stars, The stars above us, govern our conditions.

Northumberland, thou ladder wherewithal the mounting Bolingbroke ascends my throne.

Tis time to fear when tyrants seem to kiss.

For thy sweet love remembr'd such wealth brings That then, I scorn to change my state with kings.

To be thus is nothing, but to be safely thus...