Quotes About Ethics

good individuals cannot exist without good education, and good education cannot exist without good laws

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 learn to bring about his own ruin than his preservation. A man who wishes to make a profession of goodness in everything must necessarily come to grief among so many who are not good. Therefore it is necessary for a prince, who wishes to maintain himself, to learn how not to be good, and to use this knowledge and not use it, according to the necessity of the case

Still, to slaughter fellow-citizens, to betray friends, to be devoid of honour, pity, and religion, cannot be counted as merits, for these are means which may lead to power, but which confer no glory.

The nature of men is such that they find themselves obligated as much for the benefits they confer as for those they receive.

the best possible fortress is—not to be hated by the people

One who begins to live by rapine will always find some reason for taking the goods of others

Cornelius Tacitus when he says, that "men are readier to pay back injuries than benefits, since to requite a benefit is felt to be a burthen, to return an injury a gain.

A return to first principles in a republic is sometimes caused by the simple virtues of one man. His good example has such an influence that the good men strive to imitate him, and the wicked are ashamed to lead a life so contrary to his example.

to a Prince who wants to do great things, it is necessary to learn to deceive.

Such as they are, its ethics are those of Machiavelli's contemporaries; yet they cannot be said to be out of date so long as the governments of Europe rely on material rather than on moral forces.

How does one use power to do good, when wielding power requires one to do evil ?

You must know, then, that there are two methods of fighting, the one by law, the other by force: the first method is that of men, the second of beasts; but as the first method is often insufficient, one must have recourse to the second. It is therefore necessary to know well how to use both the beast and the man.

above all things he must keep his hands off the property of others, because men more quickly forget the death of their father than the loss of their patrimony. Besides

government should be elevated into a living moral force, capable of inspiring the people with a just recognition of the fundamental principles of society;

Nale?y bowiem pamiÄ™ta?, ?e ludzi trzeba albo potraktowa? Å'agodnie albo wygubi?, gdy? mszczÄ… siÄ™ za bÅ'ahe krzywdy, za ci??kie zaÅ› nie mogÄ…. Przeto gdy siÄ™ krzywdzi czÅ'owieka, nale?y czyni? to w ten sposób, aby nie trzeba byÅ'o obawia? siÄ™ zemsty.

although crimes may win an empire, they do not win glory.

takes us the farther distance from the Old World to something new and revolutionary in human thought. That moral center, however, is hard to find with modern eyes. Locating it requires

Hatred is gained as much by good works as by evil.

a veces, lo que parece virtud es causa de ruina, y lo que parece vicio solo acaba por traer el bienestar y la seguridad.

Above all things he must keep his hands off the property of others, because men more quickly forget the death of their father than the loss of their patrimony.

Great ambition is the passion of a great character. Those endowed with it may perform very good or very bad acts. All depends on the principles which direct them.

The wish to acquire is in truth very natural and common, and men always do so when they can, and for this they will be praised not blamed; but when they cannot do so, yet wish to do so by any means, then there is folly and blame.

It is necessary', he writes, for a prince to learn 'how not to be good' (Ch. XV). Machiavelli's wording on this matter is extremely precise: a man who wants 'to profess goodness at all times' will inevitably fail because he is surrounded by many unscrupulous men. Hence, 'it is necessary for a prince who wishes to maintain himself to learn how not to be good, and to use this knowledge or not to use it according to necessity' (Ch. XV).

cannot be called talent to slay fellow-citizens, to deceive friends, to be without faith, without mercy, without religion; such methods may gain empire, but not glory.