What villain actually had a good point?
Well, it depends on what we consider a villain and if the point was good. It is pretty subjective. I heard this a long time ago. He is not necessarily a villain, but the quote is scary. I think we are seeing this played out almost daily in politics and some business circles.
“It is much safer to be feared than loved, if one cannot be both.” – Machiavelli
I had to look this part up. I was not sure when he said it or what the context was. However, it is something that stuck with me the first time I read it and how it is used as a means of power and control.
It was written by Niccolò Machiavelli in his classic political treatise, The Prince (Il Principe), in 1513 (though it wasn’t formally published until 1532, a few years after his death).
Machiavelli’s point wasn’t about being needlessly cruel; it was about human nature. Love is fickle and easily broken when things get tough, but fear is sustained by the dread of punishment, which never fails.
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