The Quotable Machiavelli
On Friendship:
“You should keep your friends close, and your enemies closer.”
On How Not to Have a Happy Marriage:
“It is better to be feared than loved.”
On the Second Amendment:
“Before all else, be armed.”
On Acting Rashly:
“The wise man does at once what the fool does finally.”
One Bad Marriage
Machiavelli was married for 25 years to Marietta Corsini. It rather goes without saying that he cheated on her frequently. (The ends of wanting to make out, after all, justify the means of breaking your marriage vows.) Marietta was a loving and devoted wife, but it seems Machiavelli never thought much of marriage: In one of his plays, a devil chooses to return to the fires of hell rather than spend time with his wife.
Find this humor by clicking here.
