This leads to a debate: is it better to be loved than feared, or the reverse? The answer… — Niccolo Machiavelli

This leads to a debate: is it better to be loved than feared, or the reverse? The answer is that it is desirable to be both, but because it is difficult to join them together, it is much safer for a prince to be feared than loved, if he is to fail in one of the two.

The Prince · 1532
★ 3.9
Provenance
Current citation
Machiavelli, Nicolò. The Prince, translated by Peter Bondanella. Oxford University Press, 2005.
Original citation
Machiavelli, Niccolò. Il Principe [The Prince]. Rome: Antonio Blado d'Asola, 1532.