... When Princes devote themselves rather to pleasure than to arms, they lose their dominions.

The first method for estimating the intelligence of a ruler is to look at the men he has around him.

Never attempt to win by force what can be won by deception.

The promise given was a necessity of the past: the word broken is a necessity of the present.

God is not willing to do everything, and thus take away our free will and that share of glory which belongs to us.

Is it better to be loved or feared?

In conclusion, the arms of others either fall from your back, or they weigh you down, or they bind you fast.

Wisdom consists of knowing how to distinguish the nature of trouble, and in choosing the lesser evil.

It is necessary for a prince wishing to hold his own to know how to do wrong, and to make use of it or not according to necessity.

There are many who think a wise prince ought, when he has the chance, to foment astutely some enmity, so that by suppressing it he will augment his greatness.

Armour belonging to someone else either chops off you or weighs you down or is too tight

There are no moral obligations in the game of empire.

We all try to be are greatest, but what if are greatest hasn’t affected others with greatness…

The final tormenting, unanswerable question: what is 'success' in mourning?

With her mouth closed, her mind screamed.

We ran three cars last year. Unfortunately, as time went on, we did have to let a few people go, which we regretted, but just because of the situation.

When I'm working on a novel of my own, I try to read mostly nonfiction, although sometimes I break down and peek at something else.

That's one of our biggest problems, it's always somebody else's fault instead of our own fault.

I'm a brilliant filmographer. Is that a word?

As to the garden, it seems to me its chief fruit is-blackbirds.