The 48 Laws of Power

Machiavelli has a new rival. And Sun Tzu had better watch his back. Greene . . . has put together a checklist of ambitious behavior. Just reading the table of contents is enough to stir a little corner-office lust.New York magazine Beguiling . . . literate . . . fascinating. A wry primer for people who desperately want to be on top.People magazine An heir to Machiavellis Prince . . . gentler souls will find this book frightening, those whose moral compass is oriented solely to power will have a perfect vade mecum. Publishers Weekly Satisfyingly dense and . . . literary, with fantastic examples of genius power-game players. Its The Rules meets In Pursuit of Wow! with a degree in comparative literature.Allure. THE BESTSELLING BOOK FOR THOSE WHO WANT POWER, WATCH POWER, OR WANT TO ARM THEMSELVES AGAINST POWER . . .. A moral, cunning, ruthless, and instructive, this piercing work distills three thousand years of the history of power into forty-eight well-explicated laws. As attention-grabbing in its design as it is in its content, this bold volume outlines the laws of power in their unvarnished essence, synthesizing the philosophies of Machiavelli, Sun-tzu, Carl von Clausewitz, and other great thinkers. Some laws require prudence (Law 1: Never Outshine the Master), some stealth (Law 3: Conceal Your Intentions), and some the total absence of mercy (Law 15: Crush Your Enemy Totally) but like it or not, all have applications in real-life situations. Illustrated through the tactics of Queen Elizabeth I, Henry Kissinger, P. T. Barnum, and other famous figures who have wielded -- or been victimized by -- power, these laws will fascinate any reader interested in gaining, observing, or defending against ultimate control.