CHAPTER SUMMARY:

Chapter XVI: Generosity and Meanness

Many men respect liberality, often known as generosity. However, a prince's state
will be destroyed if he gains a reputation for giving. Outward excess is necessary to
establish a reputation for generosity, but this finally exhausts all of the prince's resources.
The prince will ultimately be compelled to impose excessive taxes on his subjects in
order to gather the necessary funds to uphold his reputation for benevolence. The people
would eventually hate and dislike the prince because of his generosity. In addition, any
ruler who makes an effort to shed his reputation for generosity will quickly gain one for
miserliness.
In history, Caesar, the current king of France, and the current monarch of Spain
have all shown how the practice of discipline may lead to tremendous success. A prince's
reputation for generosity, however, might also result in a reputation for miserliness and
disgrace. Historical individuals like Pope Julius II, who employed equality to uphold his
reign, lend evidence to this. Caesar's passing may have had an impact on his spending,
but in the end, a prince's kindness produced hatred and the end of his dominion.

BOOK HIGHLIGHT:

“A ruler in power and a man seeking power are two different things.”

ANALYSIS ON THE HIGHLIGHT:

The statement "A ruler in power and a man seeking power are two different
things" emphasizes a key distinction in the worlds of politics and leadership. It means
those who are already in positions of power may act, think, and analyze things very
differently from those who aim to advance to such positions of power. A ruler in
the position of control must consider retaining and consolidating power while also
making ethically dubious judgments to sustain state stability and security.
Political hopefuls work to gain power by forming alliances, winning support from the
public, and using strategies to outwit rivals.

MY EMOTION WHILE READING THE CHAPTER:

Reading Chapter 16 left me puzzled because political generosity differs from

what we are used to. Since the leader would lose his or her own resources and all respect,
acting meanly and withholding taxes from everyone would only produce mild
resentment. Being generous in leadership does not mean giving people your own money.
Because of the protection and decreased poverty among everyone, those feelings of
hatred will eventually be replaced by respect.

CONCLUSION:

I learnt that being generous is unhelpful. Giving decreases resources and stops
more giving. While poverty could result in humiliation, generosity will ultimately result
in hatred.