Question

It is much safer to be feared than loved. . . .

Among the wonderful deeds of Hannibal this one is enumerated: that having led an enormous army, composed of many various races of men, to fight in foreign lands, no dissensions arose either among them or against the prince, whether in his bad or in his good fortune. This arose from nothing else than his inhuman cruelty . . . but without that cruelty, his other virtues were not sufficient to produce this effect. . . . That it is true his other virtues would not have been sufficient for him may be proved by the case of Scipio, that most excellent man . . . his army rebelled in Spain; this arose from nothing but his too great forbearance, which gave his soldiers more license than is consistent with military discipline.

–The Prince,
Niccolò Machiavelli

Which words in the passage have negative connotations?

How do the words with negative connotations support the claim?

Answer 1

Words/phrases with negative connotations
- inhuman (modifier)
- cruelty
- dissensions
- rebelled
- too great forbearance (the phrase “too great” makes an otherwise positive word negative)
- more license (license used negatively here)
- bad (as in “bad or in his good fortune”)

How those negative words support the claim
- They create a contrast between the violent, harsh measures (inhuman cruelty) and the disorder that follows leniency (dissensions, rebelled, more license). By using strongly negative language for the consequences of being too lenient and for the disorder that leniency produces, the passage argues that cruelty — though itself unpleasant — is effective at preventing those worse outcomes.
- The negative diction emphasizes danger and instability when a ruler is “too forbearing,” which makes the argument that it is “safer to be feared than loved” seem practical and necessary rather than merely cruel. In short, the words cast leniency as leading to chaos and cruelty as the unpleasant but stabilizing remedy, supporting Machiavelli’s claim.