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The 48 Laws of Power
by: Robert Greene

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Binding: Paperback
Dewey Decimal Number: 303.3
EAN: 9780140280197
ISBN: 0140280197
Label: Penguin (Non-Classics)
Manufacturer: Penguin (Non-Classics)
Number Of Items: 1
Number Of Pages: 452
Publication Date: September 01, 2000
Publisher: Penguin (Non-Classics)
Release Date: September 05, 2000
Sales Rank: 616
Studio: Penguin (Non-Classics)

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Editorial Review:

Book Description:
Amoral, cunning, ruthless, and instructive, this piercing work distills three thousand years of the history of power in to 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 teach the need for prudence ('Law 1: Never Outshine the Master'), the virtue of stealth ('Law 3: Conceal Your Intentions'), and many demand the total absence of mercy ('Law 15: Crush Your Enemy Totally'), but like it or not, all have applications in real life. 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.

Amazon.com:
'Learning the game of power requires a certain way of looking at the world, a shifting of perspective,' writes Robert Greene. Mastery of one's emotions and the arts of deception and indirection are, he goes on to assert, essential. The 48 laws outlined in this book 'have a simple premise: certain actions always increase one's power ... while others decrease it and even ruin us.'

The laws cull their principles from many great schemers--and scheming instructors--throughout history, from Sun-Tzu to Talleyrand, from Casanova to con man Yellow Kid Weil. They are straightforward in their amoral simplicity: 'Get others to do the work for you, but always take the credit,' or 'Discover each man's thumbscrew.' Each chapter provides examples of the consequences of observance or transgression of the law, along with 'keys to power,' potential 'reversals' (where the converse of the law might also be useful), and a single paragraph cleverly laid out to suggest an image (such as the aforementioned thumbscrew); the margins are filled with illustrative quotations. Practitioners of one-upmanship have been given a new, comprehensive training manual, as up-to-date as it is timeless.

Customer Reviews

Average Rating: out of 5 stars

Rating:

- My Former Bible
Only two types of people have been and will be attracted to reading this book: those who hope it's about one thing and those who know it's about the other. The former belong to the timid, powerless, low-self esteem majority who are simply looking for the ultimate guide to gaining respect and admiration from their peers. The latter belong to the unscrupulous, dare I say sociopathic ever-growing minority whose end goal is to win at everything against everyone by any means. Once the book has been read and fully digested, one of two conclusions will be reached. The first is a sudden awareness of what a perfectly outstanding tool they hold in their hands and the limitless rewards it can afford them. The second is an absolute disgust and horror at what a dangerous volume this is and the malicious behavior it outright encourages. Interestingly, the timid are no always the ones repulsed and the ruthless are not always ... Read More

Rating:

- 48 laws of power
I'm pretty into morality but I quite like this book. But If you're not weary of someone who recommends deception (as the author does) you deserve to get suckered. Some of the rhetorical techniques he employs include writing in the style of that wise blind guy who knew everything in Kung fu, it doesn't work at all once you've seen an interview with him. Also putting a number (48) in the title makes it sound very scientific, I'd bet he has no idea if there really are exactly 48 laws of power.

Still I would not say all the laws are immoral or even amoral as the blurb claims. Some, such as not hanging around with people who drag you down and "assuming formlessness" are about self defence not predation. You can pick and choose according to your code of ethics or lack thereof.

It probably should have come with a warning. The philosopher Alfred Whitehead said Machiavellian techniques work well for ... Read More

Rating:

- Smart Book
Very smart book. Has some very unique and useful tools. I don't agree with everything but I like the book and I will use some parts. I try to treat people as I would have them treat me....The Golden Rule. But with trouble makers or bad people this book can be very helpful.

Rating:

- Why do you need this "power"?
Why do you need this power in the first place? Here is a quote from 7 Habits, "Standing near the graves of famous people, we understand all the silly wars in which they fought."

I will not be surprised if this book is used as a required reading in terrorist camps to show the "real Americans". Clearly, it is against democracy, Christianity, and all other values.

Read 7 Habits by Covey instead.

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