Any help with an educated interpretation of this quote? and any reallife examples if you have them. Thanks!?

Question

“Since love and fear can hardly exist together, if we must choose between them, it is far safer to be feared than loved.”

Answer 1

key word SAFER... because when you are loved you leave yourself open to attack by the ones you love. Oh and by the way Betrayl feels worse than anything all of your enemies can do combined!

Answer 2

I think this quote must be in a leadership context.  I don't think I agree with it in a general way.  The person must be saying that as a leader, you are far more respected if you are feared.  Not sure I agree there, either.  However most people of faith would say that "The Fear of God" is a good thing, because you are respecting His laws and His wishes.  Hope this helps you.

Answer 3

Hey, it's Machiavelli's "The Prince." An intriguing book.

Anyway, what the quote means is that as a leader, it is impossible for your people to love you and to be afraid of you. Therefore, the leader should make his subjects fear him, because this would lead to a distant respect. If his subjects love him, they could grow to become bolder and more independent. It could also lead to people thinking that he is weak.

Answer 4

Love and fear exist together frequently, so the premise isn't correct.  The most common examples of their coexistence are children, especially small children, with abusive parents.  The kids love their parents, but they treat them like land mines, knowing they may explode at any minute.  On a deeper level is the relationship between a religious person and God.  "The fear of God is the beginning of understanding," but "you are to love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.

If you accept the premise, then it is safer to be feared than loved, because people who fear you will leave you alone, and you will not be bugged by people loving you and trying to change you.  Ebenezer Scrooge is a wonderful example of someone who preferred being feared to being loved.

Would you mind if I prefer being loved to being feared, 'safer' or not?

LATER...  Oops, you did say a 'real life example.'  How about the Roman emperor Caligula?  Stalin was another.  So was Saddam Hussein.  Of the three, only Stalin 'safely' survived.