Of Great Place Quotations
1. “Men in great place are thrice servants: servants of the sovereign or state; servants of fame; and servants of business.”Explanation: Bacon says powerful men are not truly free. They must serve their ruler, their reputation, and their official work.
Explanation: Bacon calls it strange that people desire power even though it takes away their freedom.2. “It is a strange desire, to seek power and to lose liberty.”
3. “The rising unto place is laborious; and by pains men come to greater pains.”Explanation: The path to power is full of struggle. People work hard to rise, but with power come greater troubles.
4. “Retire men cannot when they would, neither will they, when it were reason.”Explanation: Great men cannot retire even when they want or should. They remain attached to power.
Explanation: The real goal of ambition is to use power for doing good, not for pride or wealth.5. “Power to do good, is the true and lawful end of aspiring.”
6. “Delays, corruption, roughness, and facility.”Explanation: Bacon lists four vices of authority, delay in work, corruption, rudeness, and weakness.
7. “A place showeth the man.”Explanation: A man’s position reveals his real character. Power shows who he truly is.
8. “Have no freedom; neither in their persons, nor in their actions, nor in their times.”Explanation: Great men lose all personal freedom. They have no control over their life, work, or time.
9. “Old townsmen, that will be still sitting at their street door.”Explanation: Bacon compares great men to old citizens who still sit outside to be seen, even in old age.
10. “Honor is, or should be, the place of virtue.”Explanation: True honor should rest on virtue, not on power or wealth.
11. “Bind the hands of suitors also, from offering.”Explanation: A ruler must not only refuse bribes but also prevent others from offering them.
12. “Severity breedeth fear, but roughness breedeth hate.”Explanation: Harsh discipline creates fear, but rude behavior creates hatred.
13. “For bribes come but now and then; but if importunity, or idle respects, lead a man, he shall never be without.”Explanation: A man who cannot refuse others’ pressure or flattery will always face trouble.