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Forum » Are these books overrated: "The Art of War", "The Prince" and "48 laws of power"?
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Thread: Are these books overrated: "The Art of War", "The Prince" and "48 laws of power"?

post 1665132593 07-28-2022, 02:23 PM
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Are these books overrated: "The Art of War", "The Prince" and "48 laws of power"?

Are they worth reading?
post 1665132973 07-28-2022, 02:28 PM
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they are normie books.
post 1665133083 07-28-2022, 02:29 PM
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Originally Posted By GaryCarnivals⏩
they are normie books.
Recommend me better books
post 1665133183 07-28-2022, 02:31 PM
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First two are not overrated. Last one is.

If you really want a good book to read, read The Strategy of Conflict by Schelling.
post 1665133273 07-28-2022, 02:32 PM
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I liked 48 Laws of Power. Some of the laws press behaviors that are kind of chitty and unscrupulous, but others are good. Overall I enjoyed reading it

Btw 48 Laws takes a lot of concepts from the other two books as well.
post 1665133343 07-28-2022, 02:33 PM
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Originally Posted By Scottybby⏩
Recommend me better books
What is your IQ ?
post 1665133483 07-28-2022, 02:36 PM
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Originally Posted By GaryCarnivals⏩
What is your IQ ?
I'm high IQ
post 1665133543 07-28-2022, 02:37 PM
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Originally Posted By Scottybby⏩
Are they worth reading?
All three books are the favorites of many black dudes from the hood. I remember Art of War and Machiavelli The Prince, Tupac read those and when he said he read them every other black dude started claiming they read that book or would carry them around, the 48 laws of power 50 cent was boasting about it years ago so they started liking that as well.
post 1665133693 07-28-2022, 02:40 PM
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Originally Posted By ChaliHo⏩
All three books are the favorites of many black dudes from the hood. I remember Art of War and Machiavelli The Prince, Tupac read those and when he said he read them every other black dude started claiming they read that book or would carry them around, the 48 laws of power 50 cent was boasting about it years ago so they started liking that as well.
I also heard Michael Franseze talking about the prince, how the mafia used to study that book and use it's insights as a kind of manual. They were very machiavellian
post 1665133743 07-28-2022, 02:41 PM
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I also love reading/watching stuff about people like Alexander the Grea, Julius caesar and Napoleon
post 1665134083 07-28-2022, 02:47 PM
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The Art of War - Not overrated but you have to read and think about it differently from its original intention, military leadership. What are the principles and how can they be applied more broadly?

The Prince - Not overrated but misunderstood often. Machiavelli wrote it to gain favor with Lorenzo de' Medici but this is not what Machiavelli thought in terms ofhow the world should work. It was more of a "here's some things you can do to gain and exercise power" and examples of it in the real world. If you really want to know what Machiavelli thought politically, read Discourses on Livy instead. Take The Prince with a grain of salt.

48 Laws of Power - Not overrated. It's like a combination of the two above where Greene makes the case that powerful people share traits, boils them down to "laws" and cites examples of these in history. Like The Art of War, you take the laws and examples and think more broadly about how they can be applied.
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post 1665134333 07-28-2022, 02:50 PM
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The first two are good if you work for or have to deal with someone who relies on them to operate. I know it sounds simple but a lot of people who use the tactics in these picks stick to them tightly and its better to know their mindset.
post 1665134453 07-28-2022, 02:52 PM
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Better reading those than not reading at all. If you want to get into non-fiction/self-help/personal development they are good starting points. Not the end all be all by any means though.
R.I.P. Aziz "Zyzz" Shavershian 3/24/1989 8/5/2011
post 1665134643 07-28-2022, 02:55 PM
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Originally Posted By Aaron4Prez⏩
Better reading those than not reading at all. If you want to get into non-fiction/self-help/personal development they are good starting points. Not the end all be all by any means though.
What book do you recommend after I've read the art of war?
post 1665134803 07-28-2022, 02:58 PM
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I like Robert Greene. Got his audiobooks for Mastery and The Art of Seduction. He did a good JRE with Aubrey Marcus (#464).
post 1665134923 07-28-2022, 03:00 PM
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I also liked George Devol - Notorious Riverboat Gambler, Card Sharp & Scam Artist
post 1665135553 07-28-2022, 03:09 PM
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Am ordering the art of war and the prince right now. I read a summary of the 48 laws of power and saw the "laws" agree with a lot of them and seems interesting but a bit to concrete/easy for me.
post 1665135703 07-28-2022, 03:12 PM
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The art of war is great but I suggest looking at places where someone has applied it to a more applicable concept to yourself or something you are interested in. Unless you are good at drawing those parallels and seeing how people have utilized it’s concepts in various business, political, etc.. settings.
post 1665135733 07-28-2022, 03:12 PM
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Books are gay. You can read the important cliffs of any book in 2 minutes
post 1665135943 07-28-2022, 03:17 PM
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Originally Posted By Duckliver⏩
The art of war is great but I suggest looking at places where someone has applied it to a more applicable concept to yourself or something you are interested in. Unless you are good at drawing those parallels and seeing how people have utilized it’s concepts in various business, political, etc.. settings.
Yeah I get that. I'm not going into ancient battle so taking his words literal is probably not very useful. I will extrapolate his insights and try to apply them to business/study
post 1665136013 07-28-2022, 03:18 PM
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Originally Posted By Scottybby⏩
What book do you recommend after I've read the art of war?
I suppose it depends on what route you're wanting to head down:

Money/Financial: "Think and Grow Rich" is another classic that I think has stood the test of time
Masculinity: "The Way of the Superior Man" is a favorite of mine
Spiritual: "The Power of Now" is what originally got me into self-help for a short while
Generic personal development/self-help: "The Secret" is basically where most current self-help authors and books get their inspiration from if not just outright plagiarize

Other classics include "How to Win Friends and Influence People", "The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People", and I've always liked "The Alchemist" although it's the most outside from everything listed above.
R.I.P. Aziz "Zyzz" Shavershian 3/24/1989 8/5/2011
post 1665136223 07-28-2022, 03:21 PM
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*No
*Yes
"Not Overrated but chronically misapplied
Smooth Seas don't make Strong Sailors. Keep your head up.

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post 1665136293 07-28-2022, 03:22 PM
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Originally Posted By Scottybby⏩
What book do you recommend after I've read the art of war?
The war of art (srs, no typo)
Smooth Seas don't make Strong Sailors. Keep your head up.

MrWhiskey24 for jolly cooperation (PS)
post 1665136353 07-28-2022, 03:23 PM
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The Prince is pretty short. I would absolutely read it.

I became fascinated with the Black Legend in high school. Machiavelli of course talks about one of the perpetrators in Cesare Borgia (not in terms of the Black Legend, but just as a military/political leader).
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post 1665136963 07-28-2022, 03:33 PM
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Art of war is on Amazon Kindle for really cheap
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