It gave me a pause and a lot of starts: most of this stuff is what we see across lots of self-help lit of the modern kind. Shocking! Ok, I dunno why this one is so shocking but it is. it might feel like the book's general message veers very close to Machiavelli, yet in the end staying slight apart.Ī suprisingly good book, with something for everyone, even when not living like they once did.more The last aphorism gives the whole lot a nice twist it might make you read the text again, which may not be hard work since the book is quite slim :) The book is quite easy to read, even if you don't really notice that Christianity still sort of flows underground in the text, most of the time. Sometimes making me think of the state of the world now, how to know when to fold 'em, not to hold to opinions too stubbornly, remember to already live and not leave living to old age, and the "act as though always on view" sounds interesting. There were a few standout aphorisms for me: 1o1, 110, 183, 249, 273, 297 really felt close to me. One has to realise that others are playing the game, too. Disillusion is sometimes good, it helps in looking behind appearances, where danger and opportunities may hide. There is more value in difficulty than easy - there is challenge this way. In everything, though, prudence is the main key that keep one afloat in the changes and risks of the society. The author stresses the importance of taking ever-changing circumstances into account, as aphrosim's tips may not apply on every occasion. Translation keeps out most word-play and puns, since they don't translate well. The style is laconic, which I like since it keeps the message clearly floating. Some of the text clearly shows that certain aphorisms can be grouped together, and some themes do pop up again as one keeps reading. It is for the 17th Century Baroque Spanish upper society, Spain being then in decline, away from being the world power, with France and the Rococo style soon taking their place. The name hints at the size of the first printing of this books - pocket-fitting and densely printed (sometimes hard to read because of this). So: this book is a series of 300 witty, thought-provoking aphorisms (which are nicely shown in the contents list), with some helpful notes at the end - you can't expect everyone to be familiar with Greek/Roman classic texts (including Aesop's tales) and the Bible. There's is also some certainty that the author read "The Prince" (since it came out earlier than this book, which came out in 1647) the fact that the author of this present book was a Jesuit no doubt helped, since I do know Jesuits have been thought of as cunning, both in positive and negative sense. If you have - or will - read Machiavelli's "The Prince", Sun Tzu's "The Art Of War" and/or Castiglione's "The Book Of The Courtier", this is another good book to add to these type of books. There's is also some certainty that the author read "The Prince" (since it came out earlier than this book, which came out in 1647) the fact that the author of this present book was a Jesuit no doubt helped, since I do know Jesuits h This book wasn't quite what I expected, yet it was still a good experience. This book wasn't quite what I expected, yet it was still a good experience.
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