The 48 Laws Of Power

tached
toa

particularstyle,

he

would

deliberatelyupset

the

public

with

a

newseriesof

paintings

thatwent

against

all

expectations.

Bettertocreate

somethingugly

and

disturbing,

he

believed,

thantoletviewers

grow

toofa-

miliarwithhiswork.Understand:

People

feel

superior

tothe

person

whose

actions

they

can

predict.

If

you

showthemwhoisin

control

byplaying

against

their

expectations,you

both

gain

their

respect

and

lightenyour

hold

ondreir

fleeting

attention.

Ima

g

e:

The

Limelight.

The

actorwho

steps

intothisbxil»

liant

light

attainsa

heightened

presence.

All

eyes

areonhim.There

isroomfor

only

oneactoratatimein

the

limelight’s

narrow

beam;

dowhat-

everittakestomake

yourself

itsfocus.

Make

yourgestures

so

large,

amus-

ing,

and scandalous that the

lightstays

on

you

whilethe

other actorsareleft

in

the shadows.

Authority:

Be ostentatiousand

beseen....Whatisnotseenis

as

though

itdidnotexist... .It

was

light

thatfirstcausedallcre-

ation

to

shine

forth.

Display

fills

upmany

blanks,

covers

up

defi-

ciencies,

and

gives

everything

asecond

life,

especially

whenit

is backed

by genuine

merit.

(Baltasar

Gracién,

16014658)

LAW 6 349