Napoleon's Aphorisms Chillingly Describe Trump

 

Is Trump like Napoleon?  The aphorisms below, written by Napoleon, argue that, in some ways, the answer is yes.  Before getting to the quotes, I have a few comments.

 First, this should scare us.  Napoleon, as Emperor, launched the world into over a decade of war, with all the associated horrors.  In the end, all he captured was lost and he was miserably jailed and exiled.  If something like this happened today, fueled by a self-aggrandizing Trump, it would be the end of civilization.

Second, in some ways where Napoleon was arguably great, such as military tactics [1], we see no skill or complete incompetence from Trump.  Whatever Trump shares in common with Napoleon, such as persuasiveness, it in no way makes him the 'equal' of Napoleon in general. Indeed, the fact that Napoleon could write so well, and so much, is an important distinction from Trump.

Third, it could be argued that the main takeaway, from the quotes below, is that we need a completely different way of looking at the world today, than the one embodied in the quotes, if humanity is to survive and protect our beautiful planet.

In other words, if self-centered traditional notions of alpha masculinity remain the enshrined standards for national power, then humanity is doomed.  We must mature.  We must learn the lessons of therapeutic psychology, developed over the last one hundred years or so. 

Indeed, Mary Trump, a clinical psychologist, has written a book explaining why Donald is the most dangerous man in the world (Too Much and Never Enough).

About the Quotes

These aphorisms are taken from Napoleon In His Own Words (1916).  All but one of the quotes are taken from the first chapter, which is titled Success.

https://bootcampmilitaryfitnessinstitute.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/09/napoleon-in-his-own-words-napoleon-1916.pdf

I comment in brackets after some of the quotes.  The quotes use masculine pronouns.  In fact, Napoleon might have only been referring to men, as women were acculturated and coerced to have very different and subservient roles.  Either way, it is sexist. 

The Quotes

Without further ado, here are the quotes:

1. A sovereign ought always to confiscate publicity for his own profit.

2. The superior man is never in anyone's way.

3. A Prince, criticised by his subjects, should never attempt to justify himself to them.

[The above three really describe Trump's arrogance and craving for the limelight]

4. There are only two forces that unite men—fear and interest.  All great revolutions originate in fear, for the play of interests does not lead to accomplishment.

[Trump focuses on making his populist base as afraid as possible.  Is he seeking revolution?]

5. Men are more easily governed by their vices than their virtues.

6. Political liberty is a convenient fable invented by governments to lull the governed.

7. Noisy festivals are a necessity.  Blockheads love noise, and the multitude are blockheads.

[The above three map well with Trump's contempt for his followers, and people in general.]

8. There are so many laws that no one is safe from hanging.

9. By taking for your justification the pretended principle of general utility you can go to whatever lengths you want.

[Trump doesn't care about the law, except as a tool to serve his goals].

10.  The man fitted for affairs and authority never considers individuals but things and their consequences.

[Trump doesn't care about people any more than laws, except as means to an end]

11.  Success is the most convincing talker in the world.

[Has Trump ever said that he was wrong?  Isn't he always successful, in his eyes?]

12.  The only thing to be done with those one is no longer able to recompense, is to disgrace them.

[Those Trump can't manipulate, he disgraces, such as the whole Democratic Party]

13.  Force is never anything but force ... But persuasiveness endures and imprints itself on the heart.

[The need to be charismatic and capture followers' hearts.]

Are there Exceptions in Napoleon's aphorisms? 

Just two of the aphorisms seemed to contradict the general theme that I found.  Napoleon writes, "The most dangerous counselor is self-love."  Note, however, that danger doesn't necessarily dissuade a superior person in the Emperor's view.  In fact, often the contrary.

Maybe harder to align is this aphorism:  "A lie is useless since it deceives but once."

However, the bulk of Napoleon's conveyed philosophy indicates that this is an anomaly.  One chilling example is, "To be believed, make the truth unbelievable."

Isn't that exactly what Trump does with his followers?  Make the truth unbelievable?  One small example is Kelly Ann Conway's "alternate facts."

Overall, Napoleon's aphorisms in the Success chapter of the book provide scary resemblances to what Trump seems to embrace, based on his words and actions.

This resemblance is not a compliment to our current President.  Napoleon's ego flaws, one could argue, took the world into bloody chaos.  Some historians say he initiated the strategy of "total war," leading to new standards of extreme violence that influenced the US Civil War and WWI (which in turn influenced WWII).

Frighteningly, Napoleon's status as Emperor is inimical to the basic premise of our Founders.  His ideology, held by anyone who swore an oath to the Constitution, is that of a traitor.   

One positive thing said about Napoleon is that he established "equality" as a legal standard.  But Trump's flagrant racism is the direct enemy of an egalitarian standard.  If anything, Trump is even more narcissistic than Napoleon, while, at the same time, being not only less talented but also manifestly incompetent.

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Footnotes

1. Some historians posit that Napoleon wasn't great at military strategy and tactics.  Instead, he benefited from luck and also incompetence from the other side.

https://www.alternatehistory.com/forum/threads/was-napoleon-really-a-tactical-genius-or-was-he-just-lucky.409807/#:~:text=Napoleon%20Bonaparte%20is%20oftenly%20famed,part%20of%20the%20enemy%20commanders.