The ends justify the means is a famous phrase wrongly attributed to Nicolas Machiavelli, which means that any initiative is valid when the goal is to achieve something important.
Despite not having said the sentence itself, some people made this interpretation based on his work The prince, where Machiavelli indicates that to maintain power the Prince must develop characteristics considered "unethical", such as cruelty and hypocrisy.
This phrase is commonly associated with the Italian author thanks to this excerpt from chapter XVIII of his work The prince:
"...In the actions of all men, especially princes, where there is no court to appeal to, what matters is their success. So, look for a prince, win and maintain the State: the means will always be judged honorable and by all praised, because the vulgar always let themselves be carried away by appearances and results, and in the world there is nothing but the aka..."
Also in chapter XVIII, Machiavelli reveals that there are two ways to fight: one through laws and the other through force. The first form is related to men and the second is suited to animals. Soon after, the author of the book states that a prince must know how to use his human side and his "animal" side, that is, use the laws and use force.
Many people criticized Machiavelli indicating that he advocated arrogance and abuse of power. However, some authors have described the book The prince as a satirical work that portrays the cynicism of a nation ruled by one person.
Explanation of the sentence The ends justify the means
When a person says that the end justifies the means, it means that he is willing to do anything to get something he wants to achieve.
Initially this phrase was used more in the political context but later it was transposed to the others areas of life where people believe that anything is allowed when you want to do something important. Many of the things that are done by these people are considered reprehensible in the realm of ethics and morals.
Learn more about the meanings of ethic and moral.
The famous English writer Aldous Huxley claimed that the ends cannot justify the means, because the means used determine the nature of the end that is reached.
Example of using the phrase The ends justify the means
Let's look at an example of a person who believes that the end justifies the means.
In a company, a vacancy is opened on the Board of Directors. After several interviews, the choice is between two candidates: A and B. Candidate A has a family to support and that vacancy will make it possible to provide a better life for their children. On the day of the final interview, he deflates candidate B's tires overnight, making it impossible for him to go to the interview. As a result, candidate A gets the job.
Candidate A can say that he had a good goal, which was to provide a better life for his children. In this case, for him the end justifies the means, because in order to get the job he did something that is considered wrong by many people.