Law 39: Stir Up Waters to Catch Fish

The 48 Laws Of Power Summary Series

Judgement

“Anger and emotion are strategically counterproductive. You must always stay calm and objective. But if you can make your enemies angry while staying calm yourself you gain a decided advantage. Put your enemies’ off-balance: Find the chink in their vanity through which you can rattle them and you hold the strings.”

The crux of this law is represented by the metaphor of water symbolizing emotion. When the water is still your enemies and opponents have time to scheme and plan action. Stirring the waters draws the fish to the surface, getting them to act before they are ready. One of the best way’s to do this is to play on a human being’s biggest weak points; they’re tendency to react with emotion. Pride, vanity, love, hate, elation, resentment are just a few emotions that drive people. The…