"If an injury has to be done to a man it should be so severe that his vengeance need not be feared"

Niccolo Machiavelli believed that if somebody was going to injure another individual, the injury should be extreme enough so that the individual who was harmed would not look for vengeance. By doing this, the person who triggered the hurt would not need to worry about retaliation, giving them the advantage. It is a violent and unethical method to gaining power over others.