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22.01.2025

Why elegance over power?

A reader challenges GC on why men should pursue elegance over power. Is power the ultimate prize, or does elegance hold a deeper legacy?

The reimagined colossal statue of Roman Emperor Constantine The Great comes from the Basilica Nova in Rome, year 312. This unique portrait of Constantine is one of the most important statues of Late Antiquity.

Photo credit: The Byzantine Legacy

Letter from Mr. C.

I came across your article, "Why Most Men Pursue Power, but Phenomenal Men Pursue Elegance," and it got me thinking. I wanted to reach out and ask your thoughts on something that’s been on my mind.

Men have always chased power—it’s in our nature. It’s what built empires, won wars, and made history. Power brings status, influence, and let’s be honest, the admiration of women. It’s wired into us, driven by testosterone and the desire to be at the top.

But your article suggests that elegance is what truly sets phenomenal men apart. So here’s my question: Why? What does elegance give a man that power doesn’t? In a world where strength and dominance seem to win, does being elegant not put a man at a disadvantage? Or is there something deeper to it—something power alone can’t achieve?

I’d love to hear your thoughts.

Appreciate the work you do at GC.

 

Best,
C
London, UK

Answer by The Gentleman:

Hi Mr. C,

We appreciate the depth of your question, and more so, the spirit in which it is asked. Yours is the timeless inquiry of men who have shaped the world—those who understand that power is not merely a desire, but an instinct, a force that drives nations, carves legacies, and bends the will of others. To dismiss power would be naïve. We would not ask you to renounce it. Instead, we invite you to observe something quietly profound.

History remembers power, but it reveres elegance. The men who sought only power—conquerors, rulers, CEOs—are often reduced to lessons, cautionary tales of what ambition without restraint can become. But those who embodied elegance—true refinement of mind, presence, and conduct—stand immortal in ways brute force never could. Consider not just the kings who ruled, but those whose grace turned rule into an art. Not just the warriors who fought, but those who could disarm without lifting a blade. Power may win battles, but elegance wins the room. It commands not through fear, but through something far rarer: admiration.

Sarcophagus fragment remains of Roman Emperor Constantine the Great.

Photo credit: Istanbul Archaeological Museum


You ask what elegance grants a man that power does not. The answer is simple: permanence. Power fades, always. Even the greatest rulers fall, their empires crumble, and their names, once spoken in fear, become whispers in history books. The majestic mausoleum of Alexander the Great in Iskandariyah, Egypt and the sarcophagus of Constantine the Great in Istanbul have vanished, destroyed, reduced to ashes and lost to time. Yet, the discoveries of Newton, the masterpieces of Da Vinci, and the works of those who illuminated beauty continue to inspire, untouched by the erosion of centuries.

But do not take our word for it. Time is the greatest teacher. Pursue power, chase the business or political conquests that call to you, build the legacy you envision. And in 10 years, return to this question. Observe those who wielded power without elegance, and those who carried both.

Then tell us, who truly endured?

 

With sincere appreciation and respect,

The Gentleman

READ: The eternal battle between elegance and power in man's life


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