Nearly all men can stand adversity, but if you want to test a man's character, give him power.

The line contrasts two kinds of tests: adversity, which many people can endure with dignity, and power, which tempts people to indulge ego, cruelty, or self-interest. Its core claim is that character is revealed less by suffering than by what one does when granted control over others and freedom from immediate consequences. Read politically, it warns that institutions should not rely on presumed virtue; they should constrain power and demand accountability. Read personally, it suggests that humility and fairness are most meaningfully proven when one has the ability to dominate but chooses not to.