That, sir, depends on whether I embrace your mistress or your

The words of John Wilkes, “That, sir, depends on whether I embrace your mistress or your politics,” flash like a dagger wrapped in wit. They reveal the sharp tongue of a man who understood that power, whether in intimacy or in governance, is often won not through virtue but through the favor of others. With this retort, Wilkes shows that alliances can be born from passion or from ideology, but both are entanglements of desire and advantage. His humor disguises a deeper truth: the affairs of the heart and the affairs of the state often run together, and both are ruled by the same games of loyalty and betrayal.

John Wilkes was no ordinary wit, but a radical figure in eighteenth-century England. A journalist, politician, and champion of liberty, he battled against royal authority and corrupt ministers. His tongue was as dangerous as his pen, and he often wielded ridicule to cut down his enemies. This quote was born from such a moment, when challenged by a rival. In answering with laughter, Wilkes exposed the hypocrisy of politics—how men would judge him less for his principles than for the company he kept.

History is filled with such unions of politics and passion. In Renaissance courts, mistresses often held influence equal to ministers. Diane de Poitiers, beloved of King Henry II of France, shaped policy and wielded authority through her closeness to the king. Was it love, or was it politics? To Wilkes, the two could never be fully separated. To embrace a mistress was to gain favor; to embrace a policy was to win allies. Both were ways of binding oneself to another’s cause.

Yet Wilkes’s jest also warns of danger. The man who ties himself too closely to either mistress or politics risks losing freedom. Desire may corrupt judgment, just as ambition may corrupt virtue. By making light of both, Wilkes placed himself above them, claiming the liberty of one who will not be enslaved by passion nor party. His answer was defiance cloaked in charm, a reminder that true power lies in refusing to bow to the expectations of others.

So let this teaching be remembered: both love and politics are arenas of power, and both can ensnare the unwary. The wise must know when to embrace and when to resist, when to yield and when to stand free. Wit, as Wilkes shows, can be a shield as sharp as any sword, exposing truth in laughter and turning insult into triumph. For in the games of both passion and politics, the victor is not always the strongest, but often the one whose tongue cuts deepest.