A Man For All Season And Machiavelli's Doctrine: Reiteration Of History

The main plot in the play “A Man For All Seasons” by Robert Bolt is corruption, more specifically political corruption. While the play focuses heavily on the social demise, and moral strength of the character Thomas More. It also covers the inverse process with other characters, such as; Richard Rich, Thomas Cromwell, and the king of England Henry VIII. In the play Thomas More stands as a beacon of selfhood and virtue, while the other three men used manipulation and disloyalty, to gain wealth and power, no matter what the consequences may be.

In the play A Man For All Seasons by Robert Bolt the audience learns about the extraordinary life of Sir Thomas More. Sir Thomas is faced with a moral dilemma that will determine the outcome of his life. More, chancellor of England , and a strong Christian believer is forced to choose between his close friend, King Henry VIII, and the supreme lord his God. More is a man of moral integrity because he refuses to submit to external pressures to sign the oath condoning the Act of Supremacy. He follows his heart and soul in doing what he believes to be right no matter what the consequence.

A prince is respected as well when he is a true friend and a true enemy, meaning that he sides with another prince against another with no reservation. A prince should show that he that he is a lover of talent and give recognition to men who have ability. He should encourage his subjects to be free in trade and reward them because they are benefiting his city or state by aggrandizing it.

Machiavelli stressed that no art can deliberately aim at a negative result. As a realist, Machiavelli was concerned with reality and not how things could be. He was significantly influenced by his own failures in public life.

In The Prince, Machiavelli describes the different methods of acquiring the power over a state. The first he mentions is if the principalities are acquired through one’s own arms and virtue. They “acquire their principality with difficulty but hold it with ease.”(23) The second, “Of New Principalities That Are Acquired by Others’ Arms and Fortune.”(25) Someone gives these to the prince either for money or by the favor of whoever gave it. “Those who become princes from private individual solely by fortune become so with little trouble, but maintain themselves with much.”(25) The next, “Of Those Who Have Attained a Principality through Crimes.”(34) Acquired through crime, the states

As the Prince is described as demanding his character proves that he understands the level of power and control he has. The prince also understands how much respect he expects from his subjects.

In The Morals of the Prince Machiavelli expresses his presumption on how a prince should act. He expresses that a prince should be feared, merciful, stingy, etc. He is right because if a prince is loved and too generous then people will take advantage of him and that will lead to his down fall. A prince must act appropriately to remain in power. Machiavelli gives his best ideas to keep a prince in power.

Written be Niccolo Machiavelli, The Prince (1503), explains Machiavellian theories of maintaining and ruling political power. Although The Prince was written over 500 years ago, the theories and context within the book resonate in today’s society (). These theories that have been carried over from centuries ago contain a relevant idea that if the goal of the government’s actions are based on the good of the people, then it is justifiable if the government’s action is immoral. Such examples include Invasion of Iraq, increased security measures in airports, and global monitoring prove that Machiavellian logic has been carried into today’s society ().

So it is logical to start with the first section of The Prince which is the section focusing on the new princedoms and Free States. One main point that seems to continually bring its self to light throughout the book is the idea that “principalities are hereditary.” This is referring to the fact that the only rulers, princes, in that certain area all come from the same family or lineage and that this concept of royalty is considered “old” or “not new.” If said lineage were to change that would change the meaning of it to “new.” This basically means that the new kingdom, princedom, is entirely new and there was nothing that is related to the current princedom that happened before. A general rule that never fails is: “that whoever is responsible for another’s becoming powerful ruins himself, because this power is brought into being either by ingenuity or by force, and both of these are

Machiavelli also considered it imperative to conquer other lands to expand a kingdom’s territory and wealth. He studied empires of the past to decipher why they succeeded or failed and decided on three essential rules for governing and holding conquered polities securely. The first was to devastate them, second was to live there in person, and third was to allow them to maintain their own laws. “If the inhabitants are not dispersed and scattered, they will forget neither that name nor those institutions; and at first opportunity they will at once have recourse to them.” (The Prince, 21) He regarded it essential for the Prince to be hands-on with his conquered polity because it was harder for people to go behind his back if he was present all the time. And by allowing them to maintain their own laws it created some sense of friendship between the prince and the people, or at least a sense of mutual respect.

Machiavelli has long been required reading for everyone intrested in politics and power. In The Prince Niccolo M

In the play A Man for All Seasons by Robert Bolt, the lawyer Thomas More is an intelligent and outspoken man who is devoted in entirety to the Catholic Church. When King Henry VIII decides to annul his marriage to his late brother’s wife Catherine of Aragon, Thomas More inwardly opposes the King’s actions and opinions. Thomas More is made a significant figure to the country not only from his writings and honest reputation but by his election to the office of Chancellor following Thomas Wolsey’s death. Thomas Wolsey was the Chancellor of England before Thomas More, but was dismissed in disgrace due to his failure to secure the annulment of King Henry VIII and Catherine of Aragon. This inward opposition causes no harm to anyone until Thomas

In essence, Machiavelli’s ideal principality sustains a genuine sense of morality behind the violence that “must be subjected in order to maintain stability.” Looking at his plans subjectively,

For centuries, periods of history have been defined by their distinct values, their tastes in art, music, literature, and politics. If you hear the term "Romantic Era" your mind is immediately transported to hear the soft music of Lizt, Schubert, or Chopin, and your eyes begin to see waves of the soft colours found in the paintings of Turner, Goya, and Blake. You might even begin reciting a line from a poem by Lord Byron or a quote from one of Jane Austen 's beloved novels. Even if we do not know specific names of people from that era, we will get a feeling, or a sense of what it must have been like, simply from the things we have heard about it. Sometimes, phrases we commonly use today are even named after periods of time in history, which characterize an aspect of this time periods values and ideals. An example of this is the modern term "Renaissance Man".

The Prince is Machiavelli’s guide for ruling and conquering states. Machiavelli elaborates on various ways to acquire principalities and provides the reader with a straightforward guide on how to successfully conquer and maintain control over states. Machiavelli analyses the strengths and flaws of certain paths to conquest, how to maintain a hold on power and the importance of strong arms. Machiavelli sees humans as easily persuaded and simple minded. He believes that all people want to be controlled and guided and those who control do so because their intellect is much greater than the average person. In chapter eleven, Ecclesiastical Principalities, Machiavelli elaborates on the strength and weaknesses