Machiavelli Chapter 12

Niccolo Machiavelli was a unique politician, philosopher, and writer who lived in Florence, Italy during the European Renaissance period of the late 15th and early 16th centuries. He is most famously known for writing his ruthless handbook for rulers, The Prince, during his time in exile in 1513. This contentious piece of literature has been fondly referred to as “the guidebook for tyrants and totalitarians,” according to the documentary, Machiavelli: The Prince by director Jett Rink. However, the document has also been credited with positively paving the way for ethnic and religious toleration, individual rights, and modern democracies all throughout history; and it inevitably set the stage for future governments to come. In this way, it is

Niccolo Machiavelli, author of The Prince, was born in Italy in 1469 and raised in

“It is much safer to be feared than loved.” This quotation was just a specimen of the harsh and very practical political annotation of the legendary historian, Niccolò Machiavelli – philosopher, patriot, diplomat, advisor and statesman. He was born as the son of a poor lawyer in 1498, but he never let boundaries restrict him. He still received an excellent humanist education from the University of Florence and was soon after appointed as the Second Chancellor of the Republic of Florence.2 His political importance to Florence would soon give him the opportunity to write what is disputed as one of the most significant works in history, The Prince.

In the fourth chapter of Machiavelli's Prince, he doesn’t tell his readers the right or wrong ways to conquer a country, instead he spells out both options for leaders and their advantages and disadvantages. Machiavelli uses examples that were world famous. They are empires that shaped the world his readers lived in, and still shape the world modern readers live in. He uses names that would have been household names, Darius, Alexander the Great, the Turks etc.

In Chapter 14 of The Prince, by Niccolo Machiavelli, his claim is that a leader should put his focus totally on war. In the chapter Machiavelli persuades Lorenzo the Magnificent and the reader on how you should agree with his claim by explaining that you need to focus on war in order to be prepared when the time comes. Additionally, Machiavelli provides the example about how Philopoemen, Prince of the Achaeans, focused on every situation he could about war so that his soldiers would be prepared to fight. In Chapter 14 Machiavelli writes, “As regards action, he ought above all things to keep his men well organized and drilled, to follow incessantly the chase, by which he accustoms his body to hardships, and learns something of the nature of

Machiavelli was a public servant who wrote a political treatise addressed to the prince mainly touching on governance issue and also the stagnation of power. The Machiavelli treatise is mainly based on the identification of a leader as a source of power. Machiavelli addresses his work mainly to the prince. According to Machiavelli a prince must have glory and power over all surrounding lands, leaders and kingdoms. Machiavelli philosophy accepts the use of cruel and immoral means to achieve the results needed by the prince (Knapp, 2014).

One of Machiavelli’s most well-known philosophies is that of “it is safer to be feared than loved…” (69). Idi Amin, also known as the ‘Butcher of Uganda’ for his cruelness and ruthlessness, clearly illustrates an example of this belief in practice. After seizing power by overthrowing former President Milton Obote, Idi Amin wanted to rid of any threat to his newly attained power, so he formed the Public Safety Unit (PSU) and had the organization “redouble their efforts to uncover subversives and other imagined enemies of the state.” For the people of Uganda, “fear and insecurity became a way of life… as thousands of people disappeared.”. Amin established an environment filled with fear and angst. The brutal and intimidating dictator knew that

The Prince, written by Niccoló Machiavelli, is essentially a guide for to-be rulers on how to be successful, in running a state, monitoring political issues, and so on. The book is a handbook that was dedicated, as said by Machiavelli in the dedicatory letter, to Lorenzo de’ Medici, who was the governor of Florence at the time. Machiavelli discusses, in thorough detail, necessary characteristics that a leader should possess in order for him to become victorious in his reign. An important concept that Machiavelli address is how virtue and fortune connect and affect the ability of the ruler to keep power. In Chapter XVIII, he implicitly defines virtue as the qualities needed by a prince to rule effectively and in favor of the people.

A famous aristocrat named, Niccolo Machiavelli, wrote the book, “The Prince (1513), his most celebrated work, was a general treatise on the qualities the prince (that is, ruler) must have to maintain his power” Jacobus (84). Within this essay, he writes about the “Qualities of the Prince,” which is a guide for princes and future princes to follow, in order to be successful and keep their power. Machiavelli is very practical in his way of thinking, and doesn’t recommend princes to be good, on the contrary he suggests for them to be very practical. He states they should ensure power by direct and effective means. Modern politicians are likely to succeed by following most of Machiavelli’s recommendations. One

Niccolò di Bernardo dei Machiavelli (1469-1527) is one of history’s most renowned political theorists. Truly a “Renaissance Man”, he excelled in many disciplines and was an avid scholar of the ancients, but his most enduring legacy has been his political theories, particularly those outlined in The Prince. Popular culture, however, has a skewed perception of Machiavelli’s own personal political ideals. Although Machiavelli’s The Prince discusses governance of a principality from the point of view of the prince, his longer work, The Discourses, extolls the virtues of republics and provides a detailed analysis of the republics of Ancient Italy compared to modern Italian republics and more closely

Niccolo Machiavelli (1469-1527) was a politician and philosopher from Florence, Italy. In his early life Machiavelli was able to witness the various ways countries dealt with affairs. When he retired, he spent his time writing The Prince (1532), a handbook for rulers. He made The Prince to explain how a leader gains and maintains power. His ideas had a very important function in the development of politics during his time.

In The Prince and Discourses on Livy, Machiavelli breaks from the precedent set by early political thinkers. Machiavelli unleashes a critical attack on the Church both as an institution and also as a belief system. Machiavelli blames the institution of the Church for interfering in politics which ends regimes. He treats the popes as though they are secular leaders who serve as examples of what a ruler should do to maintain power. He calls it corrupt.

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 ().

As with all philosophers of his time, Machiavelli was heavily inspired by Plato and other greek philosophers. However, while he may have been influenced by Plato, Machiavelli does not agree with many of Plato’s principles and beliefs. In short Machiavelli believed that leaders should act in ways that were best for the state or government, while Plato, on the other hand, had a contrasting belief. Plato philosophized that people should lead with moral values.

Nowadays, it is politically impossible to commit to paper a "training guide" for leaders. There are innumerable detractors to any possible stance or strategy a leader might adopt. As a result of this, all "training" must take place behind closed doors, far from the prying eyes and ears of the news media or the public. But this has not always been the case.