Machiavelli The Prince Summary Chapter 14

The political situation that prompted Machiavelli to write The Prince was that Italy wasn’t a unified country yet. It was a bunch of city states.

He placed emphasis on how a prince should do anything to maintain and increase their own powers – it was apparent that he felt the individual needs of a prince in terms of the power and authority was important and that a prince should do whatever he felt necessary to protect the state and as a result it would mean a prince’s position as a ruler was also prodected. [Wheeler, 2011] Machiavelli placed a large amount on the emphasis on the fact that a prince must be seen to be a moral - but he is able act un-morally if it contributes to the good of the state or provides him with more power. He must be loved by the people and he must also be feared in order to maintain his role as a ruler of a state. Machiavelli argued that if a prince cannot be both loved and feared - it is better for him to be feared as more people would be scared to question him and afraid of the consequences that may follow. This results in more power and authority for the prince but at the same time it means that the prince is less accountable. This is a benefit for the prince but no for the people living within the state that Machiavelli is suggesting (Macmillian, 2006)

In The Prince, Machiavelli discusses ways in which a ruler should obtain power and maintain power, emphasizing the concept of gaining power through virtue versus fortune. Virtue, or virtu in the original Italian, is defined as the masculine quality of power, and not necessarily tied to ideas of morality as it is in the English definition.

This passage comes from Chapter 18 of Machiavelli’s The Prince. The thesis of the chapter is that a ruler should not always be honest and trustworthy; rather, he should break the rules when it is to his advantage. In this quote, Machiavelli states that it is necessary to do wrong in order to hold onto power. At the same time, he makes clear that a ruler’s subjects must think that the ruler has positive qualities. Machiavelli views both these characteristics—apparent goodness and actual lack of it—as essential to a ruler’s success. In doing so, he implicitly makes the statement that there is no contradiction between the two. It is possible to do wrong and still be seen as good, Machiavelli implies, not because people judge a ruler’s hypocrisy as benign or beneficent; instead, it is possible because the people can simply be kept in the dark about the true nature of the ruler.

18). A true prince in Machiavelli’s eyes is someone that the nobles, people, army, and neighboring states will be dependent on. To Machiavelli humans are by nature power hungry and greedy and that as long as there is dependence on the prince whether it is due to heredity, fear, or a variety of other factors, he will remain in power.

Chapter 12 speaks of the innovation and exploration between the time period of 1453-1533. Right off the bat the chapter speaks of the great changes that happened with the invention of the printing press by Johannes Gutenberg. Also how the printing press made book more excess able and helped the spread of humanism. It continues on to speak of Machiavelli (Machiavellianism), his philosophy , and the politics of Italy. It goes on the speak of how Baldassare Castiglione and writer who wrote a guide/manual speaking of how smart men like Machiavelli could become a courtier. A courtier being a man who attends a royal court as a companion or adviser to the king or queen. Then the chapter speaks of how art techniques advanced and for the artist to

Throughout The Prince are guide lines for a ruler to follow concerning matters of how he is going to be viewed by the people. Machiavelli says that a prince should take care to not be too generous or too cruel as either could have a negative effect on his reputation. While these two ideas might seem to have little relevance to one another it is just an example of how Lao-tzu’s and Machiavelli’s ideas about how important the rulers public persona was to their ability to rule successfully.

“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.

Machiavelli first mentions Ferdinand to use him as an example of a principality that is acquired by adding it to an existing one, which is what he did when he agreed by treaty in 1500 to share the Kingdom of Naples with Louis XII and later expelled the French and joined that kingdom to Spain. (p.5) Following this, Ferdinand’s actions and his ability to maintain an excellent reputation are praised in Chapter 21. Machiavelli states that esteem is an important part of ruling and that a prince earns a reputation for greatness by doing great things. He says that Ferdinand went from being a weak king to being known as the first King of Christians, by fame and glory.

In The Prince, Machiavelli explains what a good and successful prince should be like. He advocates a strong, cutthroat authority figure and encourages the winning of power by any means necessary. The main theme in The Prince is that mob rule is dangerous, for people know only what is good for themselves and not what is good for the whole. The common people, in Machiavelli’s view, “are ungrateful, fickle, liars, and deceivers, they shun danger and are greedy for profit; while you treat them well, they are yours”. He believes that these commoners should be

The Prince is essentially a guide book on how to acquire and maintain political power. We can think of it as a collection of rules and methods to achieve a level of superior authority. Its main focus is that the ends—no matter how immoral—justify the means for preserving political authority. While some may agree with this mindset of thinking many today dismiss Machiavelli as a cynic. The book shows rulers how it is that they should act to survive in the real world to maintain authority. While Niccolo Machiavelli’s ideas can be radical, they helped to spark a revolution in political philosophy. Although his ideas might have not been completely original, they were very different and unheard of at the time, The Prince, was published. Machiavelli uses many methods to convey his messages including biblical comparisons and of course metaphors. This character can be viewed in several manners. He is almighty and powerful, stopping at nothing to achieve his goals or have his ways. While this quality does qualify him to be a might leader it also raises the question of immorality. How far will one go to maintain order? Would you stop at nothing to achieve this task? Machiavelli shows this by saying, “it is

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.

This chapter discuss a number of ways how prince used tactics to maintain power within their territories. Some armed people and some disarmed. Disarming citizens also sends a negative a message that the prince does not trust them, and Machiavelli highly values a good relationship between the prince and his subjects. Like disarming one's subjects, building fortresses within the city also expresses distrust and shows insecurity. No fortress can substitute for the trust and support of the people.

Niccolo Machiavelli's The Prince examines the nature of power and his views of power are still somewhat in existence today. I'll discuss this in this essay, emphasizing the following theses. Machiavelli discusses power over the people, dictatorial power, and power with people, shared power. While it is possible for power with to attain greater prevalence in society, it will not completely eliminate power over. In The Prince, Machiavelli discusses two distinct groups of people, the political elite, including nobles and other princes, and the general public. Today in the United States, the first group, the political elite, includes political leaders, religious leaders, business leaders and the leaders of

Niccolo Machiavelli was the first to clearly decipher politics from ethics by studying politics in such depth and thought. He created the basis of what politics should be and how they are runned for today. His book The Prince is primarily a handbook for all rulers to follow to be the most successful in their reign. His book is considered political realism which means he speaks about only the truth of politics, so it can be used for the practice of governing. Machiavelli’s book is the handbook for obtaining and maintaining power even for today’s modern politics.