Machiavelli's The Prince Research Paper

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

The time of the Renaissance is filled with growth of intellect, beauty of nature, the dignity of mankind, and the rising of artists. It is characterized from the move of scholasticism, a devotion specifically for the theological and philosophical teachings of the Church, to humanism, a devotion to the humanities of rhetoric, arithmetic, and other subjects. An example of this movement is seen in Machiavelli’s The Prince which describes Niccolo Machiavelli’s ideal ruler and how to obtain stability,because it was lacking during the time he was writing this, as there was a power shift from the Mediterranean to Northern Europe. While Machiavelli promotes stability, he has a disordered love towards his country as he promotes to defend and fight

In the prince, Machiavelli explores a world of governments and presents the many different ways in which a ruler must adapt in order to run an efficient government. Machiavelli provides a number of applications in which a ruler can acquire and maintain the leading position of a government. While many of these applications are just and moral, there is no denying that some of the Machiavelli’s tactics are cruel and immoral. However, as we advance deep into the meaning behind Machiavelli’s choice of words, we learn that these unjust ways are meant to advance the power of the prince. We learn that Machiavelli’s goal isn’t to make a good prince, one that is loved by the people and makes everyone happy, but a great prince. Machiavelli begins

Machiavelli makes it clear throughout his novel that the Prince or ruler of any group of people cannot solely be good nor bad in order to maintain his rule. In times of need a leader should use these attributes for the betterment of his visage by the people. In the fifteenth chapter of his book Machiavelli mentions the fine line a ruler must maintain “For it is so far from how one lives to how one should live, that he who lets go of what is done for what should be done learns his ruin rather than his preservation. For a man who wants to make a profession of good in all regards must come to ruin among so many who are not good. Hence it is necessary to a prince, if he wants to maintain himself, to learn to be able not to be good, and to use this and not use it to necessity.”

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.

Machiavelli’s work The Prince is, evidently, a bit dated. However, the points that it expresses maintain their significance, even when monarchies are no longer the primary form of government. The Prince is relevant to contemporary society in today’s age as it relates to contemporary elements such as North Korea, World War II, and more.

In Aristotle's "Nicomachean Ethics", the concept of knowledge is expressed by the author as truth of the soul which guides one to find the virtuous middle ground between excess and defect (Aristotle, Pg. 126-128). This aspiration to intellectual virtue is a political one because it is an attempt at doing the right thing and achieving the "good". Within Book VI, Aristotle identifies three different kinds of knowledge: scientific, craft and practical (Aristotle, Pg. 128). Scientific knowledge, as described by Aristotle, is comprised of necessarily eternal truths which are "ungenerated and imperishable" (Aristotle, Pg. 129). Knowledge of science, therefore, must be concerned with the unchanging truths of the natural world. Craft or the intellectual

Machiavelli did not seek to change the worldview of leadership when he composed The Prince in 1513. However, The Prince later became widely praised and criticized for its ruthless and immoral tactics for a ruler to gain and hold power. Machiavelli wrote The Prince as a guide to gain power; he wrote it in a blunt way without flowery language so that anyone who read the book would understand exactly what was required to gain and hold absolute power. One of the main focuses of the book is an explanation of the characteristics of an ideal prince and how those defined traits can help one hold and maintain power.

“The fact is that a man who wants to act virtuously in every way necessarily comes to grief among so many who are not virtuous.” Thus being said by Machiavelli, in his book The Prince, as he gives some general guidelines on how to govern a country. Although some may seem irrational many of his views, like war on terror, seem to make practical sense. Ever since the attacks on 9/11, American politicians have struggled with Machiavellian principles, mainly weather or not to use them in their dealings with foreign affairs. When terrorists attack using unconventional methods of warfare that result in the death of innocent civilians, the rules of war change. Suddenly, the elimination of those terrorist organizations becomes the first priority, and

The prince was written at a time when Italy was in chaos, in the Prince Machiavelli offers advice on how to an effective and successful ruler. in Machiavelli’s the prince he assumes that all men are bad egotistical, motivated by greed, and cowardly and can’t be trusted. Doing the righteous thing as a ruler according to moral codes, puts you at a disadvantage, people’s moral concerns are easily changed to suit their own needs. According to Machiavelli on the Prince, man will forgive you for killing his father, but do not touch his property, this is sacred “and above all others he must keep his hands off the property of others, because men more quickly forget the death of their father than the loss of their patrimony”. REF HERE. FOR MACHIAVELLI

The Oxford Dictionary defines the term “Machiavellian” as someone who is cunning, scheming, and unscrupulous, especially in politics or in advancing one’s career. These principles, as well as others, were established in Niccolo Machiavelli’s book, The Prince. The Prince dwelves on what a person needs to do to obtain and maintain power in a principality. Although it was written nearly 500 years ago, it has influenced countless rulers over time. A great example of one of these rulers is Joseph Stalin, dictator of the U.S.S.R (Union of Soviet Socialist Republics) from 1929 - 1953.

Most people throughout history and today are probably in agreement that those who are in power, with rule over peoples should keep their word; however, as Machiavelli notes, those “princes” that have accomplished the most have done so through deception. A prince can fight with laws, in a civilized manner, or with force if needed. Machiavelli believes a prince should “imitate the fox in cunning as well as the lion in strength.” So a prince must seem virtuous, while simultaneously deceiving those individuals who are willing to be deceived in order to fulfill his own interests. Machiavelli justifies this way of carrying oneself in that other princes cannot be expected to keep their word to you, so you must act in ways that are prosperous to your

In Niccoló Machiavelli´s novel, The Prince, there are times when it’s plausible for a prince to be ethical and times when it’s plausible for a prince to be wicked, but since administering both will not give a prince stability, it’s better to choose one. According to Machiavelli, through wickedness, a prince can be successful by betraying allies, going against faith, and being without religion; however, because of his stubbornness and disloyalty, detrimental consequences to society are created. On the contrary, an ethical prince will appease to needs of the people while being loyal and virtuous. Concluding the ruler to have a successful rule by doing good for the country. Making the answer to the problematic discussion, ethical because

     At the end of the 14th century, Italy was still politically organized by city-states. Emerging as one of the most influential writers of the Renaissance, Niccolo Machiavelli was a political analyst,

In the book, The Prince, Niccolo Machiavelli thoroughly explains the lifestyle a proper prince should uphold and the skills/actions he should keep in his arsenal, if the time ever comes. I’ve chosen chapters 15, 16, and 17 to further my claims on whether or not these ideas should be used in today’s government. Chapter 15 mainly focuses on the things for which men, but mainly princes, are praised or blamed for in an everyday society. Chapter 16 touches on how often one should be generous and liberal. Finally, chapter 17, the most controversial chapter of Machiavelli’s book discussed among many, tells the famous line of whether it is better to be loved