Machiavelli's Traits Of The Prince

Nixon became the thirty-seventh president of the United States in 1969 and served until he resigned in 1974. He remains the only U.S. president to ever resign from office (JSTOR reference). Many historians believe Nixon was a modern representation of Machiavelli’s teachings during his presidency; and some have even gone as far as to call Nixon the “Machiavellian prince of the twentieth century” (Rink). However, the extent of his Machiavellian behavior is arguable. For he only reflected a minimal assortment of qualities to that of Machiavelli’s prince. For example, Machiavelli continually stressed the need for rulers to maintain a good public appearance in order to avoid being hated. In chapter seventeen of his book Machiavelli writes, “It is far better to be feared than loved if you cannot be both; but you must avoid being hated. Fear is useful. Hatred is counterproductive” (book reference). However, Nixon ultimately failed at this task. He was not feared or loved by the public. He was overall disliked by his people; and he has been harshly remembered as “the most hated president in history” (book reference). Furthermore, Machiavelli also writes, “A prince must watch that he does not become afraid of his own shadows. His behavior must be tempered by humanity and prudence so that excessive distrust does not make him unbearable” (book refrence). Ironically, one of Nixon’ most prominent character flaws, and arguably the most prominent flaw in his presidency, was his paranoia—which eventually led to his demise as a leader. Overall, the lack of Nixon’s adherence to Machiavelli’s policies can be linked as the most probable cause of his

Throughout The Prince, the line between ethics and accomplishment in politics is discussed. In politics and government there is a question of when to separate morality from what needs to be done, and how much “evil” is acceptable when trying to achieve a certain outcome. For example he proposes that, “It is necessary for a prince wishing to hold his own to know how to do wrong and to make use of it or not according to necessity” (72). Machiavelli argues that sometimes it is appropriate to do some evil as long as it is done thoughtfully and out of necessity. The prince or governing entity must know the proper way to respond and, “He must have a mind disposed to adapt itself according to the wind, and as the variations of fortune dictate, and, as I said before, not deviate from what is good, if possible, but be able

Throughout The Prince, Machiavelli encourages the idea that a fear leader is a good leader. Machiavelli makes the point that a good leader knows that it is, “far safer to be feared than loved” (Machiavelli 43) because love allows for weakness. It is easy to keep people under control and in line when they fear their leader because they do not want to have to face consequences that come with “doing wrong”. When a leader is loved, some many look at this as a weakness. Those who fear their leader are is less likely to curate rebellions and revolts because they know that their leader is not afraid of applying punishment. When a ruler is too kind to their subjects it leaves them vulnerable and they are easily taken advantage of, which threatens their position. For a good leader should, “desire to be accounted merciful and not cruel”, and needs to,

History 's most prominent leaders have shown extreme congruence. These leaders almost always hold reality over ethics. How can we classify lying and manipulative leaders as immoral when their duplicity is the very reason a society can maintain stability? This idea has of "means justifying the ends" has been a staple in History 's most prosperous of societies. Machiavelli 's novel The Prince was the first stab at understanding this human tendency of what is now known as Machiavellian. Machiavelli grasped the sad reality of our world and did not fall prey to other 's idealistic propaganda. Great leaders understand what the endless potential they hold, they can manipulate their followers to make best of what is possible and above all they understand sacrifice. Modern day Machiavellians and successful leaders think realistically and communicate through idealism. No matter the extremes of your belief, utilizing Machiavellian tactics have the capability to bring anyone to power.

According to Machiavelli's view of how to be an effective leader, a ruler should be one who is feared but not hated. Machiavelli states that fear is better than love because love is unreliable. All of the reasons that Machiavelli gives relate to how human nature controls men and drives them to commit crimes in order to reach their goals and satisfy themselves.

In his landmark political treatise The Prince, Italian diplomat Niccolo Machiavelli put forth a framework for ruling a people that is at once derided and deferred to even today. The highly controversial ideology calls for a firm, even ruthless form of leadership that commands respect through any means necessary. Machiavelli allows even for the use of fear, violence and evil where appropriate. But it is in defining where these tactics are appropriate that we enter a discussion about the American political process. In one respect, our electoral cycle differentiates the United States significantly from the feudal hierarchy of 16th Century Italy. In another respect though, a reflection on the wholesale corruption of the former Bush administration may suggest otherwise. Today, it may be argued that many conservative and Republican political figures closely resemble Machiavelli in their espoused extremism but in fact, differ from the philosopher in their overall intentions. Where Machiavelli underscored his framework with an understanding that rulership is for the greater good, regardless of the measures employed to maintain this, self-interest and greed are a common presence in today's political process.

In Chapter seventeen, Machiavelli discusses whether it is better to be loved than feared or the reverse. Princes need to keep a balance of merciful and cruel acts to keep disorder from arising (Machiavelli 134). “..it is much safer to be feared than loved...”(Machiavelli), to be loved is also important if one is a ruler of other people. “Nevertheless a prince ought to inspire fear in such a way that, if he does not win love, he avoids hatred..” (Machiavelli 134), princes should be respected and honored through their actions.

Machiavelli states that a prince must have a equal balance of fear and love. Furthermore that these are important traits while making prompt and perilous decisions. While making decisions, the prince should firstly be interetsted in making decisions that increase the security and is the interest of the nation.

Should a leader be feared or loved? Machiavelli goes into depth about how it is better to feared than loved. He states that, ¨Well one person would like to be both; it is difficult for one person to be feared and loved.” By suggesting this, he is saying this is because a ruler that is well-loved is not always well-respected and is at risk of losing control. By instilling fear while at the same time avoiding unnecessary cruelty, the ruler that is able to maintain power and perhaps at the same time still have the respect of his people. In the reading China's Golden Age, both fear and love are used, but in different ways.

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

Niccolo Machiavelli stressed that “one ought to be both feared and loved, but as it is difficult for the two to go together, it is much safer to be feared than loved…for love is held by a chain of obligation which, men being selfish, is broken whenever it serves their purpose; but fear is maintained by a dread of punishment which never fails.” He felt that a true leader must be cunning and deceptive, winning the hearts of his people through power and influence. If he could not be liked, he could at least get by knowing he has intimidated these below him into submission. However rash or cruel this may seem, Machiavelli’s argument is not one to be countered easily.

Machiavelli’s political advice would help a politician in a modern democratic society. The main idea that Machiavelli is trying to get across is this: A ruler must seem kind, considerate, and have all the positive characteristics that their subjects want them to have - but at the same time, the ruler can’t be afraid of being seen as horrible if in the long run, it will preserve the country/civilization/etc. Machiavelli says: “A prince, therefore, must not mind incurring the charge of cruelty for the purpose of keeping his subjects united and faithful.” It is much better to kill one person than to allow that person to go around and completely destroy a community or civilization. Basically, it is better to be seen as cruel and save a country than to be thought of as kind and let it crumble. Machiavelli thinks that being seen as the ‘perfect’ ruler is great, but trying to keep that image and letting the civilization collapse is the improper thing to do. Machiavelli also says “Is it better to be loved more than feared, or feared more than loved? The reply is, that one ought to be both feared and loved, but as it is difficult for the two to go together, it is much safer to be feared than loved.” This is true, as he goes on to explain. Fear will get people to do things, but love won’t always get the same results. All of these advices would help a politician in a modern democratic society. To get people to vote, the politician has to seem very sincere, kind, generous, and everything that the people of the society want. Even after the politician achieves whatever position they wanted, they need to keep up their image and continue to seem like the ideal person. However, when the time comes, it is necessary to do cruel things, and things that some people won’t agree with. But this is necessary to keep the city, state, or even country strong and functioning properly. If the president was feared and loved at the same time, it would be ideal. People would do as he asked and

Machiavelli has another argument “concerning those who become princes by evil means.”# He believes that cruelty can also be used to benefit the prince but only in modesty. If a prince frequently relies on cruel acts then he will not live in power for long. Proper use of cruelty is only achieved when it is done “out of the need for safety” and when it is done swiftly as to make sure that the act is quickly forgotten, and the people can return to a feeling of safety.# His idea that cruelty should be swift is excellent, this way the citizens will feel more at ease with there prince, because if he were to drag out the atrocities then the people may feel the need to revolt to protect their personal freedoms and civil rights. Many people may think these are evil ideas, but it is completely practical, during Machiavelli’s era (and even today) a prince will always face a moment in this rule that he will have to act in a cruel manner, in no way is this statement cruel it is just a practical way of dealing with a inevitable situation. He also believes that “benefits ought to be given little by little, so that the flavour of them may last longer.”# As much as people may be discusted by this

Obtaining power is one of the most important ways to either become a ruler or gaining the right to rule. But, in today’s politics the president is already in power so he doesn’t have to gain much more. Machiavelli lays out 3 ways to obtain power in chapter 5. “The first is the destroy it...who will keep the rest your friends.” (Machiavelli, pg. 11). In today’s government we don’t go out destroying countries to add to our land but about 500 years ago we would go to war to obtain the control of whatever space we wanted in the US. Way two is what the president does today which is live in the US since he is in control of it. Lastly, the president will probably never do the third way which is leave his country to live under another country's rule to become friends. “Since love and fear can hardly exist together, if we must choose between them, it is far safer to be feared than loved.” (Machiavelli). This quote Machiavelli strongly believes in goes over the extent of the president today. No one running or currently president wants to be known as the evil one or someone who is feared by many. They want to be loved by many to win the votes but they also need to have a backbone so they don’t have other countries stepping all over them. But, this quote can be seen used by bad rulers in history and even today. One example is Hitler, he rose to power and was feared by many especially the people he targeted. He was able to obtain power so quickly because the Germans trusted him since being drilled to Heil Hitler at such a young age. Obtaining power back then is way over the extent to how the government today gains their power.

This is not to say, however, that Machiavelli intended the prince to be indulgent and benevolent to the people, he says quite clearly in Chapter 17, "…it is much more safe to be feared than loved, when you have to choose between the two…" Machiavelli's reasoning was that an excess of clemency towards the subjects when they do something wrong would lead to widespread crime, hurting the whole community. Therefore, being cruel and severe to those who deserve it would allow for the greatest utility (Chapter 17). This view on how to maintain relations with the populace is both logical and realistic. However, Machiavelli draws a clear distinction between being feared and hated. He writes, " A prince must make himself feared in such a manner that … he shall at least not incur their hatred, for being the feared, and not hated, can go very well together," (Chapter 17). The way that a ruler can earn his subjects hatred, says Machiavelli, is if he steals or harms their property. Therefore, by being severe and cruel in his punishments he inspires fear. In being feared, the prince further secures his empowerment, for none of his subjects dare to attempt to take it from him.