Essay about Niccolo Machiavelli

Prior Knowledge: Niccolo Machiavelli was a state diplomat, during the times of the Hapsburg-Valois wars. As such, his allegiance was constantly shifting. The disarray of the Italian city-states was infuriating to Machiavelli, as he believed that a ruler should be able to govern his own nation. This led to him writing Histories. The Medici family, seeing this as an insult to the

Trying not to overstep the boundaries of the citizens to get kicked out of power or not doing enough that they replace you. With the power gained from leading it is expected that other princes will try to take power away so the only way to prevent this from happening is to make alliances and maintaining a strong military. Later on, in the novel Machiavelli goes on to focus on what qualities a prince should have and how virtu plays a role in making a proper prince. Although a short novel, it is Machiavelli’s most widely known work and is responsible for creating a negative view on rulers/politicians and also making it seem like anything you do, even immoral, is justifiable if the end goal is worth it. Machiavelli writes “He who neglects what is done for what ought to be done, sooner effects his ruin than his preservation” showing that the use of immoral means is justifiable when the end goal is survival and glory. This book follows the ideals of Italian humanism from the author being from Florence, the heart of the renaissance, dedicating the novel to Lorenzo de’ Medici, an example of a man who invested a lot in helping people learn about philosophy and such subjects to become better humanists.

Niccolò Machiavelli was born on May 3, 1469, in Florence, Italy during the Renaissance. He was born into nobility so his childhood was quiet; he received the standard humanistic education popular during the Renaissance, but he always desired to obtain political office. Going into his young adult life, he witnessed the removal of the Medici family and the political conflict that was to follow. At this time, Italy was in political chaos; a number of city-states including Florence, Milan, Venice, and Naples all fought for control of Italy, along with Spain, France, and the Holy Roman Empire. Each one attempted to manipulate one another as to get the upper hand, they resorted to malicious practices such as blackmail and crude violence. These acts heavily influenced Machiavelli’s attitudes toward government, creating the foundation for The Prince.

Niccolo Machiavelli was born on May 3, 1469 in Florence. Machiavelli was considered one of the most controversial political philosophers of his time. Machiavelli began working in the Florence government at a young age, employed as a clerk and later as an ambassador to the “Holy Roman Emperor Maximilan, the King of France and Pope Julius II.” Throughout his employment with the government of Florence, Machiavelli began noticing the effects that one person had over an entire country. In 1513 Machiavelli wrote what would be one of his most renowned works “The Prince,” in which Machiavelli expresses his political ideas of ruling a

Machiavelli’s interpretation of human nature was greatly shaped by his belief in God. In his writings, Machiavelli conceives that humans were given free will by God, and the choices made with such freedom established the innate flaws in humans. Based on that, he attributes the successes and failure of princes to their intrinsic weaknesses, and directs his writing towards those faults. His works are rooted in how personal attributes tend to affect the decisions one makes and focuses on the singular commanding force of power. Fixating on how the prince needs to draw people’s support, Machiavelli emphasizes the importance of doing what is best for the greater good. He proposed that working toward a selfish goal, instead of striving towards a better state, should warrant punishment. Machiavelli is a practical person and always thought of pragmatic ways to approach situations, applying to his notions regarding politics and

The Church accused Niccolo Machiavelli of being Satan for writing his book The Prince. Machiavelli completed The Prince in 1513. He wrote it as a gift to Lorenzo Medici, called the Magnificent, ruler of Florence. The political views Machiavelli expressed in his book went against the theology of the Church, specifically the Ten Commandments and the Beatitudes.

When reading Machiavelli's writing, one must quickly both differentiate and depersonalize the true feelings of Machiavelli, the person, as opposed to Machiavelli writing the book. Machiavelli's work is considered the finest treatise of political science, along with the academic birth of 'realism.' Ends do justify means in Machiavelli's text; however, one must understand that Machiavelli generally only supported violence for a greater purpose, and never more than necessary to retain stability. This was not Machiavelli's opinion alone but was the reality of Italian politics during the period.

Even if Machiavelli was a citizen of the up-middle class he still felt the effect and maybe he could have had a bigger possibility to travel, know and be instructed. He had the right to think and elaborate, he was a man of culture. One of the most shocking thing he saw and understand in his life was that good rulers doesn’t exist and if they do they don’t last much. In fact his ideal ruler was Ferdinand D’Aragon because when Luis the 12 accuse the Spain ruler of lying to him two times Ferdinand responded stating that he lied more than ten. Machiavelli loved this ruler because it was smart and ready to stab on the back of allies.

Niccolò Machiavelli was an activist of analyzing power. He believed firmly in his theories and he wanted to persuade everyone else of them as well. To comment on the common relationship that was seen between moral goodness and legitimate authority of those who held power, Machiavelli said that authority and power were essentially coequal.9 He believed that whomever had power obtained the right to command; but goodness does not ensure power. This implied that the only genuine apprehension of the administrative power was the attainment and preservation of powers which indirectly guided the maintenance of the state. That, to him, should have been the objective of all leaders. Machiavelli believed that one should do whatever it took, during the given circumstance, to keep his people in favor of him and to maintain the state. Thus, all leaders should have both a sly fox and ravenous wolf inside of him prepared to release when necessary.10

Niccolio Machiavelli (Born May 3rd, 1469 – 1527 Florence, Italy.) His writings have been the source of dispute amongst scholars due to the ambiguity of his analogy of the ‘Nature of Politics'; and the implication of morality. The Prince, has been criticised due to it’s seemingly amoral political suggestiveness, however after further scrutiny of other works such as The Discourses, one can argue that it was Machiavelli’s intention to infact imply a positive political morality. Therefore the question needs to be posed. Is Machiavelli a political amoralist? To successfully answer this it is essential to analyse his version of political structure to establish a possible bias. It would also be beneficial

Niccolo’ Machiavelli was born on May 3, 1469 and died in 1527. Although we do not know much about his early life, we know that he was educated according to the humanist ideals of the Renaissance. He was trained at an early age by a latin teacher named Paolo da Ronciglione. He spent his youth in the

Niccolo Machiavelli is a very pragmatic political theorist. His political theories are directly related to the current bad state of affairs in Italy that is in dire need of a new ruler to help bring order to the country. Some of his philosophies may sound extreme and many people may call him evil, but the truth is that Niccolo Machiavelli’s writings are only aimed at fixing the current corruptions and cruelties that filled the Italian community, and has written what he believed to be the most practical and efficient way to deal with it. Three points that Machiavelli illustrates in his book The Prince is first, that “it is better to be feared then loved,”# the second

Author’s Identity: Unlike many other previous writers on military thought, Machiavelli was not from pure or noble blood, although he was of enough social status to become literate. Instead, Machiavelli used his intellect to climb the social ladder the highest legs of Italian social order. From 1501 to 1521, Machiavelli worked as an influencer, author, and military leader. Rather than conceal his intellect to avoid prosecution or death, such as within a monastery, Machiavelli balanced a thin line between critical thought and appeasement in his allegorical experiences with Caesar Borgia.

     During Machiavelli’s time, society was much different than it had been for previous philosophers. Instead of storing up good works, so as to enjoy paradise, as the medieval man did, the Renaissance man was interested in all things, enjoyed life, strove for worldly acclaim and wealth, and had a deep interest in classical civilizations. He was born at a time of conflict within Florence, Italy, between the republican leaders and the family of the Medici’s, of which the Machiavelli’s, especially, had a history of opposition towards. After years of conflict between powers, Machiavelli was exiled from his country.

Machiavelli’s father provided him with a rather sufficient education in religion, classics, and politics. His father loved books. In fact, they had a library where he collected works by Greek and Roman philosophers such as Cicero and Aristotle (Wagner 17). He also collected major studies of Italian history. The books that his father collected provided Niccoló with a foundation of knowledge about the ideas of noble Greek and Roman thinkers (Wagner 17). These books would also help shape Niccoló’s own writings decades later. When Machiavelli grew a little older, he studied at The Studio, which was essentially a school. The Studio gave Machiavelli a solid grounding in rhetoric, grammar, poetry, history, and moral philosophy (King 7). Three days after his 17th birthday, Machiavelli began learning the elements of Latin under the Supervision of a local teacher known as Maestro Matteo, who conducted lessons from a house near the Ponte Santa Trinitia (King 6).