Niccolo Machiavelli

Niccolo Machiavelli

Niccolo Machiavelli was a political philosopher from Florence Italy. He lived

during the Italian Renaissance from May 1469 to 1527. This period in time that

Machiavelli lived was the "rebirth" of art in Italy and rediscovery of ancient

philosophy, literature and science. During this time in the Renaissance, Italy

was also involved in intense political conflict with dominant city-states of Florence,

Milan, Venice, Naples, the Papacy, France, Spain, and the Holy Roman Empire.

Machiavelli was a man who lived his life for politics and patriotism. He created

many works such as The Prince, History of Florence, Art of War and Discourses on

the First Ten Books of Livy. Machiavelli is most famous for his political treatise,

The Prince which was written in 1513. After the writing of The Prince was exposed

to the public Machiavelli quickly grew a bad reputation, and was associated with

corruption and totalitarian government. Many views and opinions were formed of

Machiavelli, as well as attempt to understand him and his writing of The Prince.

From Machiavelli's writing it is impressed on people that he often professed a

preference for drastic methods and for a sweeping all- or- nothing solutions, along

with a contempt for delay and improvisation and compromise and has a set of

attitudes usually more characteristic of academic theorists than of practical men of

affairs.

Niccolo Machiavelli wrote The Prince for Lorenzo de' Medici who was ruling

Florence at that time. He thought by writing a book of what he thought were the

Medici's goals and dedicated it to them he would gain favor from the family and

they would give him his position in office back. Machiavelli also believed that his

writings would help make Medici a more effective ruler. One critic states that

Machiavelli advises the prince to read history and reflect on the actions of great

men. This meant to imitate great men and to take as a model of one's conduct; a

great historical figure who had achieve the highest praise and glory by constantly

holding him before himself the deeds and achievements of a predecessor. Garrett

Mattingly thinks that Machiavelli's The Prince is a shocking book, shocking

both for what it says and for the deliberately proactive way it is written, and for the

discord between a part of its contents and the life and other writings of its author.

Mattingly says that The Prince lays down a major premise that men in general are

selfish, treacherous, cowardly, greedy, and above all gullible and stupid. Machiavelli

advises the prince and particularly a new prince who hopes to destroy the liberties

of those he rules, to employ hypocrisy, cruelty and deceit, to make himself feared

even at he risk of making himself hated, to divide the people and destroy their

natural leaders and to keep faith with no one, since no one will keep faith with him.

The Prince views the world of politics as a jungle in which moral laws and standards

of ethical conduct are merely snares for fools, a jungle in which there is no reality