The Prince has been described as a handbook for princes (rulers), in the tradition of such books written in the Late Middle Ages. These books were sometimes called 'Mirrors of Virtues', in that they list and explain the good qualities a ruler is supposed to have in order to rule as an effective king and to defend Christianity.
The whole book centers around what principalities are, what are the different types of them, how to acquire and maintain them and why they are lost. The first three chapters set the scope of the whole book and provide a preview of the main concerns in the book. Then Chapter VI and Chapter V are used to present several practical methods to dealing with different matters for rulers. These matters include the acquiring and maintaining of a new state, forming alliance, internal insurrections and so on. In the following two chapters, the book turns to the topic of different qualities of good rulers. Machiavelli puts forward the discussion about virtue and good will in this section. He maintains that sometimes rulers should have vicious actions without the accordance with real virtue for the good of the states and ruling. In the last chapter, the book focuses specifically on the disunity of Italy. In this chapter, Machiavelli gives his own understanding and explanation for the failure of past Italian rulers and pleas for an eligible ruler in the future. He asserts that only Lorenzo de’ Medici, can restore Italy’s honor and pride. This chapter somehow reveals Machiavelli’s intention and purpose of writing The Prince.
Among all the discussions in the book, several key concepts are brought up, such as power, goodwill, statesmanship, the evil human nature, free will and virtue. While I was reading and reflection...
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...actively encouraging the able and honoring those who excel in their professions...so that they can go peaceably about their business” (Machiavelli, 108). He also encourages citizens to “...increase the prosperity of their state” (Machiavelli, 110). Although these methods are deception in essence, they would bring rulers and princes obedience and reliance from their citizens, especially those who intend to oppose them.
There is no doubt that The Prince is a perfect handbook for rulers and princes with all those fascinating real stories of European rulers. However, after my close reading of the book, I think it is also a handbook for realists. All three obvious features of the book--- empirical methods, the emphasis on power and the view of evil human nature--- correspond with the assumptions and theories of Realism just well. Machiavelli is evidently a true realist.
Machiavelli believes that a government should be very structured, controlled, and powerful. He makes it known that the only priorities of a prince are war, the institutions, and discipline. His writings describes how it is more important for a prince to be practical than moral. This is shown where he writes, "in order to maintain the state he is often obliged to act against his promise, against charity, against humanity, and against religion" (47). In addition, Machiavelli argues that a prince may have to be cunning and deceitful in order to maintain political power. He takes the stance that it is better for the prince to be feared than loved. His view of how a government should run and his unethical conduct are both early signs of dictatorship.
Machiavelli’s views were drastically different from other humanists at his time. He strongly promoted a secular society and felt morality was not necessary but stood in the way of a successfully governed state. He stated that people generally tended to work for their own best interests and gave little thought to the well being of the state. He distrusted citizens saying, “In time of adversity, when a state is in need of its citizens, there are few to be found.” In his writings in The Prince, he constantly questioned the citizens’ loyalty and warned for the leaders to be wary in trusting citizens. His radical and distrusting thoughts on human nature were derived out of concern for Italy’s then unstable government. Machiavelli also had a s...
Niccolò Machiavelli was a man who lived during the fourteen and fifteen hundreds in Florence, Italy, and spent part of his life imprisoned after the Medici princes returned to power. He believed that he should express his feelings on how a prince should be through writing and became the author of “The Qualities of a Prince.” In his essay, he discusses many points on how a prince should act based on military matters, reputation, giving back to the people, punishment, and keeping promises. When writing his essay, he follows his points with examples to back up his beliefs. In summary, Machiavelli’s “The Qualities of a Prince,” provides us with what actions and behaviors that a prince should have in order to maintain power and respect.
During Gregory’s ethnographic research in the Dominican Republic, he encounters many individuals, some tourists, others expatriates, as well as citizens native to the island. One individual by the name of Minaya, discusses changes in the sugar cane industry. In 1988 he became a worker at a sugar mill that his uncle owned, but claimed that the industry became “Capitalized” (Gregory 2007: 15). He explains this capitalization as the industry being leased out to private corporations, which incurred poor working conditions and minimal wages upon the laborers. Minaya also expresses the fact he has no formal education, a big factor...
Another topic he covers is cruelty, if cruelty is used in the right way the prince will gain much respect and it will preserve a prince’s safety or will help secure the state; it is safer for a prince to be feared than it is for him to be loved because no one will listen or respect a leader who they take to be a joke. Men fear punishment, and this can be used to a prince’s advantage. Men will not disobey if there is a chance of them being killed or thrown in
Although Machiavelli gives numerous points on what it takes to excel as a prince, he also shows some raw examples of how he feels a prince should act in order to achieve maximum supremacy. First, when he says, "ought to hold of little account a reputation for being mean, for it is one of those vices which will enable him to govern" proves Machiavelli feels mighty adamant about his view that being mean will help a prince achieve success (332). It is absurd to imagine the meanest prince as the most successful. Also, when Machiavelli states, "our experience has been that those princes who have done great things have held good faith of little account, and have known how to circumvent the intellect of men by craft" revealing his attitude to manipulate people into fearing and respecting the prince (335). Also, Machiavelli shows that for a prince to be successful, he must not think about good faith.
...ic growth, modest inflation, reduction in government debt and a manageable external position. However growth may slow down in 2004 with low growth in the US economy, the source of 87% of export revenues. There have been many negative Political developments such as corruption within the Dominican Republic however the current president Mejia is taking positive steps to eradicate this widespread corruption. The indicators of welfare in the Dominican Republic have improved significantly over recent years, however the economic developments have not sufficiently trickled down to the poorest segments of the population. In conclusion it is clear from the findings of the report that development is not completely stable within the Dominican Republic. It is relatively well developed compared to the other Caribbean countries however as we have seen, figures can be deceptive.
Additionally, The Prince states that secular forms of government are more realistic than pious ones because a pious government would be bound by morals. In the Prince, Machiavelli tries to convey that the end justifies the means, which means any thing goes. He claims that it would be ideal for a prince to possess all the qualities that are deemed good by other men, but states that no leader can accomplish that. He also states that the security of the state should be the prince’s first priority and it must be protected by any means necessary. Although, this can be true in certain cases, Machiavelli uses it as an excuse to use evil and cruel tactics.
The Dominican Republic is a country appealing to the Haitians, because that is the nearest to them and can have better quality of life. But, in recent years we have seen a massive immigration from Haiti to Dominican Republic. These leads us to ask, what are the reasons which the people of Haiti are fleeing their country. These factors are: to escape of the poverty, deficiency of basic services and lack of jobs. Due to the scarcity of resources, lack of access to basic services and lack of job opportunities, many haitian families have been used as a defense mechanism traditional your transfer to the Dominican Republic to have access to health care services, public schools or work in the agricultural
Through his many years of experience with Italian politics Machiavelli wrote “The Prince”; a how-to guide for new rulers. We are given descriptions of what a leader should do to effectively lead his country. A leader should be the only authority determining every aspect of the state and put in effect a policy to serve his best interests. These interests are gaining, maintaining, and expanding his political power. Machiavelli’s idea is that a ruler should use a variety of strategies (virtues) to secure his power. Machiavelli lists five virtues that a ruler should appear to have; being compassionate, trustworthy, generous, honest and religious. A ruler should possess all the qualities considered good by other people.
In The Prince, Machiavelli separates ethics from politics. His approach to politics, as outlined in The Prince, is strictly practical. Machiavelli is less concerned with what is right and just, and instead with what will lead to the fortification of the government and the sustainment of power. Machiavelli believed that a ruler should use any means necessary to obtain and sustain power. He says, “…people judge by outcome. So if a ruler wins wars and holds onto power, the means he has employed will always be judged honorable, and everyone will praise them” (Machiavelli, 55). According to Machiavelli, the ends of an action justify the means (Machiavelli, 55). His motivation for these views in The Prince was the reunification of the Italian city-states (Machiavelli, 78-79). Machiavelli wanted Italy to return to its glory of the Roman Empire (Machiavelli 78-79). Some of the beliefs of Machiavelli could be perceived as evil and cruel, but he found them necessary. Machiavelli was not concerned with making people happy. His purpose was outcome and success, and in his opinion, the only way to be successful was to be realistic. These views of Machiavelli could classify him as one of the earliest modern
The time of the Renaissance is one 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. One example of this movement can be seen in Machiavelli’s The Prince in which describes Niccolo Machiavelli’s ideal ruler and how to obtain stability, which was lacking as during the time of his writing this, there was a power shift from the Mediterranean to Northern Europe. How Machiavelli describes his ideal prince and his leadership is one that in which he is
...an be understood by just any person, but it also targets the history student's perspective as well. Machiavelli composed The Prince as a practical guide for ruling. He takes the time to explain the way a country is ruled. He also manages to tell the reader how a country should be run, the way it would be in a utopian type society. It will definitely present the reader with quite a bit more understanding of a nation's government. Machiavelli greatly explains what results from a citizen's failure to act upon an issue. Also, he does a tremendous job of presenting the reader with examples of what comes from what one may establish in life. The Prince is not hypothetical or abstract; its writing style is simple and its logic straightforward. This writing was, honestly, an excellent read and anybody who can read should pick it up to bury their head into it and enjoy.
To understand the writings of Niccolò Machiavelli, it is necessary to understand the world of Niccolò Machiavelli, Renaissance Italy. The region was not one nation as it is today, rather a collection of several city-states, which contained internal fighting between powerful families, fighting with each other. This era differed from the preceding middle ages in many respects, the pope's power was weakened, money controlled power instead of noble birth, and there was a revival of ancient Greek and Roman literature, architecture and art by a new breed of people, the humanists. These changes created the environment in which Machiavelli lived. He saw how the quarrelling was weakeni...
The book The Prince was a book of advice to politicians regarding how gain power and keep that power. The title The Prince is not about someone who has inherited land and a decedent to a king. In Machiavelli’s perspective a prince was a man of the citizens....