Niccolo Machiavelli's The Prince

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In The Prince, Machiavelli explains several principles for a leader to follow and establishes that is better to feared than loved if one cannot balance both. A ruler that is well-loved is not always respected and can easily lose control of his people, especially when others have devious motives. By drilling fear and avoiding hatred from one’s subjects, a leader is able to stay in power and at the same time still have the respect of his people. As a leader there will always be adversities, and doing what is best for the state of affairs should always come first. There is nothing worse than obtaining the detestation of the people, and ultimately losing control of power. When it comes to leadership, one was must be feared, but also gain the respect of those around him. When a ruler is worried about their constituents, this allows vulnerability to seep in and control their thoughts. An individual in power does not need love to oversee and direct others, however, there is nothing wrong with being admired and respected as a leader. Machiavelli’s explanations throughout the book easily sway one into believing that he is supporting violence and aggression as crucial to maintaining power. He discusses how violence can be essential to maintaining power, but his accounts are nearly always supported with exceptional reasoning. When leading others, it is all about balance and acting accordingly when chastising individuals. When people dislike or disrespect the individual overseeing them, all control is lost. Machiavelli saw aggression and war as essential to the success of any leadership, and necessary to gain reverence. Violence is at least an instant action of choice that stirs up commotion and relevance. Acts of war and murder change any ... ... middle of paper ... ...ke a leader lose control, but this would ultimately lead one in to being hated. The idea of glory that Machiavelli discusses becomes the objective for which a great leader is to achieve, and not by how feared he is by his subjects or adversaries. Overall, for a leader to be successful, reverence is everything. Being loved will get you nowhere if there is no balance of respect and fear to go along with it. In order to be a successful leader one must know when to act accordingly and be stern. When leading individuals, love will only get a person so far and opens the door to becoming gullible, and being taking advantage of. Thoughts become cloudy and indecisive when wanting to appease the desires of others. Besides, if too much emphasis is put on making a ruler’s constituents satisfied, the resolution that is necessary for the situation will not be accomplished.

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