Wait a second!
More handpicked essays just for you.
More handpicked essays just for you.
Summary evaluation essay on the prince by machiavelli
Main points of the Prince by Machiavelli
Main points of the Prince by Machiavelli
Don’t take our word for it - see why 10 million students trust us with their essay needs.
PORTRAIT OF MACHIAVELLI
Historical Background Information
Niccolo Machiavelli, a political philosopher, writer, and diplomat, was born on May 3, 1469, in Florence, Italy. Machiavelli is probably best known for his famous and influential writing, The Prince. This book brought him attention, but it also earned him a reputation for being supportive of cynical, cruel, and deceptive rulers. Machiavelli’s ideas and principles are still being studied today. He went from serving his government to being imprisoned. It was during his exile that he wrote many of his books. In his mind, he believed his writing would eventually win him favor with the rulers and secure him a job with the government again.
Analyzing History
Knowledge
Draw a cartoon that illustrates the term Machiavellian.
Has been handed in to Mr.Mac
Comprehension
…show more content…
I believe that Saddam Hussein is Machiavellian. I say this because he is the most recognized, and the most vicious, leader of Iraq that ever existed. He did anything possible to ensure his title as ruler, and consequently followed many of the principals that Niccolo Machiavelli set up in his book, The Prince.
Application
List to ways that Machiavelli’s book might have given him favor with the ruthless Medici rulers.
Machiavelli desperately wanted to return to politics. One of his goals in writing The Prince was to win the favor of Lorenzo de’ Medici, then-governor of Florence and the person to whom the book is dedicated; Machiavelli hoped to land an advisory position within the Florentine government. But Medici received the book indifferently, and Machiavelli did not receive an invitation to serve as an official. The public’s reaction to The Prince was also indifferent at first. But slowly, as word spread, the book began to be criticized as immoral, evil, and wicked. THE SCHOOL OF ATHENS BY RAPHAEL
Historical Background
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.
Niccolò Machiavelli was known during much his life as a part of the republican government in Florence until 1512. At that time, the Medici family took over the city and ruled under a more monarchical system. From that point until his death in 1527, Machiavelli was always just on the outside of Florentine politics. He would occasionally get work from the Medici but his tasks were never as important as they had been under the republican government of the past. As he was trying to find his way back into a major role in Florentine government, Machiavelli wrote The Prince, a manual of sorts that explained how a monarch should rule his state and why. While Machiavelli had been a strong proponent of republican ideals in the past, in The Prince, his ideas are far from adhering to republicanism. The book seems to promote the ideal monarch as a cold, heartless person whose only goal in life should be to retain power, regardless of who or what he destroys. This includes killing enemies of the state, personal enemies of the Prince, and even, in some cases, friends or family. While The Prince was not the first book of this kind, it was the first to suggest a government that rules with no regard for religion or morality. Machiavelli did not particularly pay heed to religious law in the way he lived his life, but he also did not particularly care for the Catholic Church of the time because of the lack of morality demonstrated by the Pope's and other supposedly "religious men's" actions at the time. There are other works that Machiavelli wrote both before and after The Prince that survive today, as well as letters he wrote to his friends that demonstrate a different set of ideals than th...
Machiavelli was a Florentine Statesman. In 1512, the Florentine Republic collapsed and the Medico's came back into power. Machiavelli was labeled a traitor and was sent to prison where he was tortured and threatened with execution.1 He was subsequently released into exile. He went to the country and wrote “The Prince”. He had wanted to present it to Lorenzo Medici as a show of his loyalty but it did not have the effect that Machiavelli had envisioned.
I believe that man, by nature, is neither good nor evil. When a child comes out of its mother, one cannot tell whether or not that child will be a serial killer or win the Nobel Peace prize. A child’s environment is what forms it to be the adult that it will be one day. I believe that it also what one believes that makes him or her what that person will be one day. Machiavelli believed however that man was naturally an evil being, one that needed control (Prince).
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...
Machiavelli is “a crystal-clear realist who understands the limits and uses of power.” -- Pulitzer Prize–winning author Jared Diamond (2013)
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
Machiavelli was born on May 3, 1469 in Florence, Italy. Fortunately, Machiavelli had a excellent education as a child. Paolo da Ronciglione, a renown Latin teacher, taught Machiavelli. He then attended the University of Florence and received an excellent education there. Later Machiavelli pursued a career within the government, first he became a clerk, and then an ambassador. Soon after, Machiavelli became Chancellor of Florence and engaged in tons of diplomatic activity which also allowed him to travel frequently. It also placed him in charge of Florentine military, making ...
“Machiavelli wanted to return to his longtime dream and understanding of politics. One of his goals in writing The Prince was to win the favor of Lorenzo de’ Medici, then-governor of Florence and the person
This being said most of Machiavelli’s are ideas and beliefs can all be terrific ways to lead as long as they stay within reason. “The Prince” is
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.
Machiavelli focuses on how corrupt the government is and his ways to fix it. He came up with a theory, which is in The Prince, to help overcome the wrongdoings of awful governments. Machiavellianism is referred to Machiavelli’s theory. This term and the adjective ‘Machiavellian’ are associated with treachery, disloyalty, cunning, unscrupulousness and/or hypocrisy (Roland). The whole point of The Prince was to get Machiavelli into office but in the process the book became admired by many.
“The Prince”, by Niccolo Machiavelli, is a series of letters written to the current ruler of Italy, Lorenzo de’ Medici. These letters are a “how-to” guide on what to do and what not to do. He uses examples to further express his views on the subject. The main purpose was to inform the reader how to effectively rule and be an acceptable Prince. Any ruler who wishes to keep absolute control of his principality must use not only wisdom and skill, but cunning and cruelness through fear rather than love. Machiavelli writes this book as his summary of all the deeds of great men.
Niccolò Machiavelli was born into a world of drastic change, Renaissance Italy, that would cause his mind to conjure ideas about many political issues transferred into books that the entire world has profited from since. His ideas were incredibly relevant to his time, because they suggested harsh governments, the only kind of governments that seemed to be working. He proposed creating these harsh governments through a separation of personal morality and political behavior. His ideas were so relevant and so universal, that they still influence politics today. Niccolò Machiavelli proposed the creating of strong central government more powerful than anything else, including religion and morality.
During the time 1469, a child by the name of Niccolo Di Bernardo Del Machiavelli was born. Some may know him as an Italian philosopher, humanist, or an evil minded fellow associated with the corruptness of totalitarian government. In Machiavelli’s home state of Florence, he introduces the modern political theory. Hoping to gain influence with the ruling Medici family, Niccolo wrote a pamphlet called The Prince (Prezzolini). Niccolo lived a nondescript childhood and his main political experience in his youth was watching Savonarola from afar.