Acquiring Political Power under a Principality

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Recommended: Contribution of Machiavelli to political thought

In The Prince, Machiavelli writes his analysis of how to acquire and sustain political power under a principality. It is his understanding of human nature and the ability to maintain control over people that make up the base for all of the other theories he puts forth. Machiavelli is able to recognize what it takes to balance the citizens somewhere between happy and scared, so to keep them from revolting while appearing united and strong discouraging others form invading. Thucydides shares a similar view of human nature, as he sees all people as being motivated by fear, honor, and self interest. Machiavelli and Thucydides both demonstrate how a ruler can use many aspects of human nature to their advantage when ruling a state.

The common thread that ties together all of Machiavelli's beliefs is his basic view of human nature. Machiavelli believes that humans are greedy, dishonest, and are looking out for themselves above all else. The majority of what Machiavelli dictates to his audience is based on the fact that the prince has to be very careful in how he deals with his citizens, as well as those in other states. The prince has to keep them all satisfied, to avoid any attempts to dethrone him. Machiavelli even suggests that there are times in which the prince will be required to act immorally in order to keep the people of the state on his side. Machiavelli states "Any man who tries to be good all the time is bound to come to ruin among the great number who are not good" (P.42). In this statement Machiavelli acknowledges that humans are selfish and dishonest, so for a prince to keep his authority, he must learn when to not exhibit virtuous characteristics. Simply put, some actions that seem virtuous will ruin a pr...

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...when it comes to other states battling, as you don't the winner will look towards you as a future target. Even if you ally with the loser you will have them on your side, it is however a good idea not to side with someone who is not stronger than you, as you could potentially fall under their control.

Machiavelli designed his work to help a future prince understand how to deal with human nature, with the idea that all people are looking out for their own self interest above all else. It is through this understanding of human nature that both Maciavelli and Thucydides we able to show how to use the peoples self interest to the rulers advantage. Thucydides and Machiavelli expressed their views at very different times in history, but they are both still very useful today proving that human nature has not changed that much in the past 400, or even 2400 years.

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