After review, I have chosen the philosopher, Nicolo Machiavelli, an Italian political philosopher, statesman, and historian during the Renaissance Era which is “a period in European civilization immediately following the middle ages and conventionally held to have been characterized by a surge of interest in Classical scholarship and values”. Machiavelli was born May 3, 1469 and passed away on June 21, 1527. His place of birth was Florence, Italy. (1) He was the third child and first son of Bernardo di Niccolo Machiavelli. Machiavelli’s mother, Bartolomeo di Stefano Nelli. Machiavelli was born during social unrest and violent times. The Machiavelli family was wealthy and prominent. In the past, the Machiavelli had held prominent offices …show more content…
France’s pope along with Spain sought power for territorial domination and control. Even, the country of Switzerland (a nation known for its neutrality) was engulfed in the war for regional domination and control. Political-military alliances continually changed, calling attention to condottieri (legionnaire) who changed sides without warning which led to short-lived governments rising and falling. After he had returned to Florence in 1494, he witnessed the expulsion of the Medici family, from the oligarchic despots who had ruled Florence for decades, and the rise of Girolamo Savanorola, a Dominican religious extremist who had taken control of the region shortly …show more content…
In 1498 and shortly thereafter, they had executed the former Pope Savonarola, the country had elected Machiavelli as head of the second Chancellors court. At the time of his election, Machiavelli was only twenty-nine years old. Several months later Machiavelli was also made the executive of the Dieci di Liberta e Pace. He took on the role as diplomatic council who was responsible for military affairs. Machiavelli never had an experience or apprenticeship which would have given him an in-depth knowledge of his responsibilities. During the fourteen years, he served in the chancery, Machiavelli made forty diplomatic missions. He even went to the conclave that was responsible for electing Pope Julius the
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.
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...
To understand Machiavelli’s work, it is important to understand the times in which he lived and his personal experiences that influenced his work. Machiavelli served in the Florentine republic in several capacities until the Medici
Written almost 500 years ago, Niccolo Machiavelli’s “The Prince” brings forward a new definition of virtue. Machiavelli’s definition argued against the concept brought forward by the Catholic Church. Machiavelli did not impose any thoughts of his own, rather he wrote from his experience and whatever philosophy that lead to actions which essentially produced effective outcomes in the political scene of Italy and in other countries. While Machiavelli is still criticized for his notions, the truth is that, consciously or subconsciously we are all thinking for our own benefit and going at length to achieve it. On matters of power where there is much to gain and a lot more to lose, the concept of Machiavelli’s virtue of “doing what needs to be done” applies rigorously to our modern politics and thus “The Prince” still serves as a suitable political treatise in the 21st century.
Machiavelli’s The Prince was written more than 500 years ago and it is “one of the most influential and controversial books published in Western literature.” (Article A) It was about Machiavelli’s political philosophies and the basic principles of what he believes a politician or “prince” should be. The three main ideas of the Prince were “Liberality and Stinginess”, “Cruelty and Mercy: Is It Better to Be Loved Than Feared, or the Reverse?”, and “How a Prince Should Keep Their Promises” and for the most part many of his concepts should or are already instilled in our government.
Niccolò Machiavelli lived 1469 – 1527 in Florence and has been recognized as one of the important figures of the Italian Renaissance. In 1498 he bacame the secretary to the Chancery of Florence. When the Medici regained power in 1512, Machiavelli was dismissed and jailed. In his later life he wrote The Prince, which is based on his personal experiences. He recommends political leaders the use of ruthless and self-serving cunning. His writing became one of the most quoted leadership writings of all time. However, this essay will demonstrate that Machiavellian manager are not always successful by considering morals and ethics, the focus on materialism and the employer image
In chapter eighteen of this piece of influential renaissance literature, Machiavelli gives practical and realistic advice on how to rule successfully and unify a group of people during a time when his city-state of Florence was crumbling to pieces. His advice is to use craftiness and cunning to achieve a good end, rather than do things the morally correct way. His humanistic thinking is displayed further with his allusions to Greek mythology and classic works of literature. During the Middle Ages in Europe things remained stagnant, and everyday life was centered around Christianity and God. Starting with the Renaissance period at the end of the fourteenth century, the focus shifted and was more secularized.
“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
Machiavelli was born in Florence, Italy in 1469 (Encarta). Not much else is known about his early years. He was appointed secretary of the second highest governing body in the Florentine republic in 1498 (Encarta). His duties consisted of mainly of conducting diplomatic missions (Encarta). He also organized a militia for the republic (Encarta). In 1512, the republic collapsed (Encarta). The Medici family, which had ruled Florence earlier, was then restored to power (Encarta). Machiavelli was arrested, tortured, and imprisoned on suspicion of plotting against the Medici rule, but he was released after less than a year (Encarta). In 1513, he wrote The Prince and in 1532, it was published (Encarta). This book describes the methods by which a strong ruler might gain power and keep power. The experience he acquired as a government official and his study of history led him to view politics in a new way. The political writers of the Middle Ages treated politics plainly, within the framework of religion. However, Machiavelli sought to explain politics realistically, based on his view of human nature within the framework of history. Machiavelli died in Florence on June 21, 1527 (Encarta). His political writings became more widely known in the second half of the 16th century (Encarta). Ultimately considered dangerous, in 1564 they were placed on the Church Index of officially banned books (Encarta).
After five hundred years, Niccolo Machiavelli the man has ceased to exist. In his place is merely an entity, one that is human, but also something that is far above one. The debate over his political ideologies and theories has elevated him to a mythical status summed up in one word: Machiavelli. His family name has evolved into an adjective in the English language in its various forms. Writers and pundit’s bandy about this new adjective in such ways as, “He is a Machiavelli,” “They are Machiavelli’s,” “This is suitable for a Machiavelli.” These phrases are almost always the words of a person that understands more about Niccolo’s reputation than the man himself. Forgotten is that Machiavelli is not an adequate example of the ruler he is credited with describing; a more accurate statement would be to call someone a “Borgia” or a “Valentino.” Most of the time they are grossly mistaken in their references. All these words accomplish is to add to the legend, and the misinterpretation, of the true nature of Niccolo Machiavelli.
I think Machiavelli’s advice can be construed as evil if it is taken in the wrong context, but I believe most of his advice was to be taken as general statements and not to be taken in the literal sense. While I agree in the example you gave of doing one thing in front of someone then doing something completely different behind there back is immoral in some cases, I believe Machiavelli meant that as a general statement in which sometimes one must tell someone one thing and do something different to protect them.
The word Machiavelli is so associated tyranny, fear, cruelty and an unwillingness to even contemplate morality that even one who is unfamiliar with his writings associates the word Machiavelli with villainy and immoral actions. In this essay however, it will be seen that Niccolò Machiavelli does indeed pay attention to the political demands of morality. On one hand, Machiavelli recognizes the appearance of benevolence in a political leader as a fundamental quality which they must possess in order to succeed in politics. On the other hand, he states that governing with genuine morality cannot guarantee a leader’s longevity in power, and indeed, may hasten their political demise. This essay will then overview sources which see Machiavelli‘s views
Machiavelli uses classical sources to advise a prince on the best way to maintain power. He alludes to Plato’ Republic to illustrate how many men have attempted to advice princes “ A great many men have imagined states and princedoms such as nobody ever saw or knew in the real word, and there’s such a difference between the way we really live and the way we ought to live that the man who neglects the real to study the ideal will learn how to accomplish his ruin, not his salvation.” Machiavelli also makes various references to classical figures to demonstrate examples of princely leadership. Machiavelli’s classical allusions are indicative of the Renaissance as the renewed study of the ancient classics was an important element of the Renaissance. Machiavelli adopted classical ideas in the hopes that these examples could inspire improvements within Italy. Rafael Major supports this idea in “ A New Argument for Morality: Machiavelli and the Ancients.” He argues, “ Even a cursory survey of classical literature reveals that very little of The Prince can properly be called original.” More also reflects the Renaissance through his classical allusions. He uses his classical sources to criticize certain practices within Europe, while also offering solutions to these problems through the example of the classics. For example, he also alludes to
Niccolo Machiavelli was a philosopher, statesman and the leading political theorist in the late 1400s early 1500s. He is often referred to as the “father of modern political theory” (Nederman, 2009). His book The Prince (2011) had such an influence its’ theories are still in practice today. This paper will prove Machiavelli is not a Visionary leader nor is he ethical through his theory as written in his book the Prince, and its relevance through personal experience. Let’s begin by discussing Machiavelli’s visionary leadership.
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.