Machiavelli The Prince Power

In addition to Dante, Saint Augustine in his City of God also details the corruption of those in power. Focusing specifically on that of the Church, it is yet another example that shows knowledge on the negative consequences of greed, power, and desire. Paired with Dante, Saint Augustine’s ideas would further develop the idea that desire and greed were cultural identities already deeply present in Europe during this period. In order to actively change and address and situation, the problem needs to be identified. In this case, however, the problem was already too entrenched in the European psyche, resulting in the failure to change culturally and the society continuing its previous ways. Again, during this period, greed in cultures that would
In Niccolo Machiavelli’s The Prince, Machiavelli writes on the ways and means in which a prince can acquire power. One of the most shocking ways in which a leader can achieve power, through Machiavelli’s thoughts, is through instilling fear in those who follow and by using criminal means. Power is a construct of Western society that is commonly associated with that of the wealthy elites. The draw to power comes from the lifestyle that is associated with it, and to achieve such a lifestyle is a direct relationship to desire and greed in Western society. Two-thousand years after Inanna’s depictions of royalty and higher beings, the Machiavelli depiction of leaders has only progressed along the path towards greed and desire. Again, the importance of those in powers influence on those without is crucial in identifying the factors that have created the society that is now Western. A common individual will view those above them as a role-model, and will ultimately crave a life that is similar to that of their leaders and higher beings. By furthering the acceptance of wealth and greed in the higher social classes, Western attitudes of greed and desire begin to appear in the common people. If those in power can have luxury, disposable items, why would the people in lower classes settle for a life of poverty and struggle? The wealthy depiction of those with power in texts throughout history will ultimately serve as the backbone of the current greed and desire that runs rampant throughout Western society and