Machiavelli as a Humanist: Examples and Lessons Learned Sydni M.Eicke Hum100 013016 June 1‚ 2008 Niccolo Machiavelli a Renaissance thinker? or Political Philosopher? Machiavelli went from poverty to a Florentine politician by observing what leaders do wrong and guiding others on how to gain‚ maintain and streamline power. Machiavelli’s intellectual life was dominated by three men: Marsilio Ficino‚ Angelo Poliziano‚ and Giovanni Pico della Mirandola. These famous men were part of Machiavelli’s
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Theory Final Paper Foucault vs. Hobbes‚ and Machiavelli Power by definition is the possession of control or command over others; authority; ascendancy. The question is now not what power is but how do the means of which power is exerted form and who or whom enforces these means. There are several ways to answer this question‚ none of which are entirely correct. By looking at the theories provided by Michel Foucault and comparing them to Machiavelli and Thomas Hobbes we will gain a general understanding
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1. Why does Machiavelli caution a prince against being too generous? Machiavelli‚ in Chapters 15 of The Prince‚ explains that nature doesn’t allow perfection in any human being. This leads him to the conclusion that princes should avoid qualities that may hindrance their abilities to rule even if they are considered ‘good’‚ under which generosity can be grouped as. He speaks further in detail in the next chapter‚ when he says generosity is a ‘dangerous practice’. He explains that if a prince were
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Machiavelli’s views on human nature are unjust; nevertheless‚ his philosophy‚ or rather instructions‚ is reasonable in capturing the selfishness of men. As written in The Qualities of the Prince by Machiavelli‚ “Men are ungrateful‚ fickle‚ simulators and deceivers‚ avoiders of danger‚ greedy for gain; and while you work for their good they are completely yours‚ offering you their blood‚ their property‚ their lives‚ and their sons… when danger is far away; but when it comes nearer
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philosophies about politics and government that started being established‚ none more important than Niccolo Machiavelli ’s The Prince. What Machiavelli did was analyze past rulers and present rulers of his time period and create a manual for leadership. His ideas would spread all throughout Europe as a radical and revolutionary way on how to gain and maintain power‚ because to Machiavelli‚ great does not mean morally good. One cannot be a morally good leader if you are planning to be a considered
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Shortcomings of the Prince For the course of nearly five hundred years‚ the name “Machiavelli” has come to be synonymous with duplicity and underhanded political maneuvering. Known best in modern times for his political work‚ The Prince‚ Niccolo Machiavelli was born in 1469 in Florence‚ Italy during a time when a handful of city states and monarchies in Europe wrestled violently for control of the Italian peninsula. Machiavelli grew to become a diplomat for the Italian city state of Florence‚ later being
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Machiavelli’s View on Human Nature The author‚ Niccoló Machiavelli‚ is different from other humanists in his time‚ because his view on the nature of man contradicts what most humanists believed. Humanists of that time believed that individuals played an important role to the well-being of the state‚ and that “… they also believed in classicism’s basic tenet that human nature is inherently rational and good” (Western Humanities‚ pg. 343). Machiavelli‚ however‚ had a negative view on human nature and made
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work by Nicolo Machiavelli that is timeless in its discussion on ruling nations. The fundamental question branches out to much of the discussion in “The Prince” is whether it is better for a ruler to be feared or loved. According to Machiavelli‚ it would be desired for a ruler to be able to balance his or her level of love and hatred from the country. However‚ Machiavelli believes that the nature of man is “ungrateful‚ fickle‚ false‚ cowardly‚ [and] covetous.” Therefore‚ Machiavelli says that it
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Machiavelli’s The Prince is teaching the politically ambitious rulers how to use violence in order to secure the power as a personal end. Machiavelli advises a ruler to use violence as part of politics in order to maintain the rule but most importantly he should use violence to aim at political stability and the overall benefit of the community. In this regard‚ Machiavelli opposes the illicit use of political violence because he believes that ultimately that will be destructive to the user. Machiavelli’s
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leader consists of being a humble leader‚ while being humble‚ a leader must be aware‚ and whether or not a leader should wish to be loved or hated. In the article‚ "Machiavelli was Right" it compares today’s later to have the princess one should act. A question arose by wondering if his thinking is fair to all leadership situations. Machiavelli believed to politics involved being evil but also the leader should not care of what people think of their leadership decisions. A leader must always stay humble
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