Essay About Niccolo Machiavelli And Public Machiavelli

Niccolo Machiavelli
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Niccolo Machiavelli
Niccolo Machiavelli was a political philosopher from Florence Italy. He lived
during the Italian Renaissance from May 1469 to 1527. This period in time that
Machiavelli lived was the “rebirth” of art in Italy and rediscovery of ancient
philosophy, literature and science. During this time in the Renaissance, Italy
was also involved in intense political conflict with dominant city-states of Florence,
Milan, Venice, Naples, the Papacy, France, Spain, and the Holy Roman Empire.
Machiavelli was a man who lived his life for politics and patriotism. He created
many works such as The Prince, History of Florence, Art of War and Discourses on
the First Ten Books of Livy. Machiavelli is most famous for his political treatise,
The Prince which was written in 1513. After the writing of The Prince was exposed
to the public Machiavelli quickly grew a bad reputation, and was associated with
corruption and totalitarian government. Many views and opinions were formed of
Machiavelli, as well as attempt to understand him and his writing of The Prince.
From Machiavellis writing it is impressed on people that he often professed a
preference for drastic methods and for a sweeping all- or- nothing solutions, along
with a contempt for delay and improvisation and compromise and has a set of
attitudes usually more characteristic of academic theorists than of practical men of
affairs.
Niccolo Machiavelli wrote The Prince for Lorenzo de Medici who was ruling
Florence at that time. He thought by writing a book of what he thought were the
Medicis goals and dedicated it to them he would gain favor from the family and
they would give him his position in office back. Machiavelli also believed that his
writings would help make Medici a more effective ruler. One critic states that
Machiavelli advises the prince to read history and reflect on the actions of great
men. This meant to imitate great men and to take as a model of ones conduct; a
great historical figure who had achieve the highest praise and glory by constantly
holding him before himself the deeds and achievements of a predecessor. Garrett
Mattingly thinks that Machiavellis The Prince is a shocking book, shocking
both for what it says and for the deliberately proactive way it is written, and for the
discord between a part of its contents and the life and other writings of its author.
Mattingly says that The Prince lays down a major premise that men in general are
selfish, treacherous, cowardly, greedy, and above all gullible and stupid. Machiavelli
advises the prince and particularly a new prince who hopes to destroy the liberties
of those he rules, to employ hypocrisy, cruelty and deceit, to make himself feared
even at he risk of making himself hated, to divide the people and destroy their
natural leaders and to keep faith with no one, since no one will keep faith with him.
The Prince views the world of politics as a jungle in which moral laws and standards
of ethical conduct are merely snares for fools, a jungle in which there is no reality