Machiavelli Covers Italy's Current Political Position example essay topic

587 words
Machiavelli's representation of truth in The Prince is rooted in a cynical view of political and personal power. He uses the tactics of confusion and misrepresentation to advance his concept of the ideal state. Machiavelli combined the traditional, or classical, and Christian thought that was prevalent in philosophical circles of his day for the purposes of presenting his concept of power. This 5 page paper examines the concept of power, truth and imagination from Machiavelli's viewpoint in The Prince. and relates this notion of morality within the constructs of leadership. This paper considers the fact that Machiavelli appears to support the notion that the means always justify the ends in political situations, and that understanding this is the premise of strong leadership Machiavelli creates principles to which a Princedom should be run which will enable the Prince to be strong in this reign that rival those of the THE ART OF WAR. He covers the state in which a Prince reigns such as that of acquiring new territory and the characteristics of which a Prince should follow if the Prince wishes to remain in power.

Machiavelli also outlines the type of arms a Prince should inquire in defending his citizens or in attack of another ruler. Machiavelli covers Italy's current political position of when he was living their and how its faults happened how it can be remedied. Under all his points he leaves the message, that no matter how you came into power, use it wisely and good fortune will be best oed on you or that the ends justify the means. I recommend that anyone who wishes to get into the mind of a political and military master mind or just someone looking for a thought provoking book should read this because it is not to be taken lightly. Although he is writing of political positions in the 1500's most of the points he makes can still be useful today however not all because of the invention of chemical and nuclear warfare and internet which has opened the world into a new dimension. As a high school student I remember many of my instructors referring to Machiavelli as the author of the famous book on backstabbing for power.

After having finally read the Prince, I really wonder where this reputation comes from. Machiavelli makes it clear from the first page that hes writing a guide for taking and maintaining power without any moral considerations getting in the way, but his arguments outline a benevolent authority, not a tyrannical one. In the Discourses (also included in this book), he extols the virtues of the people over the prince. The Prince and the Discourses both have interesting gems for the modern reader. Machiavelli uses many examples of powerful people and institutions from his time. He expresses almost an atheistic position when discussing religion, and, furthermore, he describes a general disillusionment with religion by the people of Italy.

I found all these subtle things quite intriguing and not at all what I would have expected. Machiavelli writes in a very easy to read style (is this just the translation?) and he presents logical arguments and historical examples to back everything up, but his arguments generally boil down to because I say so. I suspect if a modern writer (particularly an academic) wrote this same book, it would be five times longer, with detailed justification for each point made..