false http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1178288188m/780639.jpg 780639 6 Machiavelli's best known work is The Prince, in which he describes the arts by which a ruler can retain control of his realm. He focuses primarily on what he calls the "new prince", under the assumption that a hereditary prince has an easier task since the people are accustomed to him. All a hereditary prince needs to do is carefully maintain the institutions that the people are used to; a new prince has a much more difficult task since he must stabilize his newfound power & build a structure that will endure. This task requires the Prince to be publicly above reproach but privately may require him to do immoral things in order to achieve his goals. Machiavelli explains thru examples which princes are the most successful in obtaining & maintaining power. He draws his examples from personal observations made while he was on diplomatic missions for Florence & from his readings in ancient history. He periodically uses Latin phrases. Many examples are drawn from Classical sources. Machiavelli does not dispense entirely with morality nor advocate wholesale selfishness or degeneracy. Instead he outlines his definition of, for example, the criteria for acceptable cruel actions (it must be swift, effective & short-lived). He also does not miss the irony in the fact that good can come from evil actions. Notwithstanding the mitigating themes in The Prince, the Catholic Church put the work in its Index Librorum Prohibitorum & it was viewed in a negative light by many Humanists like Erasmus. The primary contribution of The Prince to the history of political thought is its fundamental break between realism & idealism. Pragmatism is a guiding thread through which Machiavelli bases his philosophy. The Prince should be read strictly as a guidebook on getting to & preserving power. In contrast with Plato & Aristotle, the ideal society is not the aim. In fact, he emphasizes the need for the exercise of brute power where necessary & rewards, patron-clientalism etc. to preserve the status quo. The term "Machiavellian" was adopted by some of his contemporaries, often used in the introductions of political tracts of the sixteenth century that offered more 'just' reasons of state, most notably those of Jean Bodin & Giovanni Botero. The pejorative term Machiavellian as it is used today (or anti-Machiavellism as it was used from the sixteenth century) is thus a misnomer, as it describes one who deceives & manipulates others for gain; whether the gain is personal or not is of no relevance, only that any actions taken are only important insofar as they affect the results. It fails to include some of the more moderating themes found in Machiavelli's works & the name is now associated with the extreme viewpoint. 95756 1 8 1950 The Prince and The Discourses total:95|5:21|4:26|3:37|2:8|1:3| 95 339 149 10 3 1 true false Tue Aug 01 00:00:00 -0700 1967 Mon Apr 28 12:06:05 -0700 2008 Fri May 02 09:09:16 -0700 2008 more...]]> 3 0 false false Tue Oct 07 19:52:57 -0700 2008 Tue Oct 07 19:53:02 -0700 2008 more...]]> 4 0 false false Fri Dec 01 00:00:00 -0800 2006 Wed Dec 31 02:25:41 -0800 2008 Wed Dec 31 02:27:29 -0800 2008
My favorite parts: The section on Fortuna (early, I think it's t...more...]]> 4 0 false false Sun Nov 23 10:16:54 -0800 2008 Sun Nov 23 10:34:21 -0800 2008 more...]]> 2 0 false false Sat Mar 07 22:02:32 -0800 2009 Sat Mar 07 22:03:51 -0800 2009 3 0 false false Wed Mar 11 13:21:44 -0700 2009 Wed Mar 11 13:23:33 -0700 2009 3 0 false false Sat Jul 26 20:04:40 -0700 2008 Mon Jul 28 20:59:48 -0700 2008 3 0 false false Thu Sep 11 11:45:36 -0700 2008 Thu Sep 11 11:49:45 -0700 2008 5 0 false false Wed Apr 11 00:00:00 -0700 2007 Wed Jul 16 05:42:00 -0700 2008 Wed Jul 16 05:44:44 -0700 2008
Warning: may induce megalomaniacal tendencies]]> 5 0 false false Mon Jul 28 06:34:45 -0700 2008 Mon Jul 28 06:35:25 -0700 2008 0 0 false false Sat Nov 28 18:09:20 -0800 2009 Sat Nov 28 18:09:28 -0800 2009 0 0 false false Fri Nov 27 07:23:19 -0800 2009 Fri Nov 27 07:23:19 -0800 2009 5 0 false false Wed Nov 25 11:33:19 -0800 2009 Wed Nov 25 11:33:19 -0800 2009 4 0 false false Wed Nov 25 07:24:22 -0800 2009 Wed Nov 25 07:24:22 -0800 2009 5 0 false false Sun Nov 22 17:06:50 -0800 2009 Sun Nov 22 17:06:50 -0800 2009 5 0 false false Mon Nov 16 10:54:28 -0800 2009 Mon Nov 16 12:16:36 -0800 2009 4 0 false false Thu Oct 29 10:16:23 -0700 2009 Thu Oct 29 10:16:23 -0700 2009 0 0 false false Mon Oct 26 21:34:47 -0700 2009 Mon Oct 26 21:34:52 -0700 2009 4 0 false false Sat Oct 17 16:26:16 -0700 2009 Sat Oct 17 16:26:16 -0700 2009 3 0 false false Thu Oct 15 20:32:41 -0700 2009 Thu Oct 15 20:32:41 -0700 2009 http://www.goodreads.com/book_link/follow/8?book_id=780639