Comparing Socrates And Machiavelli's The Prince

It is clear to me that Socrates was one of the most bold, inquisitive and virtuous philosophers to ever exist. “For the unexamined life is not worth living,” said Socrates. This very saying became one of Socrates most important beliefs and one of his life missions. After the Delphi claimed Socrates to be the wisest, he aimed to find the men who had a reputation to be witty. Nevertheless, during Socrates mission, he concludes that these men were not at all diplomatic, but that they plausibly believed that they were wise men themselves. Socrates is disheartened when he encounters these so-called wise poets, politicians and craftsmen who know nothing at all. Questioning their words, Socrates realizes how unwise these men actually were because …show more content…
Niccolo Machiavelli believed that “human nature never changes”. He also states that people are essentially self-interested and unreliable. One great quote from Machiavelli, which connects this, would be that “a man will sooner forget the death of his father than the loss of his inheritance”. Machiavelli’s egoism really shines through his conception of human nature. His how-to-guide in The Prince explained his strategy to “obtain and maintain power”. Machiavelli reinforces this idea by stating that through virtu, a prince could obtain and maintain …show more content…
Let us not either confuse feared with hatred because they are completely different. The mass can change their minds about who they love based on any accusations from one day to the next. If one is loved more than feared, people could start to take advantage of the ruler and eventually lead to a collapsed domain. When a prince is feared rather than loved, people would respect their ruler intensively and they would also be afraid of any punishment for any of their misconducts. Be aware that being hated should be completely avoided. The way to avoid being hated, according to Machiavelli, is to never “take a man’s possessions or