Qualities Of The Prince Quote Analysis

Improved Essays
Tracy Xayadeth
Professor Simpson-Uruttia
English 1A
30 January 2017
#5 pp. 235

Machiavelli's Controversial Statement In Machiavelli's "The Qualities of the Prince", he quotes, "A man who wishes to make a vocation of being good at all times will come to ruin among so many who are not good" (pp.224, p.7). Machiavelli was an aristocrat whose fortunes wavered according to shifts in the power of Florence. He believes that a great majority of people are not good. It is necessary for a prince who wishes to maintain his position to learn how not to be good, and to use his knowledge or not to use it accordingly to necessity. Lao-Tzu is a master that is in touch with his spiritual side. He's all about simplicity, patience, compassion. Machiavelli's
…show more content…
The government is corrupt and enforces laws upon people for it to be followed. The more laws and order are made prominent, the more thieves and robbers there will be. Lao-tzu quotes "Throw away morality and justice, and people will do the right thing" (pp.207, p.8). For instance, if there were not so many laws, maybe people would not act so terribly. Lao-tzu states, "If a nation is centered in the Tao if it nourishes its own people and doesn't meddle in the affairs of others, it will be a light to all nations in the world" (pp.213, p.49). This was Machiavelli's aspirations, being only generous would result in running out of money. The way Machiavelli runs his government reminds me of how Kim Jong Un and Donald Trump run his country. Whereas the core of belief systems are different. Like Kim Jong, Machiavelli and Donald Trump share many similarities. These men share similarities, they put power before their people. They're both greedy, evil, and care about money. Machiavelli, Kim Jong Un, and Donald Trump don't have any morals and they're all selfish. Kim Jong Un, Machiavelli, and Donald Trump all corrupt the system. Donald Trump is trying to deport all immigrants back to their home country. Donald Trump is races and he hates every race except his own kind. What Donald Trump is doing is illegal. All men were highly respected by their people and will do anything to stay in power. …show more content…
He believes that peace can be achieved when nothing is desired. Machiavelli will do anything to stay in power and to be feared, wanting the prince to acknowledge the art of war. Lao-tzu's writings offered a basis for Taoism. The Tao-Te-Ching is a philosophical document about good government and moral behavior. The teachings of Lao-tzu are the opposite of the materialist quest for power, dominance, authority, and

Related Documents

  • Improved Essays

    The first reading in chapter one of our text Pursuing Happiness, edited by Mathew Parfitt and Dawn Skorczewski, presents material translated from The TaoTeChing. I studied multiple sources to find more about this ancient text, and in the paragraphs below I will discuss the meaning of Tao its self, the author behind the work, and how Taoism has grown and changed through the centuries up to present time. Taoism is a religion that originated in china approximately 2,400 years ago. The main principles of Taoism come from the Tao Te Ching which was written by a man named Lao Tzu. He was the keeper of the imperial library and he was famous across the land for his wisdom.…

    • 574 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Decent Essays

    Niccolo Machiavelli wrote "The Qualities of the Prince" in July 1513 in Florence, Italy, to convey his idea of the strong, active, and perfect ruler to the current ruling the Medicis. The work is remembered and responsible for bringing “Machiavellian” into wide usage as a pejorative term. The essay takes a stringent position on the proper way to govern a nation. With a straightforward logic, a relevant idea, and an expressed method, Machiavelli’s “The Qualities of the Prince” is a practical guide for current…

    • 85 Words
    • 1 Pages
    Decent Essays
  • Superior Essays

    Confucius’ mis-representation of the concept of chivalry portrays his lack of ethical understanding of the society around him. Certainly, Confucius’ and Lao Tzu’s ideologies have guided humanity’s roadmap since ancient history. Their long-lasting works have allowed people all over the world find the one truth that encompasses us all. The difference that promotes Lao Tzu’s teachings over Confucius, however, is the classification of people below or above us, the ultimate flaw in ethical…

    • 1076 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Improved Essays

    In the East, particular within the great ancient Chinese civilizations, two very different kinds of point to view of being Human had come to flourish in the Chinese culture. Which till this very day influences the day by day tasks and challenges faced by many. On one side there is the world renowned teachings of Confucius (Kongzi) which talks of becoming the perfect society via men who become the perfect gentlemen that followed his teachings in his Analects. On the other side we have the life lessons and guides of another by the name of Laozi. Whose approach on life was drastically different compared to Kongzi’s perfect society, in which he preached the Dao (the way).…

    • 534 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Wag The Dog

    • 524 Words
    • 3 Pages

    According to Machiavelli, “… a prince should guards himself, above all things, against being despised and hated…” (54). This statement can be connected to the film due to the fact that the president’s team was working towards cleaning his imagine and attempting to avoid any hatred that the public might develop. Also, Machiavelli said, “… one of the most efficacious remedies that a prince can have against conspiracies is no to be hated…” which relates to the movie since, if the public would have kept their focus on the sex scandal, they would have developed detestation towards the president and conspired against him in order to prevent him from being reelected. On the other hand, the content in Tao Te Ching greatly differs from the film’s story. For example, Lao-Tzu said, “In governing, don’t try to control,” which is the opposite philosophy that the group in Wag the Dog used since they controlled the public by making them believe that the president’s wrong doings were false (8).…

    • 524 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Throughout the ages people have to realize that there are different ideas and different ways to governing the world and people. For one it is all about appearance. To the people he has to appear to be true and keep up the appearance he is honest and true, but in reality he is thinking only about himself. He is trying to think make sure that he always has power. It isn’t about the people, but about keeping the people in her hands.…

    • 1040 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Superior Essays

    Niccolò Machiavelli and Alvar Núñez Cabeza de Vaca went through different experiences that led them to have their own perspectives in human nature and create their ideals for good governance. The simple fact that Cabeza de Vaca was unfortunate enough to have a hard time throughout the expedition made him more open minded about human nature, while Machiavelli had a set idea of what human nature was and how it ties to good governance. Machiavelli's view on human nature is the same as what is a good governance a good leader and a good human being is someone who knows how to be respected and feared without being hated and how that leads to have the people the Prince governs happy and on his side. Cabeza de Vaca has a more down to earth view on human nature but that differs…

    • 2016 Words
    • 9 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Superior Essays

    Confucianism Dbq

    • 1017 Words
    • 5 Pages

    This quote exhibits the importance of reverence and loyalty towards elders and brothers within Confucianism. The ideal ruler according to Confucianism should show respect towards his peers and should also be revered by citizens living in the society. If there is mutual veneration and respect between a ruler and citizens, society is able to operate in a cohesive manner. Furthermore, leaders should set a good example by leading with virtue.…

    • 1017 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Decent Essays

    Lao-Tzu once mentioned that it is possible to understand the real Dao without leaving the house. It actually became a classical statement of Daoism. Confucianism was an attempt to release tension between a man and society, to strengthen a social-political system of China by improving it. Daoism, in its turn, worked out its own quite unique system of person’s cultural development. Confucianism was the elite doctrine of well-educated, intellectual stratum of society.…

    • 706 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Decent Essays
  • Improved Essays

    She lets them go their own way, and resides at the centre of the circle (29). Lao Tzu argues that people can neither fix nor improve the world, for they would only harm it more if they tried. The job of the human race is to center themselves with the Tao because that is where true balance is found (29). The ideas of Aristotle and Lao Tzu in this situation are contrary to one another, but as both authors agree, that does not mean that one is wrong while the other is correct.…

    • 763 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Taoism is a religion most commonly seen in China. Taoism does share some similarities with two religions we have discussed previously, including Buddhism and Confucianism. This religion started with a man named Lao Tzu. Lao Tzu was born around 604 B.C and was known in the Taoism religion as “the Old Boy.” People were not very certain about Lao Tzu because there were different conspiracies about different parts of his life.…

    • 748 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    I Like the Way He Thinks (A discussion on the political views Frederick Douglass agrees with) The world is filled with people, around 7 billion to be more precise, and all those people make up 196 countries. So the question of how to govern all these people is one with a valid point.…

    • 1812 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    This is exemplified in Socrates criticism of the jury for valuing wealth and political titles as a replacement for proper moral goodness. “Are you not ashamed that you give your attention to acquiring as much money as possible, and similarly with reputation and honor, and give no attention or thought to truth and understanding and the perfection of your soul?” (56). Not only is Machiavelli an avid supporter of gaining political power, he values gaining political power through one’s own ambition and cunning above other methods like inheritance. Furthermore, his realist view of politics and wealth’s role in maintaining the state unsurprisingly leads him to the conclusion a good prince must not fear a reputation of being cheap, describing it as necessary “if he wishes to avoid robbing his subjects, if he wishes to be able to defend himself, to avoid becoming poor and contemptible, and not to be forced to become rapacious.…

    • 1488 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    The ideas that Machiavelli displays are the true ideals of the era, however, the irony and satire surrounding how they are presented are not genuine: ““Any man who tries to be good all the time is bound to come to ruin among the great number who are not good. Hence a prince who wants to keep his authority must learn how not to be good, and use that knowledge, or refrain from using it, as necessity requires” (Machiavelli). Machiavelli is revealing to the reader that in order for a prince to do a good job, he must lie to his subjects in order to be successful. He continues to be ironic and poke fun at the system in play and proves that these thoughts of the prince are not genuine. The beliefs that correspond with those of the era that are presented in The Prince are a strong ruling body in order to maintain social order:“Machiavelli, in the world we have described, often holds qualities like liberality, affability, generosity, courage, sincerity, gravity, and faith, to be of no more or less political value than their opposites, except in communication”(Moore).…

    • 1412 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Superior Essays

    At face value, The Prince and the Discourses seem to have a conflicting nature, but both texts focus on the administration of a state and present textual similarities. Much of what Machiavelli writes in The Prince reinforces the Discourses, echoing both stylistically and thematically. Machiavelli uses pragmatic methods in both and accentuates the importance of historical studies. In The Prince, there is a significant amount of reference to Cesare Borgia, a man that Machiavelli admires, and he states, “I shall never hesitate to cite Cesare Borgia and his actions,” and his views on virtue and fortune come out of Borgia’s narrative . For Machiavelli, Borgia is the superlative example of a man who can compel any individual to do the distasteful…

    • 1201 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Superior Essays