Essay On Machiavelli's Moral Theory

Machiavelli’s moral theory Machiavelli’s The Prince is said to be a manual for new rulers, not a philosophical text. Thus, bringing forth questions as to why one should consume their time with reading it. It is argued that The Prince is still read today due to its predominant link to consequentialism and/or amoralism. Either of these are plausible, but which moral theory did Machiavelli’s vision of politics really take on? Consequentialism can be defined as an ethical theory in which the consequences of one’s actions are viewed as the ultimate foundation for any judgement and whether that act should be seen as right or wrong. Keeping this in mind, it becomes evident that throughout The Prince Machiavelli’s view of politics may in fact focus …show more content…
This parallels with what Machiavelli advocates in the sense that he advises a prince to use ruthless strategies in order to maintain a strong state, in which the moral purpose is the good of community, and that it is nearly impossible to think that one can reach good ends without resorting to evil. Should consequentialism then be considered as a moral theory? In its general definition consequentialism can be considered void of any moral or ethical views. However, I believe that it should be considered a moral theory on account of the idea that the consequences of ones actions are seen as the main driving force for the ways in which someone would or would not conduct themselves. This general idea encompasses the idea of morality as a whole, because in it’s essence morality is a principle that uses a set of ideals to differentiate between how one should or should not