“The Century of Sorrows” also known as the fourteenth century, was an influence on many future generations and great philosophers. This disaster brought the decline of the Papacy, the loss of population due to the Plague, the increase for political decentralization and unrest, and the slow disintegration of the medieval civilization. The result of this depressing period brought the Italian Renaissance. The Renaissance was mostly a focus for a renewed concern for the things of this world; humanism being the most powerful. Many different types and definitions of humanism were discovered during this period depending on the thinker and their beliefs. Two great thinkers in this period were Giovanni Pico, and Niccolo Machiavelli. These two contemporary
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His goal was to bring back the unity and strength that Italy had, and revive the past glories of the Roman empire. This was a time where civic humanism took rise. Machiavelli began writing political tracts by bringing out the sinful and evil qualities of human nature. His most famous work was called “The Prince” written in 1513. This was the very first political theory writing. It was a set of principles suggested to princes or people in power on how to rule and how to maintain peace and security, while seeking fame and honor. Some principles include, “It is safer to be feared than be loved” (pg.130), “A prince must learn how to act the part of a beast sometimes, he should make the fox and the lion his patterns”(pg.131), and “a prince ought to read history and to pay particular attention to the achievements of great generals and the cause of their victories and defeats but above all he should follow the example of those great men who when they select a model resolve to follow in his steps” (pg.128). His principles reflect the value and concerns of Renaissance humanism because they address the proper way to rule a state. They reflect that a government be best ruled with a strong control and training citizens in moral …show more content…
Firstly, Pico’s motivation is God whereas Machiavelli’s is greed. Machiavelli was not religious at all and believed in realism instead of spirits. In Pico’s writing, he says “I felt that I had come to understand both why Man is the most fortunate of creatures and thus worthy of all admiration” (pg.117). Machiavelli would disagree with this as he thinks mankind is brutish, evil and wouldn’t be worth any admiration unless they achieved something worth admiring. Also, Pico thought that freedom was a gift, determined by free will of humans, while Machiavelli thought that freedom led to the human’s demise. In the end, Pico and Machiavelli are on the opposite side of the spectrums with their definitions of human nature. Human nature is that we have limited control over our destiny but we can control how people see us and how we characterize ourselves. They are both morally right to an extent, but our world does not just compose of one view, we need to see the two perspectives in
His goal was to bring back the unity and strength that Italy had, and revive the past glories of the Roman empire. This was a time where civic humanism took rise. Machiavelli began writing political tracts by bringing out the sinful and evil qualities of human nature. His most famous work was called “The Prince” written in 1513. This was the very first political theory writing. It was a set of principles suggested to princes or people in power on how to rule and how to maintain peace and security, while seeking fame and honor. Some principles include, “It is safer to be feared than be loved” (pg.130), “A prince must learn how to act the part of a beast sometimes, he should make the fox and the lion his patterns”(pg.131), and “a prince ought to read history and to pay particular attention to the achievements of great generals and the cause of their victories and defeats but above all he should follow the example of those great men who when they select a model resolve to follow in his steps” (pg.128). His principles reflect the value and concerns of Renaissance humanism because they address the proper way to rule a state. They reflect that a government be best ruled with a strong control and training citizens in moral …show more content…
Firstly, Pico’s motivation is God whereas Machiavelli’s is greed. Machiavelli was not religious at all and believed in realism instead of spirits. In Pico’s writing, he says “I felt that I had come to understand both why Man is the most fortunate of creatures and thus worthy of all admiration” (pg.117). Machiavelli would disagree with this as he thinks mankind is brutish, evil and wouldn’t be worth any admiration unless they achieved something worth admiring. Also, Pico thought that freedom was a gift, determined by free will of humans, while Machiavelli thought that freedom led to the human’s demise. In the end, Pico and Machiavelli are on the opposite side of the spectrums with their definitions of human nature. Human nature is that we have limited control over our destiny but we can control how people see us and how we characterize ourselves. They are both morally right to an extent, but our world does not just compose of one view, we need to see the two perspectives in