The Perfect Ruler In Shakespeare's The Prince By Niccolò Machiavelli

Charlie Chaplin once said, “This is a ruthless world and one must be ruthless to cope with it.” Throughout history there have been many famous rulers. Some of which were loved and adored while others were despised and ridiculed. Niccolò Machiavelli, a man of great influence at the time, had become accustomed to the multitude of rulers in his area and decided to create his masterpiece, The Prince. The novel is entirely dedicated to describing the “perfect ruler.” Niccolò Machiavelli was born on May 3, 1469 in Florence, Italy. He was born in the midst of the Renaissance; whose heart was in Italy. The city where he resided was in turmoil. The political system had been switching back and forth from being ruled and ruling themselves. The Prince, at the time of its release, was very controversial. The book contradicted the political rulers as well as the Catholic Church. The work itself was Machiavelli’s ideal monarch and he describes in detail examples that cover all of the aspects of being a ruler. Machiavelli’s fictional character can be compared to an actual leader, Qin Shi Huang. …show more content…
The perfect prince must have good laws and strong armies. Qin Shi Huang’s laws were not too strict but did severely punish anyone who opposed him. As for his army, he went to great lengths to ensure that he had a powerful contingent of soldiers. His army was solely filled with his own loyal people, not mercenaries or auxiliaries.
Then the question arises, is it better to be loved or feared? Both Machiavelli and Qin Shi Huang agree that fear is best but to also one needs to be loved (Machiavelli, page 363). Qin Shi Huang was loved by the people since he protected them from the Huns and was a fair ruler. However, he also killed hundreds of scholars and burned thousands of books because they opposed the Emperor. This gave his people a reason to fear