Maple Chen
Niccolo Machiavelli’s The Prince was written during the 16th century, in opposition to the contemporary ideals of human perfection. Machiavelli had served in the Florentine government as a diplomat and statesman from 1498 to 1512 and wrote The Prince after being exiled from Florence when the French invaded. The book was written to impress ducal ruler Giuliano de Medici, a dominant family in Florence at the time. In The Prince, Machiavelli talks about the need for a strong ruler in order to establish a strong state, and to do whatever necessary to maintain said strong state, regardless of morals. In the given excerpt, Machiavelli discusses the flaws in mercenary armies, the necessity of rulers to be knowledgeable in military activities, the practicality of being hated rather …show more content…
It was also a time of state formation, especially in Italy, France, and Spain. Machiavelli uses The Prince to suggest what he perceives to be the best way to ensure a strong state, and he also uses it to call for greater unity in Italy. His ideas were likely impacted by his experience serving in the Florentine government, and the ideas he presents may have also affected the decisions of colonizers and conquerors, since it was published during the age of exploration. In this excerpt of The Prince, Machiavelli covers a variety of topics. One of these expresses his distrust in mercenaries, foreign soldiers hired into the military, and he even goes so far as to blame them for the disunity of Italy at the time. This may have been influenced by a kind of European ethnocentrism or superiority, leading to a general distrust of foreigners. His next focus in on the need for able rulers to know about military affairs, mentioning how men are by nature evil and should not be trusted, and that war is inevitable. His outlook on war was likely influenced by the competitive nature of the Italian city states, where he lived, and the general antagonisms in Europe. He states that a ruler who is
Niccolo Machiavelli’s The Prince was written during the 16th century, in opposition to the contemporary ideals of human perfection. Machiavelli had served in the Florentine government as a diplomat and statesman from 1498 to 1512 and wrote The Prince after being exiled from Florence when the French invaded. The book was written to impress ducal ruler Giuliano de Medici, a dominant family in Florence at the time. In The Prince, Machiavelli talks about the need for a strong ruler in order to establish a strong state, and to do whatever necessary to maintain said strong state, regardless of morals. In the given excerpt, Machiavelli discusses the flaws in mercenary armies, the necessity of rulers to be knowledgeable in military activities, the practicality of being hated rather …show more content…
It was also a time of state formation, especially in Italy, France, and Spain. Machiavelli uses The Prince to suggest what he perceives to be the best way to ensure a strong state, and he also uses it to call for greater unity in Italy. His ideas were likely impacted by his experience serving in the Florentine government, and the ideas he presents may have also affected the decisions of colonizers and conquerors, since it was published during the age of exploration. In this excerpt of The Prince, Machiavelli covers a variety of topics. One of these expresses his distrust in mercenaries, foreign soldiers hired into the military, and he even goes so far as to blame them for the disunity of Italy at the time. This may have been influenced by a kind of European ethnocentrism or superiority, leading to a general distrust of foreigners. His next focus in on the need for able rulers to know about military affairs, mentioning how men are by nature evil and should not be trusted, and that war is inevitable. His outlook on war was likely influenced by the competitive nature of the Italian city states, where he lived, and the general antagonisms in Europe. He states that a ruler who is