Lucrezia Borgia

In Machiavelli's The Prince, Machiavelli instructs people wanting to gain political power should be more concerned with what is politically effective rather than what is morally right. Machiavelli encourages readers to do whatever is necessary to gain and keep power. While Machiavelli's methods seem harsh and extreme and I personally don't believe that they are ethically right, I believe they would allow a ruler to accomplish his goals of obtaining power. During the Renaissance when…

Recently, we attended a lecture where distinguished professor of history emeritus, William Cook (SUNY Geneseo) made the case for exalting, Niccolò Machiavelli (1469-1527). Since the publication of his political treatise, The Prince in 1532, Machiavelli’s name has become synonymous with unprincipled, deceptive, and tyrannical tactics. In his lecture ‘Machiavelli on Republican Virtue,’ Dr. Cook argues that The Prince is grossly misinterpreted, deemed an apology for tyranny, critics have gone…

Why was Machiavelli’s book The Prince so controversial? The prince is an analytical ‘handbook’ written by political philosopher, Niccolò Machiavelli. Within the book, Machiavelli offers advice to new princes regarding the way in which they can gain and maintain power in a state. However, since its publication in 1532, the book has been dubbed controversial due to the ideas it shared and was even banned by the Roman Catholic Church in 1559, raising the question, why was Machiavelli’s book ‘The…

lose their ability to sustain their regime because they lack the virtu to lead alone . Through the passage a significant detail is added to the original definition by exploring the concept of human action over fortuna through the actions of Cesare Borgia. Machiavelli’s views on leadership and power were a product of his environment. He lived during a period of political unrest in Florence that led to his exile. The Bonfire of the Vanities created a power vacuum that Machiavelli filled, becoming…

cunning and effective use of cruelty. He even encourages the actions of Borgia to be “imitated” by future princes (29). This example of “cruelty-well-used”, as Machiavelli calls it, is recognized after Borgia notices the civil disunity within his kingdom. The subjects were so used to having their possessions taken from them under the rule of the old families that many resorted to violence and robbery just to survive (29). Borgia wanted to correct this chaos and establish “good government” by…

“True hero is one who conquers his own anger and hatred” (Dalai Lama). For example a hero has to not hate people and see the good in people and not just the bad in everything. Moreover, people who usually hold in their anger until someone pushes them over the edge really. Far then they usually get mad but most heros . Although a hero is someone who does something to protect another person or animal. What is a hero a hero is someone in my opinion who does something heroic or past…

Dedicated to the Florentine ruler Lorenzo II de’ Medici, Machiavelli’s Prince is a guidebook on how to acquire power and stabilize your state. Inscribed in a tradition of political advice books , what sets it apart from those that came before him are the radical and obviously wicked guidelines it puts forwards. However, before establishing whether or not The Prince is truly a handbook of wickedness, this term must be elucidated. Wickedness, synonym of evilness, is commonly interpreted as either…

Sophiya Marsani Professor Stoltz English 1020. A03 29 September 2017 Being disarmed makes you despised In his essay "The Qualities of Prince" Machiavelli praises the skill of prince in warfare. He argues that an art of arms is one of the rudimentary skill of prince in order to hold his position on high. But Machiavelli…

Inigo Jones was undoubtedly the bringer of successful classical and High Renaissance Italian architectural styles to England. He is often highly associated with Palladio and Vitruvius; so much so that the eighteenth century revivals of Palladio included design by Jones, and he has been given the title of "Vitruvius Britannicus". These associations though, severely simplify and limit Jones's personal expression. He was not simply a follower of classical Italianate styles; instead he adjusted,…

What kind of actions should a virtuoso (skillful) prince take? Well, he avoids using other princes' troops or hiring mercenaries to do his dirty work - such a reliance on outside help makes a prince the helpless victim of fortune. He does not come into power through overt crime, nor does he allow himself to gain a reputation for cruelty - but he is able to use crime and cruelty when he needs to, carefully concealing his guilt. A virtuoso prince will not alienate the people he governs, but he…