Machiavellianism

His work The Prince offers psychological ideas that go hand in hand with his political philosophy. Quotes such as, “Never attempt to win by force what can be won by deception.” (Machievelli 1532 p.37) and “…he who seeks to deceive will always find someone who will allow himself to be deceived.” (Machiavelli 1532 p.63), stress the importance of cunning and deception to achieve personal goals. It is for this reason that Machiavellianism is painted in a negative light and he is known in psychological circles as part of the “Dark Triad”(Hartely 2015). It is hard to argue with this assertion. When manipulation of people is involved it usually is done out of personal interests that are seen as better or more important than those of the people being manipulated. Yet under observation, it appears most of the rhetoric in The Prince lines up more closely with the INTJ personality type, as opposed to those of a narcissist or a sociopath. Narcissism and being a sociopath are personality disorders that produce socially negative results including a bloated ego and empathy toward others (Christie, Geis, 1970). In reading The Prince, it is hard to find evidence of avocation of…

The Prince 's Usefulness to “Our” Modern Political Leaders Machiavelli 's (1469-1527) work The Prince could easily be subtitled “The Art of Statecraft: How to Govern [Well?].” Machiavelli, sometimes referred to as “the first realist in politics,” wrote The Prince (1513) in an attempt to ingratiate himself to the ruling Medici family. The Medici family had dismissed him, suspected him of conspiracy, and banished him from the city of Florence only the year prior (1512). It is my contention…

1. Why should a Prince understand how to “use well both the man and the beast”? A Prince should understand how to use both the man and beast ways of interaction well in order to know which approach will be most effectual to obtain the desired outcome. Knowing how to keep the faith and live uprightly will win popularity votes while living craftily can get the job done. Knowing when to go from abiding by the law to applying force is the important balancing act that Machiavelli states that a…

Machiavelli’s The Prince could be used as a manual for navigating tough decisions that leaders face every day, or viewed as a defense of negligent and callous autocratic leadership. While Machiavelli encouraged a more coldhearted approach to leadership, Socrates pushed for an improvement in the morality of daily life including leadership. The prince is a very determined powerful leader, who by almost any means, desires to protect and preserve his nation as well as his position as the prince. He…

Morality and Necessity: What Makes a Prince Just? Whether using the Machiavellian terminology (i.e. the prince) or the Socratic nouns (i.e. citizen, philosopher, or civil servant), the three literary works, “The Apology”, “Crito”, and “The Prince”, address the same topic: what should a leader be. Socrates valued individual characteristics considered to be moral and just more than anything. He was not afraid to place leaders to the same standard as the ordinary citizen and in fact encouraged…

Machiavelli believes it is safer to be feared than loved. He states that “it is desirable to be both, but because it is difficult to join them together, it is much safer for a prince to be feared than loved, if he is to fail one of the two” (Prince). Princes, in Machiavelli’s eyes, needs to be feared because if he fails, it is safer to be feared than to be loved. Machiavelli favors fear over love for many reasons. One of the reasons are his views on politics as well as past experiences on…

Comparison of Machiavelli’s behavior of known Politicians According to Niccolo Machiaville, he himself felt he was the most widely-read of the Renaissance thinkers. He retired from public service in order to become a writer and felt he was a Florentine politician. Shortly after his early retirement he was able to accomplish his dream and in 1513 he wrote his best known work, entitled The Prince, Principle II. In his book his main focus was on the way a good ruler or prince should perform. He…

Rulers around the world have many different ideas and thoughts about what makes an effective ruler. Some may think that having supreme rule over of all aspects of a person’s life marks a great ruler. Others see true leadership as the ability to lead by example, showing that a ruler is human like everyone else. Nicolo Machiavelli was of the former thinking. In his book “The Prince,” Machiavelli gives guidance on what believes to be the best practices for ruling. However, Machiavelli’s…

Three recurring themes in “The Prince” are good will and hatred, fortun, and warcraft. The first recurring theme in “The Prince” is good will and hatred, Machiavelli always goes back to the fact that a prince must make sure that he is not hated by his people, a prince must take care of his people and not be cruel and if a prince suspects he is hated by this people he should fear them. He discusses this theme in both chapters XVII and XIX. The second recurring theme in “The Prince is fortune in…

Niccolò Machiavelli, a Florentine politician during the Renaissance, contributed tremendously to the famous debate, “do the ends justify the means?” Machiavelli used his magnum opus, The Prince; to defend actions, by the political elite, most of society thought was immoral in nature. The phrase “Machiavellian” is widely used today to describe an individual who will use deceit and manipulation to achieve his or her desired ends. This historical example resonates with me when analyzing one’s…