Machiavellian Politics In The Prince

5 Pages 1148 Words

The Prince, written by Niccolo Machiavelli, is one of the
first examinations of politics and science from a purely scientific
and rational perspective. Machiavelli theorizes that the state is only
created if the people cooperate and work to maintain it. The state is
also one of man’s greatest endeavors, and the state takes precedence
over everything else. The state should be one’s primary focus, and
maintaining the sovereignty of the state one’s most vital concern. The
state is founded on the power of its military. Therefore, a strong
military is vital to maintaining the state. Machiavelli believes that
men respect power, but they will take advantage of kindness. He
believes that when given the opportunity one must destroy completely,
because if one does not he will certainly be destroyed. The prince
should lead the military, and he has to be intelligent. An effective
politician can make quick and intelligent choices about the problems
that coneztly arise before him. He must also have virtue, which
means he is strong, confident, talented, as well as smart. A prince
cannot be uncertain, because uncertainty is a sign of weakness.
Fortune controls half of human’s actions, and man’s will control the
other half. Virtue is the best defense for fortune, and virtue must be
used in order to keep fortune in check. The prince must take advantage
of situations based solely on if it is best for the state. He should
choose his decisions based on contemporary and historical examples. A
prince cannot consider whether his acts are moral or immoral, and he
instead must act in an unbiased manner for the state. Also, it does
not matter how the state achieves its goals, as long as these goals
are achieved. Finally, regardless of the personal morality involved,
the prince should be praised if he does good for the state and berated
if he hurts the state. Machiavelli’s principles have widespread
influenc...