Niccoló Machiavelli Fear or Love - 540 Words

Machiavelli: Fear or Love? Niccolà ³ Machiavelli’s The Prince is a book of political philosophy that describes the perfect leader in a republican fourm of government, the very form used in American society today. Machiavelli explains what qualities the ideal â€Å"prince† should have as well as how he should go about conducting his business. Although both qualtites would be desirable, he argues that if the prince were to choose between being feared or loved by his people, the prince should choose fear. While living under fear is not ideal, it is true that the feared prince is a better leader than a loved prince. Love and fear are two completely different emotions that bring out the best and the worst in everyone. In The Prince, Machiavelli asks us, â€Å"Is it better to be loved than feared, or the reverse?† He tells us that a combination of the two would be the best, but that it is almost impossible to have both. Thus he concludes that â€Å"since men love at their own choice and fear at the prince’s choice, a wise prince takes care to base himself on what is his own.† In other words, a smart leader knows that if power is awarded based on love, power can be taken away just as easily if people fall out of love with you. But, if people fear the prince, the power is held in his hands. While living under fear is not ideal, Machiavelli believes a prince creating fear is better than letting murder and other criminal activities continue under your power. Men will readily harm a loving man butShow MoreRelatedNiccolo Machiavelli s The Prince1719 Words   |  7 PagesMachiavelli’s, The Prince, a book written by Niccolà ² Machiavelli, is a read that most people wouldn’t prefer to read as a first option but in defense to Niccolo, it brings out many themes such as Goodwill and Hatred, Free will, and Human Nature. â€Å"It is known from his personal correspondence that The Prince was written during 1513, the year after t he Medici took control of Florence, and a few months after Machiavelli s arrest, torture, and banishment by the Medici regime† (Bio.com). The novel wasRead MoreThree Points that Niccolo Machiavelli Illustrates in The Prince743 Words   |  3 PagesThree Points that Niccolo Machiavelli Illustrates in The Prince Niccolo Machiavelli is a very pragmatic political theorist. His political theories are directly related to the current bad state of affairs in Italy that is in dire need of a new ruler to help bring order to the country. 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Primarily, I will begin by explaining each of the authors’ approaches to obtaining and maintaining political stability; I will then identify the differences in their approaches. Secondly, I will discuss and compare each of their ideologies concerning humanity and then I will be highlighting their commonalities on the subject. Lastly, a conclusionRead MoreAnalysis Of Hsun Tzu s Man s Nature Is Evil1720 Words   |  7 Pageswith perfect qualities and commoners are born in a status where they will be most useful for the ruler. Niccolà ² Machiavelli claims there are five qualities a ruler must be willing to execute in The Prince. While al-Farabi s ruler is more conce rned with justice, truth, and virtue, Machiavelli s ruler is more concerned with creating and maintaining a stable and successful city-state. Machiavelli promotes certain attributes that Tzu and al-Farabi would consider disagreeable. Hsà ¼n Tzu was a ChineseRead MoreThe Ideal Ruler Of Kant s Ruler1070 Words   |  5 Pagescenturies and is still asked today. In 1516, Niccolà ² Machiavelli attempted to answer this question in his work The Prince(Machiavelli 8). Centuries later a different view of an ideal ruler was proposed by an Enlightenment writer, Immanuel Kant. Although Niccolà ² Machiavelli and Immanuel Kant lived 250 years apart, both views have advantages and disadvantages in leading a country, Kant s ruler is a early model of a democratic ruler while Machiavelli s ruler was an ideal model for a absolute monarch