Preview

Machiavelli's Assessment Of People

Good Essays
Open Document
Open Document
465 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
Machiavelli's Assessment Of People
Machiavelli asserts, “... of men generally; they are ungrateful, fickle, feigners and dissemblers, avoiders of danger, eager for gain” and that men are “treacherous and would not keep their promises to you.” Do you agree with his assessment of people? Explain.
I do not agree with his assessment of people. I do not agree because he is stereotyping men, and has prejudice against them. He is calling all men “ungrateful, fickle, feigners and dissemblers, avoiders of danger, eager for gain”, when that might only be true for some men. Also, women can fall under these traits, not only men.

Who are some other notable figures (real or fictional) that could be called “Machiavellian”? Defend your choices.
In the book, “Machiavellian” came to refer the use of deceit on politics. In our world, Vladimir Putin defines this because he wants all of the power for himself, but he makes it look like he is doing it for his country. This is Machiavellian because The Prince is all about how well rulers can lie to their people, and he is doing exactly that.
…show more content…
Why? What other animal-like characteristics, do you feel are crucial for a leader?
Machiavelli claims that leaders should be like a lion and fox. He says this because he says that the lion is able to be trapped, whereas the fox cannot ward off wolves. Also, foxes can recognize traps, and a lion can frighten away wolves. A leader should also be like a tiger. A tiger is defined for its passion, power, devotion, and sensuality. Those traits are all necessary for a leader. Also, dogs are defined as faithfulness, protection, and loyalty and those are traits that would help a ruler become

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Good Essays

    Summary: The writings of Machiavelli and Lao Tzu indicate that they would disagree most strongly on the concept of how a government should run. Machiavelli believed that in strong government control by a prince who acted more in terms of practicality and maintaining power than through moral principles. Lao Tzu, on the other hand, took a more individualistic, carefree approach, believing that a ruler will be respected and followed if he does not act powerfully and force rules and issues.…

    • 514 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    This is a significant analysis of Niccolo Machiavelli’s book The Prince. This book explores multiple concepts on leadership and governance for a Prince to legislate on his road to success. Therefore, I will bring a compelling conclusion on how Russian President Vladimir Putin is a modern Machiavelli. To get a full understanding towards Niccolo Machiavelli’s political theory, we must first examine what’s managed to inspire his view of an ideal government. In the book, The Prince, Machiavelli introduces insightful claims on how the Roman Empire’s legitimacy brought a secure and stable society. In fact, presenting the Roman Empire’s platform helped the reader to thoroughly understand Machiavelli’s political theory regarding governance and the…

    • 230 Words
    • 1 Page
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    AP EURO SEMESTER FINAL REVIEW

    • 13928 Words
    • 37 Pages

    1) Niccolo Machiavelli: Italian politician, historian, and writer. Wrote The Prince, a book on how to control nations with fear…

    • 13928 Words
    • 37 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    In the fourth paragraph, under the subtitle The Prince, Vincent Barnett states that Machiavelli refers to all men as “ungrateful, fickle, liars, and deceivers.” He also states that men were not loyal, but greedy and self absorbed. Machiavelli also wanted the “prince” to make himself feared, but not hated.…

    • 167 Words
    • 1 Page
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    The understanding of human nature and the effects it has on the individual and society has been a serious topic in the philosophical world. Nicolo Machiavelli and Thomas Hobbes were well known for their crucial roles in forming the foundation of political philosophy. While reading through Machiavelli’s The Prince and Hobbes’ Leviathan, both introduced a common focus on political theory even though living approximately 100 years apart. While learning about these two philosophers and their proposed theories, I noticed an innate relationship in the discussion of society’s human nature. Machiavelli ([1532] 2006) in The Prince theorizes the qualities that a dominant leader should have to gain and maintain power.…

    • 292 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Contrary to popular belief, Machiavelli is not a diabolic political figure in search of power. He is instead an astute politician who uses his extensive knowledge of politics to analyze various princes and principalities in order to educate future…

    • 931 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Machiavelli – a diplomat exposed to decadent, cynical of the true nature of humanity, reflecting darker aspects of Humanism that man is essentially corrupt, self-serving and treacherous…

    • 1311 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Machiavelli intended The Prince to serve as a guide to creating and holding on to a principality. In it, he also characterizes a "good" society and the necessary tools for building one. Although Machiavelli conceives the republic as being the most practical form of government, he reasons that it is still possible to create a good society under a monarchy, as long as the leader of the monarchy follows the stipulated guidelines. Machiavelli realized that humans are predisposed to act perniciously and therefore it is the responsibility of the prince to exploit that nature in a way that will benefit society as a whole. In this way, Machiavelli's prince is an ideal crafted from the actual, rather than an actual crafted from the ideal.…

    • 1111 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    In Machiavelli’s The Prince, he tackles of issues in society and the government as a whole. Machiavelli believed a good ruler is one that could give justice and provide some type of order to his citizens. He believed that a good ruler should focus more on the present rather than what could be. Machiavelli used several examples to demonstrate his way of thinking in a humanistic way and running a government. He used the fox and the lion for an example. A good ruler should be able to use cunningness and brute force per situation in which it is called for. Machiavelli believes that there are two ways of fighting something, that is by law or by force and he believed those are…

    • 760 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    In Machiavelli’s most famous book, he writes to prospective “new princes” on how to be as successful as possible, without taking into account the morality of any of the actions. For example, in chapter 15, he writes that “it is necessary for a prince, if he wishes to maintain himself, to learn to be able to not be good, and to use it and not use it according to necessity” (Machiavelli 93). In addition, he also believed that men were generally to receive misfortune as they “[were generally] ungrateful, fickle, hypocrites, and dissemblers, evaders of danger, lovers of gain” (Machiavelli 101). He believed that during good times, man would likely seek to be friends with fellow neighbors but that in times of adversity, they would only seek out their own well being and be selfless even if one had previously given them a favor. For this reason, he supports the fact that a prince is better off being feared than loved showing pessimism in the nature of humans. He writes, “Love endures by a bond which men, being scoundrels, may break whenever it serves their advantage to do so; but fear is supported by the dread of pain, which is ever present” (Machiavelli 106). Machiavelli supported keeping people in fear to better control them.…

    • 358 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Better Essays

    Machiavelli's philosophy was that "The end justifies the means." This meant that the end result is the most important, and how you got there was of no importance. The Prince was a book of advice to rules on how to found a state and how to stay in power. Machiavelli explained in his book the many different ways to gain power. One way was to acquire land. The four methods that he discusses to acquire more land is: Your own arms and virtue, fortune, others' arms, and inequity. To Machiavelli, the word virtue meant manliness and strength. Machiavelli also advocates the use of evil to achieve any goals. He gives an example of Agathocles of Syracuse as a proof that this works and will enable the prince to rule the land peacefully through fear. "Born of a potter, this one always had an iniquitous life throughout his years: nonetheless, he accomplished his iniquities with such virtue of spirit and of body that, having joined the militia, he rose through its ranks to become praetor of Syracuse. Being established in rank, and having decided to become prince and to keep with violence and without obligation to others what had been conceded him by agreement... ...one morning he convened the people and the senate of Syracuse, as if he had had to deliberate things pertinent to the republic; and at a preordained nod…

    • 1540 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Better Essays

    Machiavelli believed in the idea of a strong leader. The leader should be feared more than he is loved, if he is even loved at all. A leader shouldn 't be hated, a hated leader will be rebelled and possibly killed, but a leader can not be loved at all. He believes that if a leader is loved, he wouldn 't be feared and no one will listen to him or what he wants to do. Machiavelli believed that war was needed and a nation should keep a strong military at all times. War shouldn 't be high on taxes though, because taxes have a possibility to cause a rebellion. A rebellion is an act of hatred and could possibly lead to death of the…

    • 1162 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Better Essays

    Human nature has been the discussion of many of philosophical works. There are some who believe human beings are inherently bad, individualistic and greedy. There are those who believe humans are inherently good and seek the best possible outcomes for society as a whole. Upon reading Niccolò Machiavelli’s The Prince, Karl Marx’s The Communist Manifesto, and John Locke’s Second Treatise of Government the audience may begin to understand how those ideas of human nature can have an effect on an individual’s political ideology. Machiavelli, Marx, and Locke all expressed in their works how they viewed human nature and gave historical background and evidence of how their opinions of human nature directly affected their political ideology and how…

    • 1869 Words
    • 8 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    Machiavelli's Premise

    • 336 Words
    • 2 Pages

    1. Do you agree with Machiavelli's premise that if given the choice between the two, the prince is better served by being feared than loved? How does Machiavelli make the case for his position (details, modes)? Are his arguments convincing?…

    • 336 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    Both St. Augustine and Machiavelli believed that in order to understand the true nature of society you must see men for what they truly were. Augustine and Machiavelli are similar in their pessimistic views toward human nature, looking at human self-love and self-interest and believed it to be full of evil, cruelty, betrayal, violence and tied that relationship into the creation of war. For both philosophers a good society is actually something that for almost all men is an unreachable attribute that can only be written about and not actually fully experienced in my view. For Augustine I feel it is a truly heavenly earth where all men are divine and are as close to the city of Heaven as you can be on earth. For Machiavelli it is a state of complete acceptance of each man’s role and how that role fits into society like a puzzle piece. In order to examine each philosopher’s view further, we must break their thoughts into three separate categories which are: human nature, political authority, and religious beliefs. This essay will take an in-depth look at both St. Augustine and Machiavelli, compare and contrast their views, and provide evidence that on some level the two thinkers were very similar in their ideology.…

    • 2815 Words
    • 12 Pages
    Powerful Essays