GVPT241 Class Notes The Prince Machiavelli 9 4 9 11 I Background a Written as a job application to the Medici family who recently took over Florence to prove his knowledge of politics would be useful to them b Primary concerns are virtue and glory right v wrong II The First Modern Man a Embraced humanism 1 Humanism this life matters too not just afterlife presents question how does one live a good life in this world 2 The Prince has no mention of afterlife just present b Middle ages 5th 15th centuries Renaissance 14th 17th centuries III Role of Aristotle a Aristotle b Machiavelli IV Role of Cicero a Cicero 1 Believed the state should be made on friendship and trust 1 Believed state built on fear of the prince and his coercion 2 The public does not listen and need to be kept in line 1 The prince has 4 classical virtues 2 3 Prince must be loved If a man is good he will be a good leader b Machiavelli 1 Prince must have nothing else on his mind except war 2 Avoids chaos 3 Eliminate personal and moral from the political V Economist of Violence VI Cruelty well used a Desire to be merciful and not cruel b Sometimes you have to be cruel to be kind c Prince shouldn t worry about infamy of being cruel when it s a matter of keeping his subjects loyal and united d Careful not to be too cruel because must follow through with necessary executions to prevent crime which is bad for society as a whole s well being e Act sincere but lie and deceive if you must to save country f Secure state early in rule for self and citizens VII Genuine concern for chaos and disorder and the misery they bring to everyone esp society a Application today failed states are most danger to human rights 1 Ex Syria Somalia Afghanistan Pakistan VIII Virtue Virtu a As Machiavelli understands it 1 Ruthlessness pride bravery cleverness 2 Be able to lie and deceive when in the interest of the state while people believe you are upright and religious do not get caught if caught explain why IX Who is Machiavellian Kind simple virtuous and na ve mind should remain balanced so if necessary they can change to the contrary lie deceit when necessary X True Machiavellian does not appear Machiavellian at all XI Glory a Highest value for Machiavelli XII Stanley Bing What Would Machiavelli Do a Wrong b Cannot apply lessons to everyday life c Acts as an everyday person have nothing to do with glory d Teaches how to act in the world when you are the leader of a state when there is constant warfare XIII Fortuna a Not the same as fortune or luck b Medieval era Fortuna is wheel of fortune arbitrary Dante c Machiavelli arbiter of half the things we do other half is up to us d Need plan B C even D e Real life example Iraq War Bush went in with no Plan B or plan of what to do after overthrow Saddam f Prepare to do what is required whether bold action or caution g Men who seize power through bold acts struggle after world requires bold action and caution XIV Caesare Borgia a Knew him XV Mercenaries Independently powerful when have own soldiers a Fight for prince and take money but when their life s at risk they are unreliable b c Goal depend on no one d Nobles other cities troublesome ones XVI Love vs Fear a Both but if you must choose choose fear b Ch17 c View of human nature 1 People aren t great always 2 Liars fickle default on promise when it is to their advantage 3 Will be loyal when convenient 4 When danger approaches they turn away d Cannot control who loves you but you can control who hates you 1 Stems from fear of depending on anyone XVII Remirro Del Orco Imposed law without legal niceities a Caesare brought him in b c Tough and brought order to the Romania d People got tired of him eventually lived in terror of the authorities e People became discounted with Caesare because he was behind Remirro f Caesare s solution 1 Remirro dead and cut in half 2 Not fair because Caesare hired him to be tough and cruel 3 Machiavelli Brutality of this act kept the people of Romania both appeased and stupidified g People cannot live too much in fear of their own government XVIII Why is Machiavelli relevant a Moral b Nations same as city state relationships c Drones cruelty well used d Doesn t apply to normal party politics e Only when stakes are high and on a large scale f Machiavellian NSA not right but g Risk of being feared vs hated Guantanamo h Israel and gaza XIX Loved Florence more than his soul XX Was Machiavelli Machiavellian XXI Moralist and Pragmatist XXII a NOT do ends justify means b We judge is cruelty being well used or wasted XXIII Hannibal a Kept troops together in foreign land 20 years b Great general and leadership c One bad quality very cruel d Machiavelli says no 1 Human cruelty made his achievements possible XXIV Lion and the fox ch18 a Most important visual images b Prince must learn to act like a visual beast c Must be like both the lion and the fox d Lion scary but falls into traps in the actions of all men especially princes one must consider the final result e Fox witty but not strong f Example 1 pope Alexander 6th Leviathan by Hobbes I II III Background a Written during the English Civil War State of Nature a No civilization b Nonstop desire for power until death c Fear the good will leave or someone will take it d Vulnerable even strongest people have to sleep e People don t care about the truth religion Compared to Machiavelli a Cynical but more methodical