The implication seems to be that other more utopian? Another way to address this question is to begin with the Dedicatory Letter to The Prince.
These sketchers place themselves at high and low vantage points or perspectives in order to see as princes and peoples do, respectively. The truth begins in ordinary apprehension e. But precisely because perspective is partial, it is subject to error and indeed manipulation e. Milan is not a wholly new principality as such but instead is new only to Francesco Sforza P 1.
Unlike Machiavelli himself, those who damn the tumults of Rome do not see that these disorders actually lead to Roman liberty D 1. It is worth noting that perspectives do not always differ. Or does it? Some scholars believe that differing causes cannot help but modify effects; in this case, admiration itself would be stained and colored by either love or fear and would be experienced differently as a result.
And Machiavelli says that what makes a prince contemptible is to be held variable, light, effeminate, pusillanimous, or irresolute P What matters in politics is how we appear to others—how we are held tenuto by others.
But how we appear depends upon what we do and where we place ourselves in order to do it. A wise prince for Machiavelli is not someone who is content to investigate causes—including superior causes P 11 , first causes P 14 and D 1. Rather, it is someone who produces effects. And there are no effects considered abstractly. Some commentators believe that effects are only effects if they are seen or displayed. They thus see the effectual truth as proto-phenomenological.
Others take a stronger line of interpretation and believe that effects are only effects if they produce actual changes in the world of human affairs. Touching rather than seeing might then be the better metaphor for the effectual truth see P Machiavelli is most famous as a political philosopher.
Although he studied classical texts deeply, Machiavelli appears to depart somewhat from the tradition of political philosophy, a departure that in many ways captures the essence of his political position. At least at first glance, it appears that Machiavelli does not believe that the polity is caused by an imposition of form onto matter.
Given that Machiavelli talks of both form and matter e. For Aristotle, politics is similar to metaphysics in that form makes the city what it is. The difference between a monarchy and a republic is a difference in form. This is not simply a question of institutional arrangement; it is also a question of self-interpretation. Aristotelian political form is something like a lens through which the people understand themselves.
Firstly, it matters whether monarchs or republicans rule, as the citizens of such polities will almost certainly understand themselves differently in light of who rules them. Justice is thus the underlying basis of all claims to rule, meaning that, at least in principle, differing views can be brought into proximity to each other. Concord, or at least the potential for it, is both the basis and the aim of the city.
With respect to the first implication, Machiavelli occasionally refers to the six Aristotelian political forms e. He even raises the possibility of a mixed regime P 3; D 2. But usually he speaks only of two forms, the principality and the republic P 1. The lines between these two forms are heavily blurred; the Roman republic is a model for wise princes P 3 , and the people can be considered a prince D 1.
Machiavelli even at times refers to a prince of a republic D 2. Finally, he says that virtuous princes can introduce any form that they like, with the implication being that form does not constitute the fundamental reality of the polity P 6.
On this account, political form for Machiavelli is not fundamentally causal; it is at best epiphenomenal and perhaps even nominal. Some scholars focus on possible origins of this idea e. Still others focus on the fact that the humors arise only in cities and thus do not seem to exist simply by nature. Machiavelli says that the city or state is always minimally composed of the humors of the people and the great P 9 and 19; D 1.
The polity is constituted, then, not by a top-down imposition of form but by a bottom-up clash of the humors. And as the humors clash, they generate various political effects P 9 —these are sometimes good e.
Furthermore, Machiavelli does attribute certain qualities to those who live in republics—greater hatred, greater desire for revenge, and restlessness born from the memory of their previous liberty—which might be absent in those who live in principalities P ; D 1. Such passages appear to bring him in closer proximity to the Aristotelian account than first glance might indicate.
The humors are also related to the second implication mentioned above. Machiavelli distinguishes the humors not by wealth or population size but rather by desire. These desires are inimical to each other in that they cannot be simultaneously satisfied: the great desire to oppress the people, and the people desire not to be oppressed compare P 9, D 1.
Discord, rather than concord, is thus the basis for the state. Consequently, Machiavelli says that a prince must choose to found himself on one or the other of these humors. Firstly, it is unclear what desire characterizes the humor of the soldiers, a third humor that occurs, if not always, at least in certain circumstances.
Finally, it should be noted that recent work has questioned whether the humors are as distinct as previously believed; whether an individual or group can move between them; and whether they exist on something like a spectrum or continuum. For example, it may be the case that a materially secure people would cease to worry about being oppressed and might even begin to desire to oppress others in the manner of the great ; or that an armed people would effectively act as soldiers such that a prince would have to worry about their contempt rather than their hatred.
Some scholars claim that Machiavelli is the last ancient political philosopher because he understands the merciless exposure of political life. Either position is compatible with a republican reading of Machiavelli. As in The Prince , Machiavelli attributes qualities to republican peoples that might be absent in peoples accustomed to living under a prince P ; D 1. He also distinguishes between the humors of the great and the people D 1. However, in the Discourses he explores more carefully the possibility that the clash between them can be favorable e.
He associates both war and expansion with republics and with republican unity; conversely, he associates peace and idleness with republican disunity D 2.
He notes the flexibility of republics D 3. He ponders the political utility of public executions and—as recent work has emphasized—courts or public trials D 3. He even considers the possibility of a perpetual republic compare D 3. Like many other authors in the republican tradition, he frequently ponders the problem of corruption e. Pr, 2. Although what follows are stylized and compressed glosses of complicated interpretations, they may serve as profitable beginning points for a reader interested in pursuing the issue further.
It holds that Machiavelli is something of a neo-Roman republican. What matters the most, politically speaking, are robust institutions and deliberative participation in public life e. Freedom is the effect of good institutions. Corruption is a moral failing and more specifically a failing of reason. This interpretation focuses upon the stability of public life. It holds that Machiavelli is something of a radical or revolutionary democrat whose ideas, if comparable to anything classical, are more akin to Greek thought than to Roman.
What matters the most, politically speaking, is non-domination. Freedom is a cause of good institutions; freedom is not obedience to any rule but rather the continuous practice of resistance to oppression that undergirds all rules. Corruption is associated with the desire to dominate others. This interpretation focuses upon the instability—and even the deliberate destabilization—of political life. A possible weakness is that it seems to understand law in a denuded sense, that is, as merely a device to prevent the great from harming the people; and that it seems to overlook the chaos that might result from factional strife e.
It holds that Machiavelli advocates for something like a constitutional monarchy. What matters the most, politically speaking, is stability of public life and especially acquisitions, coupled with the recognition that such a life is always under assault from those who are dissatisfied.
Freedom is both a cause and effect of good institutions. Corruption is associated with a decline though not a moral decline in previously civilized human beings. This interpretation focuses both on the stability and instability of political life e. Some scholars go so far as to claim that it is the highest good for Machiavelli.
Possessions, titles, family achievements, and land could all contribute to dignitas. Plebeians, who did not possess as much wealth or family heritage as patricians, could still attain prominence in the Roman Republic by acquiring glory in speeches e. The destabilization of the Roman Republic was in part due to individuals who short-circuited this system, that is, who achieved glory outside the conventional political pathway.
A notable example is Scipio Africanus. At the beginning of his ascendancy, Scipio had never held any political positions and was not even eligible for them.
However, by his mid-twenties he had conducted major military reforms. This unprecedented achievement gained Scipio much glory—at least in the Senate, as Machiavelli notes though not with Fabius Maximus; P 17 and D 3. Indeed, Scipio gained so much glory that he catapulted past his peers in terms of renown, regardless of his lack of political accomplishments.
Consequently, his imitation was incentivized, which partly led to the rise of the warlords—such as Pompey and Julius Caesar—and the eventual end of the Republic.
One useful example of the concatenation of all three characteristics is Agathocles the Sicilian. Indeed, there is little, if anything, that can be attributed to fortune in his ascent. It seems clear for all of these reasons that Agathocles is virtuous on the Machiavellian account.
Although such acts are compatible with Machiavellian virtue and might even comprise it , they cannot be called virtuous according to the standards of conventional morality. In general, force and strength easily acquire reputation rather than the other way around D 1. But Machiavelli concludes that Agathocles paid so little heed to public opinion that his virtue was not enough. Glory for Machiavelli thus depends upon how you are seen and upon what people say about you.
Many of the successful and presumably imitable figures in both The Prince and the Discourses share the quality of being cruel, for example.
This is at least partly why explorations of deceit and dissimulation take on increasing prominence as both works progress e. One must learn to imitate not only the force of the lion but also the fraud of the fox P 7, 18, and 19; D 2. Whether veneration venerazione and reverence riverenzia are ultimately higher concepts than glory remains an important question, and recent work has taken it up. Those interested in this question may find it helpful to begin with the following passages: P 6, 7, 11, 17, 19, 23, and 26; D 1.
His brother Totto was a priest. His father appeared to be a devout believer and belonged to a flagellant confraternity called the Company of Piety. When Machiavelli was eleven, he joined the youth branch of this company, and he moved into the adult branch in From to , Machiavelli and Totto paid money to the friars of Santa Croce in order to commemorate the death of their father and to fulfill a bequest from their great-uncle. He did write an Exhortation to Penitence though scholars disagree as to his sincerity; compare P And he did accept the last rites upon his deathbed in the company of his wife and some friends.
But evidence in his correspondence—for instance, in letters from close friends such as Francesco Vettori and Francesco Guicciardini—suggests that Machiavelli did not take pains to appear publicly religious. Still others claim that he was religious but not in the Christian sense.
Species of sects tend to be distinguished by their adversarial character, such as Catholic versus heretical FH 1. They also generally, if not exclusively, seem to concern matters of theological controversy. It is not clear whether and to what extent a religion differs from a sect for Machiavelli.
Such interpretations implore human beings to think more of enduring their beatings than of avenging them D 2. He seems to allow for the possibility that not all interpretations are false; for example, he says that Francis and Dominic rescue Christianity from elimination, presumably because they return it to an interpretation that focuses upon poverty and the life of Christ D 3.
And one of the things that Machiavelli may have admired in Savonarola is how to interpret Christianity in a way that is muscular and manly rather than weak and effeminate compare P 6 and 12; D 1. Some scholars have emphasized the various places where Machiavelli associates Christianity with the use of dissimulation e.
Other scholars believe that Machiavelli adheres to an Averroeist which is to say Farabian understanding of the public utility of religion. On such an understanding, religion is necessary and salutary for public morality. The philosopher should therefore take care not to disclose his own lack of belief or at least should attack only impoverished interpretations of religion rather than religion as such.
Is this a fair characterization? At least since Montaigne and more recently with philosophers such as Judith Skhlar and Richard Rorty , this vice has held a special philosophical status. Indeed, contemporary moral issues such as animal ethics, bullying, shaming, and so forth are such contentious issues largely because liberal societies have come to condemn cruelty so severely.
Such recommendations are common throughout his works. The fact that seeming vices can be used well and that seeming virtues can be used poorly suggests that there is an instrumentality to Machiavellian ethics that goes beyond the traditional account of the virtues. One could find many places in his writings that support this point e. But what exactly is this instrumentality? Partly, it seems to come from human nature. Human life is thus restless motion D 1. It is thus useful as a regulative ideal, and is perhaps even true, that we should see others as bad D 1.
In order to survive in such a world, goodness is not enough D 3. Instead, we must learn how not to be good P 15 and 19 or even how to enter into evil P 18; compare D 1. Thus, virtues and vices serve something outside themselves; they are not purely good or bad. Recognizing this limitation of both virtue and vice is eminently useful. Another way to put this point is in terms of imitation.
While we should often imitate those greater than us P 6 , we should also learn how to imitate those lesser than us. For example, we should imitate animals in order to fight as they do, since human modes of combat, such as law, are often not enough—especially when dealing with those who do not respect laws P More specifically, we should imitate the lion and the fox.
The lion symbolizes force, perhaps to the point of cruelty; the fox symbolizes fraud, perhaps to the point of lying about the deepest things, such as religion P The mention of the fox brings us to a second profitable point of entry into Machiavellian ethics, namely deception.
Throughout his writings, Machiavelli regularly advocates lying e. He even at one point suggests that it is useful to simulate craziness D 3. Because cruelty and deception play such important roles in his ethics, it is not unusual for related issues—such as murder and betrayal—to rear their heads with regularity.
If Machiavelli possessed a sense of moral squeamishness, it is not something that one easily detects in his works. If this hypothesis is true, then his moral position would be much more complicated than it appears to be. Does Machiavelli ultimately ask us to rise above considerations of utility? Does he, of all people, ask us to rise above what we have come to see as Machiavellianism? It was begun in and probably completed by Machiavelli also says that Filippo Casavecchia, a longtime friend, has already seen a rough draft of the text.
These manuscripts, some of which we do possess, do not bear the title of The Prince. That the book has two purported titles—and that they do not translate exactly into one another—remains an enduring and intriguing puzzle.
The structure of The Prince does not settle the issue, as the book begins with chapters that explicitly treat principalities, but eventually proceeds to chapters that explicitly treat princes. At some point, for reasons not entirely clear, Machiavelli changed his mind and dedicated to the volume to Lorenzo. We do not know whether Giuliano or Lorenzo ever read the work.
There is an old story, perhaps apocryphal, that Lorenzo preferred a pack of hunting dogs to the gift of The Prince and that Machiavelli consequently swore revenge against the Medici. At any rate, the question of the precise audience of The Prince remains a key one. Some interpreters have even suggested that Machiavelli writes to more than one audience simultaneously. The question of authorial voice is also important. Machiavelli himself appears as a character in The Prince twice P 3 and 7 and sometimes speaks in the first person e.
However, it is not obvious how to interpret these instances, with some recent scholars going so far as to say that Machiavelli operates with the least sincerity precisely when speaking in his own voice. This issue is exacerbated by the Dedicatory Letter, in which Machiavelli sets forth perhaps the foundational image of the book. The suggestion seems to be that Machiavelli throughout the text variously speaks to one or the other of these vantage points and perhaps even variously speaks from one or the other of these vantage points.
At the very least, the image implies that we should be wary of taking his claims in a straightforward manner. In the first chapter, Machiavelli appears to give an outline of the subject matter of The Prince. But this subject matter appears to be exhausted as early as Chapter 7. What, then, to make of the rest of the book?
One possibility is that The Prince is not a polished work; some scholars have suggested that it was composed in haste and that consequently it might not be completely coherent. An alternative hypothesis is that Machiavelli has some literary or philosophical reason to break from the structure of the outline, keeping with his general trajectory of departing from what is customary.
Whatever interpretation one holds to, the subject matter of the book seems to be arranged into roughly four parts: Chapters treat principalities with the possible exception of Chapter 5 ; Chapters treat the art of war; Chapters treat princes; and Chapters treat what we may call the art of princes. In Chapter 12, Machiavelli says that he has previously treated the acquisition and maintenance of principalities and says that the remaining task is to discourse generally on offensive and defensive matters.
Similarly, in Chapter 15, Machiavelli says that what remains is to see how a prince should act with respect to subjects and friends, implying minimally that what has come previously is a treatment of enemies. Almost from its composition, The Prince has been notorious for its seeming recommendations of cruelty; its seeming prioritization of autocracy or at least centralized power over more republican or democratic forms; its seeming lionization of figures such as Cesare Borgia and Septimius Severus; its seeming endorsements of deception and faith-breaking; and so forth.
Indeed, it remains perhaps the most notorious work in the history of political philosophy. But the meaning of these manipulations, and indeed of these appearances, remains a scholarly question. Interpreters of the caliber of Rousseau and Spinoza have believed The Prince to bear a republican teaching at its core. Some scholars have gone so far as to see it as an utterly satirical or ironic work.
Others have insisted that the book is even more dangerous than it first appears. There is reason to suspect that Machiavelli had begun writing the Discourses as early as ; for instance, there seems to be a reference in The Prince to another, lengthier work on republics P 2.
And since the Discourses references events from as late as , it seems to have still been a work in progress by that point and perhaps even later. Evidence suggests that manuscript copies were circulating by and perhaps earlier.
It bears no heading and begins with a paragraph that our other manuscripts do not have. It is typically retained in English translations. As with The Prince , there is a bit of mystery surrounding the title of the Discourses. The book appeared first in Rome and then a few weeks later in Florence, with the two publishers Blado and Giunta, respectively seemingly working with independent manuscripts.
Machiavelli refers simply to Discorsi in the Dedicatory Letter to the work, however, and it is not clear whether he intended the title to specifically pick out the first ten books by name.
Today, the title is usually given as the Discourses on Livy or the Discourses for short. This is a curious coincidence and one that is presumably intentional. But what is the intent? Scholars are divided on this issue. A second, related curiosity is that the manuscript as we now have it divides the chapters into three parts or books.
However, the third part does not have a preface as the first two do. As with the dedicatory letter to The Prince , there is also a bit of mystery surrounding the dedicatory letter to the Discourses. It is noteworthy that the Discourses is the only one of the major prose works dedicated to friends; by contrast, The Prince , the Art of War , and the Florentine Histories are all dedicated to potential or actual patrons.
At the end of the first chapter D 1. He further distinguishes between things done by private and public counsel. Finally, he claims that the first part or book will treat things done inside the city by public counsel. The first part, then, primarily treats domestic political affairs. Machiavelli says that the second book concerns how Rome became an empire, that is, it concerns foreign political affairs D 2. If Machiavelli did in fact intend there to be a third part, the suggestion seems to be that it concerns affairs conducted by private counsel in some manner.
It is noteworthy that fraud and conspiracy D 2. At first glance, it is not clear whether the teaching of the Discourses complements that of The Prince or whether it militates against it.
Scholars remain divided on this issue. Some insist upon the coherence of the books, either in terms of a more nefarious teaching typically associated with The Prince ; or in terms of a more consent-based, republican teaching typically associated with the Discourses.
The Discourses nevertheless remains one of the most important works in modern republican theory. It had an enormous effect on republican thinkers such as Rousseau, Montesquieu, Hume, and the American Founders. The Art of War is the only significant prose work published by Machiavelli during his lifetime and his only attempt at writing a dialogue in the humanist tradition. It was probably written in It takes the literary form of a dialogue divided into seven books and preceded by a preface. The action of the Art of War takes place after dinner and in the deepest and most secret shade AW 1.
Bernardo filled the gardens with plants mentioned in classical texts AW 1. Notably, the gardens were the site of at least two conspiracies: an aristocratic one while Florence was a republic under the rule of Soderini ; and a republican one, headed up by Cosimo Rucellai, after the Medici regained control in The other dedicatee of the Discourses , Zanobi Buondelmonti, is also one of the interlocutors of the Art of War.
But perhaps the most important and striking speaker is Fabrizio Colonna. However, Colonna was also the leader of the Spanish forces that compelled the capitulation of Soderini and that enabled the Medici to regain control of Florence.
And he laments the corruption of modern military orders as well as the modern separation of military and civilian life AW Pref. Roughly speaking, books 1 and 2 concern issues regarding the treatment of soldiers, such as payment and discipline. Books 3 and 4 concern issues regarding battle, such as tactics and formation. Book 5 concerns issues regarding logistics, such as supply lines and the use of intelligence.
Book 6 concerns issues regarding the camp, including a comparison to the way that the Romans organized their camps. Book 7 concerns issues regarding armament, such as fortifications and artillery. And his only discussion of science in The Prince or the Discourses comes in the context of hunting as an image of war D 3. But the technical nature of its content, if nothing else, has proved to be a resilient obstacle for scholars who attempt to master it, and the book remains the least studied of his major works.
It was not his first attempt at penning a history; Machiavelli had already written a two-part verse history of Italy, I Decennali , which covers the years But the Florentine Histories is a greater effort.
It is written in prose and covers the period of time from the decline of the Roman Empire until the death of Lorenzo the Magnificent in Machiavelli presented eight books to Clement and did not write any additional ones.
They were not published until Although Giulio had made Machiavelli the official historiographer of Florence, it is far from clear that the Florentine Histories are a straightforward historiographical account. Books 2, 3, and 4 concern the history of Florence itself from its origins to In Book 1, Machiavelli explores how Italy has become disunited, in no small part due to causes such as Christianity FH 1. The rise of Charlemagne is also a crucial factor FH 1.
Machiavelli notes that Christian towns have been left to the protection of lesser princes FH 1. Scholars have long focused upon how Machiavelli thought Florence was wretched, especially when compared to ancient Rome. But recent work has begun to examine the ways in which Machiavelli thought that Florence was great, as well; and on the overlap between the Histories and the Discourse on Florentine Affairs which was also commissioned by the Medici around Book 2 also examines the ways in which the nobility disintegrates into battles between families e.
The rise of Castruccio Castracani, alluded to in Book 1 e. Yet in fact Machiavelli devotes the majority of Books 5 and 6 not to the Medici but rather to the rise of mercenary armies in Italy compare P 12 and D 2. Among the topics that Machiavelli discusses are the famous battle of Anghiari FH 5. Books 7 and 8 principally concern the rise of the Medici—in particular Cosimo; his son, Piero the Gouty; and his son in turn, Lorenzo the Magnificent.
Cosimo also loved classical learning to such an extent that he brought John Argyropoulos and Marsilio Ficino to Florence. Additionally, Cosimo left a strong foundation for his descendants FH 7.
Piero is highlighted mainly for lacking the foresight and prudence of his father; for fomenting popular resentment; and for being unable to resist the ambition of the great.
Lorenzo is noted for his youth F 7. The Histories end with the death of Lorenzo. The Histories has received renewed attention in recent years, and scholars have increasingly seen it as not merely historical but also philosophical—in other words, as complementary to The Prince and the Discourses. Every single work is not listed; instead, emphasis has been placed upon those that seem to have philosophical resonance.
In the early s, he wrote several reports and speeches. They are notable for their topics and for the way in which they contain precursors to important claims in later works, such as The Prince. Among other things, Machiavelli wrote on how Duke Valentino killed Vitellozzo Vitelli compare P 7 ; on how Florence tried to suppress the factions in Pistoia compare P 17 ; and how to deal with the rebels of Valdichiana.
The most obvious changes are found in the final part, where Machiavelli attributes to Castruccio many sayings that are in fact almost exclusively drawn from the Lives of Diogenes Laertius. Also around , Machiavelli wrote the Discourse on Florentine Affairs. Recent work has suggested the proximity in content between this work and the Florentine Histories.
Also of interest is On the Natures of Florentine Men , which is an autograph manuscript which Machiavelli may have intended as a ninth book of the Florentine Histories. Toward the end of his tenure in the Florentine government, Machiavelli wrote two poems in terza rima called I Decennali. The first seems to date from and concerns the history of Italy from to It is the only work that Machiavelli published while in office.
The second seems to date from around and concerns the history of Italy from to Among other things, they are precursors to concerns found in the Florentine Histories. In general, between and , Machiavelli turned more consciously toward art. Mandragola was probably written between and ; was first published in ; and was first performed in While original, it hearkens to the ancient world especially in how its characters are named e.
It is by far the most famous of the three and indeed is one of the most famous plays of the Renaissance. It contains many typical Machiavellian themes, the most notable of which are conspiracy and the use of religion as a mask for immoral purposes. It was probably written in the early s. In recent years, scholars have increasingly treated all three of these plays with seriousness and indeed as philosophical works in their own right.
In addition to I Decannali , Machiavelli wrote other poems. I Capitoli contains tercets which are dedicated to friends and which treat the topics of ingratitude, fortune, ambition, and opportunity with virtue being notably absent. The Ideal Ruler is in the form of a pastoral. Between and , Machiavelli wrote several sonnets and at least one serenade.
There are some other miscellaneous writings with philosophical import, most of which survive in autograph copies and which have undetermined dates of composition. Machiavelli wrote a Dialogue on Language in which he discourses with Dante on various linguistic concerns, including style and philology.
Articles for a Pleasure Company is a satire on high society and especially religious confraternities. Belfagor is a short story that portrays, among other things, Satan as a wise and just prince. An Exhortation to Penitence unsurprisingly concerns the topic of penitence; the sincerity of this exhortation, however, remains a scholarly question. The Legations date from the period that Machiavelli worked for the Florentine government The personal letters date from to Particularly notable among the personal letters are the September letter to Giovanbattista Soderini, the so-called Ghiribizzi al Soderini Musings to Soderini ; and the 10 December letter to Francesco Vettori, wherein Machiavelli first mentions The Prince.
Machiavelli insists upon the novelty of his enterprise in several places e. As a result, some interpreters have gone so far as to call him the inaugurator of modern philosophy. But all philosophers are to some degree in conversation with their predecessors, even or perhaps especially those who seek to disagree fundamentally with what has been thought before.
Thus, even with a figure as purportedly novel as Machiavelli, it is worth pondering historical and philosophical influences. Although Machiavelli studied ancient humanists, he does not often cite them as authorities. But Cicero is never named in The Prince although Machiavelli does allude to him via the images of the fox and the lion in P and is named only three times in the Discourses D 1.
Other classical thinkers in the humanist tradition receive similar treatment. Juvenal is quoted three times D 2. This trend tends to hold true for later thinkers, as well. One may see this relative paucity of references as suggestive that Machiavelli did not have humanist concerns. But it is possible to understand his thought as having a generally humanist tenor.
Though they did treat problems in philosophy, they were primarily concerned with eloquence. The revival of Greek learning in the Italian Renaissance did not change this concern and in fact even amplified it. New translations were made of ancient works, including Greek poetry and oratory, and rigorous and in some ways newfound philological concerns were infused with a sense of grace and nuance not always to be found in translations conducted upon the model of medieval calques.
A notable example is Coluccio Salutati, who otherwise bore a resemblance to medieval rhetoricians such as Petrus de Vineis but who believed, unlike the medievals, that the best way to achieve eloquence was to imitate ancient style as concertedly as possible.
But what exactly is this imprint? What exactly is Machiavellian eloquence? Fellow philosophers have differed in their opinions. Finally, increasing attention has been paid to other rhetorical devices, such as when Machiavelli speaks in his own voice; when he uses paradox, irony, and hyperbole; when he modifies historical examples for his own purposes; when he appears as a character in his narrative; and so forth.
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Still have questions? Find more answers. Previously Viewed. Against a backdrop of political stability and growing prosperity, the development of new Generally described as taking place from the 14th century to the 17th century, the Renaissance promoted the rediscovery of classical philosophy, Benito Mussolini was an Italian political leader who became the fascist dictator of Italy from to Originally a revolutionary socialist, he forged the paramilitary fascist movement in and became prime minister in Louis Berizzi was in his pajamas when FBI agents burst into his Manhattan apartment and arrested him.
As his daughter, Lucetta, and the rest of the family watched, wiping the sleep from their eyes, he hurried into clothing and was taken away. Soon after, FBI agents questioned Established around the first century B. Live TV. This Day In History. History Vault. The Prince As leaders rapidly rose and fell, Machiavelli observed traits that, he believed, bolstered power and influence.
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