Machiavelli Flashcards
What is in the book the prince?
on what a princedom is, of what kinds they are, how they are gained, how they are kept and why they are lost
The book describes how a prince should act in particular situations. It also serves as a mirror for princes that are already in power. He wants to show how it is to be a prince, in reality, presenting the effectual truth. Someone who wants to be good all the time will come to ruin. A prince who wants to keep his position must know how not to be good, and use this knowledge when necessary.
What is the logic of violence?
(I) Enemies must be caressed or annihilated.
(2) Avoid violence whenever possible
(3) use violence quickly and ruthlessly (but benefits slowly and sparsely).
(4) For violence, use someone else, temporarily
What is the goal of political ethics?
Being great and have power of the state
What are conditions of political ethics?
How to be a good price/ruler
- Apperance over reality
- being feared over being loved (but not being hated)
- Being a beast & man, fox & lion at the same time
Support of the people over suport of the nobility
What are the two type of powers?
Virtù
Fortuna
What is Virtù?
Having a “Cunning, boldness, self-control” (not justice)
Having Flexibility & resilience
pride, bravery, skill, forcefulness, and an amount of ruthlessness coupled with the willingness to do evil when necessary
What is fortuna?
all of those circumstances which human beings cannot control, and in particular, to the character of the times, which has direct bearing on a prince’s success or failure. So a ruler shoud force his luck.
What is written in Discorsi?
Discorsi represents a more ‘republic’ viewpoint of:
- A mixed regime
- Partcipation
- Citizens militia
- Civial religion
Keeping balance of the tension with the plebeians and the particians
conflict leads to greatness
Why is Machiaveli important fot polictics?
He introduced realism in political theory. An advocate for realism.
The main thing is that he wanted to not let people rate human nature as high as was ‘the case at the time so that we would see things as they were. like the actual human nature was. The ancients were utopians, but this was far from reality.
What is meant by “ how not be good”
He uses the term which can be said to translate to manliness. Machiavelli tries ‘to use virtú in extreme situations, such as wars, regime changes, revolutions, etc. He uses these extreme situations as if they were normal and then makes his morality suit these situations. However, Machiavelli does not reject the idea Of ‘the good
What does machiavelli think of violence?
Machiavelli admires creative forms of violence, seeing violence as a supreme political virtue.
He did not celebrate violence an Sich. His perception of violence is influenced by the belief that all great civilizations grew out of cruelty, domination, and violence, The use of these instruments by those great civilizations makes Machiavelli promote immoralist ethics, in which he encourages statesmen to value glory, fame, and honour above everything.
Which type of states exits accoridng to Machiavelli?
States are either republics or principalities.
What is a principality state?
Principalities can be hereditary (from a family) or new, and new principalities are either completely new or new attachments to existing states. One can gain a principality by your own arms or the arms of others, and either by fortune or strength.
What does machiavelli think of hereditary principalities?
Machiavelli argues that these are easier to govern, as the people are already used to the rule of a prince. The prince only has to keep traditions, like institutions, while still adapting these traditions to the actual situation. A born prince should be naturally more loved, as he has fewer reasons to harm his people than a new prince from elsewhere.
What does machiavelli think of new principalities?
People are more willing to replace a new ruler for another when the previous ruler does not rule well enough. This belief makes them go to fight the unestablished prince. Even if the revolt is ineffective, it will still cause problems in the principality. When a prince takes over another principality, he also encounters difficulties in dealing with the people who helped him. He cannot easily fulfill their expectations, but also not deal with them too harshly. When a revolt is successfully suppressed, further revolts can be prevented as well, as the prince should punish the rebels strongly. It is much easier to gain and maintain control over a new principality if people speak the same language and have the same culture. Then a prince only has to destroy the former prince’s family and maintain the current laws in place, leaving the normal people’s lives undisturbed.
