Machiavelli's The Prince Flashcards
on human nature and political ambition
For Machiavelli, human nature is self interested, ambitious, and driven by a desire to acquire and dominate
Humans are not naturally good; they are selfish, fickle, deceitful, and fearful
argument on human nature and political ambition
(The Prince, Chapter 17)
“Men are ungrateful, fickle, false, cowardly, covetous, and as long as you succeed they are yours entirely.”
Thus, a ruler cannot rely on their loyalty - only on force and fear
reasoning on human nature and political ambition
Based on historical observations: successful leaders are those who understand human weakness and exploit it strategically
Morality is secondary to effectual truth: how things actually work, not how they ought to be
comparison to other thinkers on human nature and political ambition
Plato: Sees human beings as perfectible through reason and education; Machiavelli denies this
Aristotle: Believes in cultivating virtue for flourishing; Machiavelli believes virtue (virtù) is political skill, not moral excellence
Thucydides: Agrees that fear, interest, and honor drive politics; both see human nature as constant and problematic
Hobbes: Similar in pessimism about human motives, but Hobbes focuses on fear of death, not desire for glory
Hume: Thinks humans are driven by passions, but believes commerce and habit can moderate them
Virtù and Fortuna
Virtù: manly political skill: boldness, cunning, strategic flexibility.
Fortuna: chance, luck, unpredictable events (often feminized)
Argument about Fortuna and virtù
“Fortune is a woman, and it is necessary, if you wish to master her, to conquer her by force.” (????)
Fortuna provides opportunities, but rulers must exercise virtù to seize and shape them
Example: Cesare Borgia — brilliant use of force and deception to consolidate power, yet ultimately defeated by misfortune (his own illness and his father’s death)
reasoning on fortuna and virtù
History shows that success is never purely a matter of virtue or luck - but those who succeed best make their own luck through bold action
comparison to other thinkers on fortuna and virtù
Plato: Relies on the rule of reason over passions and luck; Machiavelli embraces the unpredictability of politics
Aristotle: Acknowledges some role for luck in life (tuchē), but believes virtue is more stable and important for flourishing
Thucydides: Sees fortune playing a large role in human affairs (e.g., plague in Athens); Machiavelli gives human agency a more heroic role
Hobbes: Focuses on controlling human fear, not mastering fortune; Hobbes’ sovereign must manage instability through overwhelming power
Hume: Thinks institutions and customs, not heroic virtù, stabilize society against fortune
conflict and political order
Conflict is inevitable and often desirable if properly channeled
argument on conflict and political order
Argument (Discourse on Livy)
“The conflict between the nobles and the people was one of the principal causes of Roman liberty.”
Political conflict between elites and commoners (tumult) produces energy, ambition, and freedom
reasoning on conflict and political order
Total unity is impossible; attempting to suppress all conflict weakens political vitality.
Wise rulers or republics allow productive conflict to emerge but channel it outward (e.g., conquest, public works)
comparison to other thinkers on conflict and political order
Plato: Seeks to eliminate conflict through soul harmony; Machiavelli accepts conflict as a political reality
Aristotle: Accepts class conflict but seeks to moderate it through mixed regimes; Machiavelli glorifies it more
Thucydides: Sees conflict as destructive (stasis); Machiavelli sees its potential for positive political outcomes
Hobbes: Seeks to suppress all conflict through absolute sovereignty to avoid war
Locke: Believes government exists to protect property and rights, minimizing conflict; not embracing it
Hume: Emphasizes softening conflict through commerce and habit, not channeling it into political ambition
justice and morality
Justice, in Machiavelli, is subordinate to political necessity. Moral goodness is not the measure of political success - political actions are judged by their outcomes, not their adherence to traditional virtue
argument on justice and morality
Argument (The Prince)
It is necessary for a prince to learn how not to be good
Public success excuses private immorality if it benefits the state
Examples:
Romulus killing his brother to found Rome
Cesare Borgia using cruelty swiftly and strategically
reasoning on justice and morality
History shows that purely moral rulers fail; those who balance appearances of virtue with ruthless action succeed
Human beings are easily manipulated by appearances, not substance
comparison to other thinkers on justice and morality
Plato: Justice is the highest good, both individually and politically
Aristotle: Justice is a central virtue for flourishing life
Thucydides: Shows how in politics, ideals of justice collapse under pressure - closer to Machiavelli’s realism
Hobbes: Justice is whatever the sovereign decrees - created by human agreement, not an independent ideal
Locke: Natural justice exists independently of governments and must be protected
Hume: Justice emerges as a social convention for mutual advantage; Machiavelli is far more cynical about its foundation
on liberty
For Machiavelli, true liberty (libertà) exists only when a republic successfully channels conflict to maintain its vitality and independence
argument on liberty
Liberty is secured by a virtuous citizenry willing to fight for it, not by passive adherence to laws
Rome’s liberty was born from continual struggles between classes, which prevented tyranny
reasoning on liberty
Liberty requires constant vigilance and willingness to use force
Weakness or complacency invites domination by others
Comparison to Other Thinkers on liberty
Plato: Liberty must be tightly controlled under the philosopher-kings; otherwise, it leads to chaos
Aristotle: Liberty exists in participation in political life and rule by law, not raw struggle
Thucydides: Liberty (Athenian democracy) often degenerates into license and internal conflict
Hobbes: Liberty is personal security within law, not political struggle; no room for republican liberty
Locke: Liberty is protected by limited government and the preservation of natural rights
Hume: Liberty rests on stable government and public opinion, not political tumult
types of people in Machiavelli’s social world
- The Prince: to rule a principality, acquire states, desire to acquire, can be glorious and can be feared, to have glory forever even after death (comparing to old princes, Caesar, Moses, Alexander the Great)
- The Military: provide both safety and conquests for the Prince, can’t do anything without force, can’t do anything without actually moving stuff (need physical power)
- The Church: is another kind of Prince in the landscape, Machiavelli believes to be quite hypocritical
types of military
mercenaries: are mercenaries a reliable source of power? no they are not, they can decide to rebel if they want to, they work on commission
auxiliaries belong to others. the downside: need to rely on your own arms, risky they can turn on you, you better be the stronger army before pairing up with auxiliaries
militia belongs to the Prince fighting for themselves
downside of military:
- loyalty is a metaphysical good, not physical
- the prince wants especially his own militia, the rest are backup options, but avoid if can
- prince needs people to rule over fundamentally need
- those that want to oppress though they have money to oppress, they are the greatest internal threat, they always want more, all these different landmines in the political landscape.
cyrus, romulus, thesius, moses (past princes) and their roles
Cyrus: ruler of persian empire
Thesius: founder of Athens
Moses: Ruler of the Jews
what is the relationship between the past princes as rulers and their people?
- the people loved their founder, because they the people exist because of these Princes’
- glory that exists after your death, because the people remember and lobe you because they made the people
