PDP4: The Prince

Author Bio: Niccolo Machiavelli worked as a political officer for the Medici family in Florence. He lived in a time where all aspects of life were looked at with a realist point of view. Italy at the time was divided into several competitive nations, so his article is written with the bias from Florence compared to surrounding Italian nations. When he speaks of the term "faith", he is talking about keeping promises, and he believes that not following the faith is equivalent to that.

Date/Context: Machiavelli wrote this article in 1513 from Florence, Italy. The history of relations throughout a nation at that time was through the ruler. The prince played a vital role in the layout of the state. It was his job to be ideally both loved and feared, and his decisions are what impacted the country so greatly. The history of the article is composed of princes winning over their citizens through compassion and honesty, mainly by learning to trust others, but also gaining power over knowing the personalities that make up the nation.  The prince was the political commander of the state, and he made decisions that influenced the people. It was his job to win over the country so that his announcements will follow through. This article connects to our understanding of european culture because it shows the type of government rulings they choose to follow, and how those rulers attempt to really take control of their land and govern the people.

Summary: Princes must be able to carry themselves in such a manner that he follows the means of intellectual truth and expresses themselves as the royalty that they are. They are expected to follow the criteria of being a prince and decide for themselves to be a "nice" or "evil" prince. If a prince chooses to be compassionate, he must follow his initial plan, disregarding situations within his people because the focus on smaller instances can lead to a large amount of corruption within the country. The same rules follow for if he decides to be cruel and ruthless. He must follow the standards that have been set for him once he has chosen a path, and continue to support the country. It is ideal to be both feared and loved as a prince. However, it is certainly difficult and most men of royalty tend to pick a side. Machiavelli argues that it is safer to be feared than loved, because of most men's rough personality. However, if the prince chooses to be feared instead, he must avoid hatred at all costs.  Machiavelli also writes that several princes in the past have succeeded more based off of their cleverness compared to sincerity. For princes, it is necessary to understand the two types of forces, dealing with man and beast, knowing the people of the country and what tactics work best to help with future success. In essence, it is important to understand compassion, but also know the basics of a ruthless ruler. He must understand that not all men are good, and often he must repel against his faith and humanity to make decisions. He is braking promises as a prince, and Machiavelli believes that that is the time where he must analyze and separate the good from the evil.

Key Quotation: "It is useful to seem compassionate, faithful, humane, honest, religious- and to be so, but to stay so constructed in your spirit that if it is necessary not be these things, you are able and know how to become the contrary."