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Title: The Prince by Niccolo Machiavelli, Paul Sonnino ISBN: 0-391-03940-7 Publisher: Prometheus Books Pub. Date: October, 1995 Format: Paperback Volumes: 1 List Price(USD): $11.95 |
Average Customer Rating: 4.3 (178 reviews)
Rating: 3
Summary: A Truthful Presentation of Politics, However With Problems
Comment: This Review refers to the mass market paperback edition of The Prince, composed by Niccolo Machiavelli and as translated/introduced by Daniel Donno.
The Prince was and is a pioneering political work. Through this work, Machiavelli describes how a ruler should run their country and behave politically in order to be successful. The varied topics covered include everything from how to keep up public opinion to how to choose advisors. The introduction by the translator, Daniel Donno, describes the author as well as various aspects of his life, and includes a letter by Machiavelli. A rather small selection from The Discourses follows The Prince, providing further information on political concepts. There is also a chronology and extensive notes on both the primary work and the brief selection.
The truthfulness as to how to conduct political matters in a ruler's situation at the time is startling. The concepts and methods conveyed in this work would prove quite useful for leaders wishing to sustain their control over their populace as well as for citizens wishing to gain some sort of political power. However, The Prince focuses on the political positions of the time and is therefore not as relevant in modern times as they were at its publication. Despite this fact, there is still an abundance of accurate and usable information pertaining to the said topic. The selections from The Discourses are much more useful to modern politicians and a modern governmental founding than The Prince.
Throughout the introduction, the translator presents a literary style that leans towards a more informal tone, often praising the author. The translation Donno provides is a modern one, which is more pleasing to today's reader. The translation is of good presentation, often with useful explanatory endnotes that aid the reader in understanding the ideas presented throughout the text. On this note, Machiavelli fails to explain his examples properly, often leading to the need of the said endnotes. To say the least, the author expects the reader to have a good knowledge base concerning the history of Europe and the events of the time the book received its first publication. The style is assertive, which has its good qualities as well as bad.
Overall, The Prince provides a modern literary style without proper elaborations. The introduction is slightly biased, but still relevant. The selections from The Discourses are a welcome addition, although it would have been more so had the selection been larger. A good political work with a few problems, The Prince deserves a place in any political collection.
Rating: 5
Summary: Great little period piece (and it's not what you've heard)
Comment: I can think of only a few books that have been as much written and talked about as Niccolo Machiavelli's The Prince. The work is so well known that it is usually referred to by just the name Machiavelli, as if the book itself had that name. What's surprising is how little resemblance there is between the talk and reputation of Machiavelli and the actual content of this book (he did write other ones too). Certainly, this is a guide, addressed in the second person to the prince or would-be prince of sixteenth century Italy (including many references to current events, endnoted for the modern reader's benefit), and it contains much hard-headed advice about keeping, and to a lesser extent gaining, political power. But only a small fraction is truly objectionable for today's world. A fair amount is of little value only because it is so dated.
One needs to read through about half the book (a few hours, maybe) to find something other than reasonable advice and observations. Some observations and advice from the Machiavellian master: keeping power in a principality is different than in a republic (about which he discusses almost nothing in this work), and hereditary princes face different difficulties than new ones. A kingdom comprising a central authority and clear laws is hard to conquer, because of good organization and lack of internal dissent upon which to rely. It is then easy to rule simply by keeping in place much of the structure. A kingdom with many hereditary nobles is easily conquered by finding help on the inside, but once established hard to hold, because those same nobles will always rise up. A prince that lives among his people will have fewer difficulties than one that rules from afar. A state that looks after its defense will last longer than one that does not. Mercenary armies are the worst; native soldiers defending their homes are the best. A generous prince that weakens the state will be neither loved nor feared.
Get the idea? It's probably on the subject of fear that Machiavelli gets most of his criticism. Between love and fear from his people, a prince should choose fear and act accordingly. There are certainly problems that come with this sort of thinking. He makes frequent mention of Cesare Borgia as a nearly ideal leader, despite the man's known cruelties. Here, though, one should probably remember the time and place of this book's writing. And, I must point out, even on the subject of cruelty there is a certain logic. A new ruler that eliminates his enemies quickly and then moves on is far, far less likely to earn the hatred of his people than one who just dishes it out slowly, year after year, without any discernment.
In this practical advice book, Machiavelli then points out that the prince should never be hated by the people. In fact, he shows a great deal of respect for people, and his advice generally has the flavor of treating them well, but only whenever possible. This, again, is where he gets into trouble. As his reputation states, he does indeed recommend that a prince break his word whenever he needs to, that he should act good when it doesn't hurt him, and so forth. But the flip side is that he does recommend acting for the good whenever possible. He advises that the prince should praise and honor citizens of good ability and talent, and that he should do whatever possible to allow them to make the city prosperous and strong, that he should not fear the advice of a good minister. It is clear that Machiavelli does not think at all highly of those megalomaniacs that regularly abuse their positions to the detriment of the community.
I think that if Machiavelli were writing today, besides updated his examples, he would use the word respect more. Of course, the book is in translation between two languages and five centuries. But I think the main point he was trying to make was that a prince should do whatever possible to gain respect by the people and by other princes. This would seem to combine the ideas of earning love if possible, fear if necessary, and avoiding hatred.
In closing, now that I've read The Prince, I don't accept either popular idea about how Machiavelli himself thought. As I've stated above, he certainly does not come across as the conniving, evil minded little man striving to stab his mother in the back. But I also don't believe this was intended as a satire, nor as a bitter condemnation of the tactics he espouses. Firstly, he apparently sent the first copy of it to Lorenzo de Medici, not something he would likely do if it were meant as a mocking critique. Perhaps he wanted his old job back. Or perhaps it was just customary to pay tribute to the man, the way Galileo did when naming Jupiter's moons after him (Medici). But considering that after reading the work it is neither so evil as often portrayed, nor as critical as also portrayed, I think The Prince should probably be taken simply at face value. There's nothing hidden here. This is nothing more or less than a clear-headed contemporary (for that time) account of effective government.
Rating: 5
Summary: Classic deserving of its fame
Comment: This classic treatise is the most famous work on the subject of political power, and with good cause. Machiavelli outlines the basic principles of how to properly govern a kingdom, from whether it is better to fight with native troops (he argues that it is better to lose with your own soldiers than with with mercenaries) to whether it is better to be loved or feared (he clearly sides with the latter). Despite its somewhat negative connotations, the author goes to great lengths to outline why he comes to the conclusions he does. Taken in their proper context, Machiavelli's positions are, I believe, much less inflamatory than their stereo-types. One also must considers the time and circumstances in which the book was written.
In conclusion, this book is a must-read for anyone who considers themselves to be a reader of classics. I picked up this edition in the airport for 4 dollars...how could you go wrong? Anyone would be proud to place this on his or her bookshelf.
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