One can begin to see the development of political philosophy and political science through these three texts. Confucius mostly created the realm of political philosophy by studying past rulers and gathering a group of disciples. With the Analects, he told people how they could better themselves and become leaders, and once they became leaders how they should lead through being a role model of sorts for the society to follow. Plato kind of expanded on Confucius ideas when he built his perfect city in The Republic. He further developed the system of specialization where each citizen chose their respective trade to do solely so they could professionalize and supply the city with their product. Plato then created a non-birth related caste system where all the kids are raised separately and get to choose their profession, from which are …show more content…
With these questions comes Machiavelli and his book The Prince where he applies a cynical view of the human race, a more realistic view of politics compared to Plato’s completely idealistic system. Machiavelli says that men are “ungrateful, fickle, liars, and receivers, they shun danger and are greedy for profit” (Prince Chapter 17) and teaches that the leader not only cannot be virtuous but they, in fact, should not try to be. He believes that they should only put on a façade of virtuousness and do their dirty deeds behind the backs of the citizens. Machiavelli brings along a great deal of knowledge with The Prince with the fact that war is never gone, it is just pushed off until one side has the upper hand. He also relates the fact that to successfully win a battle or war one must fight it with their own army or they have not really gained anything. With all these bits of knowledge from Confucius to Plato to Machiavelli, it becomes apparent why some civilizations were successful and others were
Most of the ideas and structures of their government became the basis for modern civilizations. The Roman Republic had a lot of leaders with the main ones being Julius Caesar and Caesar Augustus, that helped them govern the civilization. The highest positions in the Roman government were the two consuls, who ruled the Roman Republic. Ancient Rome was also known for telling everyone that they were republican people, not ruled by kings, but by people themselves. War Tactics
Ptolemy found geocentric theory: Earth center of universe. Socrates philosopher establish Socratic method. Solon pass laws improve Athens, basis of democracy. Unlike river valley civilizations, Greece was comprised mostly of mountains and lived near large masses of water.
Renaissance means rebirth. The Renaissance was a time of renewal as well as of chaos in Europe since it was still recovering. More and more ideas of the ideal prince emerged, as there are many different city-states. One of the most noteworthy political philosophers of the sixteenth century was Niccólo Machiavelli whose book, The Prince, a political handbook for rulers, has brought him recognition. It can be seen that his ideas on politics and overall inspiration for the book mainly came from his views of the political problems that were taking place.
Chloe Jobin WHAP 06/10/15 Compare Greek, Roman, and Confucian ideals Greek, Roman, and Confucian ideals all share common political qualities such as the importance of loyalty, service, and hierarchy. Greek and Roman ideals were much more aristocratic, while Confucian ideals stressed training and responsibility, and were much more focused on political order and imperial hierarchy. Greece and Rome although, sharing many cultural aspects, did not share simular ideals. While Roman ideals emphasised law as well as tensions between local and imperial orientations, Greek ideals stressed the importance of philosophy, and learning.
“Although one should not reason about Moses, as he was a mere executor of things that had been ordered for him by God, nonetheless he should be admired if only for that grace which made him so deserving of speaking with God” (22). In the context of The Prince, this statement proves to be duplicitous because Machiavelli claims that he will not reason about Moses, but then uses the following pages to do precisely that. Furthermore, Machiavelli draws extensively from the actions of Moses and the Old Testament God, although Machiavelli is often regarded as an antagonist of the Church. Machiavelli’s handbook for princes consists of concrete advice for rulers that directly reflect the more abstracted stories in Exodus. For instance, Machiavelli’s description of human nature in The Prince mirrors Moses’ experiences as the leader of the Israelites in Exodus.
Scholars Aristotle and Confucius are both well-known people in history. Aristotle was an incredible Greek rationalist and researcher while Confucius was a Chinese government official, a savant, and an instructor. They both made huge commitments to ideals and morals. Their thoughtful works were comparable in nature, yet with some unique perspectives, thoughts, and points of view toward temperance.
The book The Prince by Machiavelli is a depiction of the renaissance because Machiavelli describes the different kinds of states, a prince can rest on the favor of the people if he has shown certain qualities of leadership and courage towards the people and the prince needs to treat nobles differently according to how they are inclined towards him. Machiavelli uses these rules to show how a prince should conduct his actions in the renaissance time period. A prince needs to know these rules to correctly oversight his kingdom/state precisely and efficiently. According to The Prince, the states are either ruled by a prince or a republic these states are known as, principalities.
According to Machiavelli, ideal prince is a risk-taker who puts a military on action, as the people respect the warrior. An ideal prince thinks for himself rather than relying on others, knows how to read characters, and does not surround himself with flatterers. He lives in reality, not fantasy. He works hard, utilizes his own mind, and makes survival of his guide. The ideal leader is neither loved nor hated, but respected.
1513, Niccolo Machiavelli’s book The Prince was published, a step by step guide on how to become a leader, obtain leadership, keep leadership, and use leadership. Machiavelli wrote from his own experiences from being in politics and in military affairs. The Prince is still read by college students, military officers, and politicians who use it to guide them. One point Machiavelli states is that leaders do not trust the ignorant or unprepared. Niccolo says, “. . .
All of these ideas had different opinions on humanity and targeted different audiences. The ideas of Confucius cogently grasp the concept of the human mind while those of Niccolo Machiavelli stray away from it. All minds are connected in such a way that during the Enlightenment, people sought out the answers
What does it mean to be a Prince? According to Niccolo Machiavelli there is various qualities that are needed to be a Prince. In the chapter, “The Qualities of the Prince,” Machiavelli list qualities a Prince must uphold to be considered a good Prince. In order to be a Prince one must know how to protect his state and people. Some qualities that he mentions are: being feared rather than being loved, being hated, being cruel, being generous, and being deceitful.
The political elites of the west today can still see the shadow of his influence. Confucius and Plato share the similar life experience and the life pursuit. Both of them lived in the period when the slavery system declined and both of them had the ambition to create an ideal society. Therefore, through compare with Confucius and Plato’s idea, we can see there are some similarities in their concepts of philosophy and education. But contribute to the diversity of historical background and culture tradition, we can also see many differences of their thought, among which there are many sparkling points that is worth exploring.
According to Machiavelli, a prince who keeps his promises is generally praised. But history demonstrates that most success is achieved when princes are crafty, tricky and able to deceive others. A prince can fight or succeed by using law or by using force. The use of law comes naturally to men and the use of force comes naturally to beasts. Hence, to achieve success, the prince must learn to fight with a balance between both law and force.
Habib Antar History 101 02 December, 2016 Citing specific evidence from Machiavelli's The Prince (not from the textbook), identify, and briefly explain, the qualities of the ideal political leader. The book, The Prince, by Niccolo Machiavelli is a philosophical book written in 1513 which illustrates the qualities, achievements and challenges faced by the "Prince". The prince should be virtuous but should also be ready to abandon the virtues in some circumstances. He should not only possess the good qualities such as merciful, faithful, humane, frank, and religious but also evil qualities which he should deliberately chose to be evil.
This is a work that still influences us today and is still relevant in today’s complex society. Some of the most prominent leaders of the 20th century have been influenced by Machiavellian ideas. U.S Presidents like Richard Nixon and Bill Clinton and U.K Prime Minister Anthony Blair are called Machiavellian leaders today. According to Machiavelli a prince must focus all his serious time and energy to war and how to wage it (Machiavelli, 31).