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Boethius Vs Machiavelli

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The Ancient-modern debate involves two main tenets and philosophers Boethius and Niccolo Machiavelli and both have extremely different and even contradictory views of politics and whether morality comes into play and how. Boethius covers the classical side of the debate where he gets some of his ideas from other philosophers in the classical rea like Plato and Socrates. Niccolo Machiavelli covers the modern aspect of the debate. Both speak on similar themes like the conception of happiness, the role of “Lady Fortuna” or Fortune and politics. The ancient or classical view of in the Ancient modern debate of human nature is that humans are naturally good and naturally political. Specifically, this notion derives from Plato and his conception …show more content…

Further, that because fortune owns everything except for reason we should not be dependent on then things that fortune loans us. Boethius believes that happiness is contentment that come from reason and peace of mind. Contentment is the only true happiness we can have because it involves reason and we own it. Reason is the source of getting through bad things. Contentment is self sufficiency that goes along with reason making one self governing. Purpose of politics for Machiavelli in the purest way is preservation. Furthermore, Machiavelli thinks that politics and morality do not go together. You don’t need to be a good person to be a good leader and that being a good person actually increases your chance of failing as a leader. He believes that attempting to become a better person and trying to make the people in the city better can neglect the true reason preservation. Also, believes that morality can distract you and that it doesn’t prepare you for the chaos in nature and …show more content…

The nature of fortune is illustrated in this quote “In the very act of changing she has preserved her own particular kind of constancy towards you. She was exactly the same when she was flattering you and luring you on with enticements of false kind of happiness. You have discovered the changing faces of the goddess” (23). Reason is your armor to move forward when unhappy and from the changes of fortune. Boethius helps point out with the notion of “Lady Fortuna” that we live in a world full of mortals and mortal things therefore getting attached is a bad thing. False happiness is when you are self sufficient on things that don’t belong to you. Boethius is upset at fortune for his fortune changed from good to bad quickly and she reminds him: “Now that I have I have decided to withdraw my hand. You have have been receiving a favour as one who has had the use of another’s possessions, and you have no right to complain as if what you have lost was fully your own. You have no cause to begin groaning at me: I have done you no violence. Wealth, honours and the like are all under my jurisdiction” (25). It is also being dependent on things like morality and wealth that end up making you more of a slave. False happiness is extremely dangerous. False happiness is false in summary because it makes you think you are self sufficient, are based on

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