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Machiavelli's The Prince: The Qualities Of An Effective Leader

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Haven Rohner Machiavelli Paper To some, being a good leader comes in the form of having the love of the people, but to others, they might think a fitting leader needs to intimidate. In Niccolò Machiavelli's book, The Prince, it is stated that the ideal political leader has the qualities of being ruthless but flexible, as well as strategic. One of the most important qualities of an exquisite leader is having the ability to be ruthless, but also the ability to be merciful. Machiavelli states that, "Upon this, one has to remark that men ought either to be well treated or crushed, because they can avenge themselves of lighter injuries, of more serious ones they cannot; therefore the injury that is to be done to a man ought to be of such a kind that one does not stand in fear of revenge" (Machiavelli 7-8). What this quote means, is that a leader should only choose a path of destruction if he is certain that nothing bad will come from it. The "minor injuries" the leader may cause are …show more content…

Machiavelli claims that, "A Prince ought to have no other aim or thought, nor select anything else for his study, than war and its rules and discipline; for this is the sole art that belongs to him who rules, and it is of such force that it not only upholds those who are born princes, but it often enables men to rise from a private station to that rank" (Machiavelli 67). To Machiavelli, the sole purpose of a prince, is to deal in matters of war when needed, but also study it so that when it does happen, he is not ill prepared. "A wise prince ought to observe some such rules, and never in peaceful times stand idle, but increase his resources with industry in such a way that they may be available to him in adversity..." (Machiavelli 70). All other matters of a prince merely consist of keeping a stable society, so that the society is prepared for war in the

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In Niccolo Machiavelli's book, The Prince (1513), he evaluates on how a prince can be a successful leader. Machiavelli’s purpose of this guidebook was to construct his argument to the rising ruler Giuliano de Medici for when he comes to power in Florence. He adopts a casual but authoritative tone in order to convince the prince that Machiavelli’s evaluation on how to be the best prince, is the right thing for the prince to do without coming off as he knows more than the prince or is trying to intimidate him.. Machiavelli’s reference to previous rulers and whether their tactics failed or succeeded helps to benefit his credibility along with his allusion to historic text. He appeals to our logic by simply stating a prince can only do what is within his power to control, and his use of an analogy furthers his argument.

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Machiavelli describes to us that a successful prince needs to have the two compelling qualities: that of a lion a lion and a fox. In chapter 18, Machiavelli says “… One needs to be a fox to recognize snares and a lion to recognize the wolves” (Machiavelli, 69). A prince must be smart like a fox but have the strength of a lion. This shows the value of dealing with situations (realism) as they come. Furthermore, when Machiavelli describes the qualities of a king, he implies that a prince should have the qualities and morals that are honest, but also be able to turn in a situation and protect the state.

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In chapter XVII of The Prince, N. Machiavelli discusses the topic of cruelty and whether it is better for a ruler to be loved or feared. Machiavelli asserts the idea that if you are king, it is going to be quite impossible for all people to like you further emphasizing the idea that it is better to be feared. If a king needs to be cruel to maintain power, then so be it. One characteristic he expresses in this chapter is the ability to make decisions quickly without the influence of personal feelings. He believes a prince should be able to act ruthlessly if necessary, without hesitation.

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Machiavelli’s The Prince (2012) is often misunderstood as a sort of “manual” for tyrants, mostly due to his infamous “better to be loved than feared or feared than loved” quote (p. 59). This oft-cited but tenuously understood quotation seems to have secured its place in history as the go-to phrase when discussing cruel and dictatorial leadership. The “feared/loved” quote, however, was not written to condone or promote tyranny. According to Machiavelli (2012), a leader always should “wish to be both,” while recognizing and accepting the fact that it is “difficult to unite [love and fear] in one person” (p. 59).

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One essential quality that a prince must develop due to the unfavorable qualities of men is the ability to be feared rather than loved as this quality is most beneficial for the power of the prince. Machiavelli states, “Since it is difficult to be both together, it is much safer to be feared than to be loved, when one of two must be lacking. For one can generally say this about men: they are ungrateful, fickle, simulators and deceivers, avoiders of danger, and greedy for gain” (58). Because men are generally selfish in nature and their actions are based on their own personal gains, it is risky for a prince to be loved by his citizens since it may potentially have negative consequences, especially because “men are less hesitant about injuring someone who makes themselves loved than one who makes himself feared” (58). Machiavelli demonstrates how due to the deceivious nature of men, it is essential for a prince to be feared by his citizens are men are less likely to be compelled to engage in mischievous behavior towards a leader whom they fear.

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The Prince, written by Machiavelli, is a candid outline of how he believes leaders gain and keep power. Machiavelli uses examples of past leaders to determine traits that are necessary to rule successfully. Leaders such as the King of Naples and the Duke of Milan lacked military power, made their subjects hate them, or did not know how to protect themselves from the elite, causing them to lose power. He says that these rulers should blame laziness, not luck, for their failures. By looking at these historical successes and failures, Machiavelli is able to develop his own thoughts on how politics and leaders should be in the future.

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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.

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A leader’s cruelty enables him to make the decisions necessary for the kingdom, while also being miserly to keep the people happy. I think that Machiavelli’s advice provides a sound basis on how leaders today can lead. On other hand, others may argue that Machiavelli’s advice leads rulers astray and rather rulers should be kind and generous because morally that is the right thing to do. No matter the interpretation of how a ruler should lead, Machiavelli's analyst of a leaders provides insight into everyday life and causes leaders today to think about how they

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According to him, rulers should know their respective limits when it comes to the force and violence they inflict. Machiavelli believes that maximizing betrayal, deception and other cruel acts aren’t considered talents. Although these methods are effective in gaining empire, these don’t help in getting glory. Therefore, using violence and cruelty may be necessary but should have limits. The prince must know up to what extent his violence should be inflicted upon and he must do it all at once to avoid the hatred and resentment from his

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The two Machiavellian traits Raul Castro demonstrates that make him a good Prince (ruler) are being and deceitful. Machiavelli would pre approve of Castro being a good Prince because he keeps his state safe and in check. Machiavelli describes the quality of being cruel as being good. When I hear the word cruelty I can imagine people hanging in the gallows, or being stretched by a turn wheel.

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Being a prince is not as easy as it may seem. There are good and bad decisions a prince can make. Machiavelli has his own standards on how a prince should behave. According to Machiavelli, a prince could be considered a lion, a fox, or a wolf. The lion is fierce but doesn’t have the smarts, while a fox has the smarts but isn 't fierce.

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According to Machiavelli, a successful leader should to exhibit a certain character which is key to their success. He highlights five key qualities that a leader should possess A leader should be feared by the people. According to Machiavelli, it is better to be feared than loved. He believed that the people were less likely to revolt if they feared the leader

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I. Machiavelli In his famous work the Prince Niccolo Machiavelli exposes what it takes to be a good prince and how only this good price and keep control over his state. There are many different qualities that make a man a good ruler but there are some that are more essential than others. In this work Machiavelli stresses the importance of being a warrior prince, a wise prince, and knowing how to navigate the duality of virtù and vices. Without these attributes there was no way that a prince could hold together their state and their people.

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They can’t let any situation bring them down and affect their daily life. It helps a leader remain calm in uncertain situations, a courtier when they may face difficult problems in the court of royalty and everyday people when talking to someone they wanted to show respect to. Machiavelli never mentioned his exemplary leader with mental strength, so one can assume it wasn’t a trait he considered significant. However, he did mention false sincerity in paragraphs six and seven. Instead of holding the traits of honesty, trustworthiness and leniency, Machiavelli told one make it only look as though did instead, and when the time came, they could be corrupt, sly and merciless.

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In his novel, the prince, nicolo machiavelli guides us to be a fruitful ruler. He clarifies the best routes for any ruler or sovereign to govern a region, bring prosper to the society, and keep up their position. This book can be read by anyone to get a few pointers on political issues. Most of the thoughts held by machivelli were linked to mercilessness and evil, hence they raised a considerable number of eyebrows. He maintains that the ruler 's primary goal should be conquering, staying in control of the general public and to always have the idea of war in mind.

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