TOW #19

TOW #19

The Qualities of the Prince by Niccolo Machiavelli 

Reading goal:  Find underlining purpose

Writing goal:  Validate reasoning of the Author’s rhetorical device

            Niccolo Machiavelli was a Florentine politician recognized today as a founder of political science for writing his masterpiece, The Prince.  Machiavelli is known for his vigorous, dynamic and almost cruel methods of leadership.  Machiavelli’s main audience for The Prince and The Qualities of the Prince was Lorenzo Medici, the current ruler of Florence, who Machiavelli believed required his intellectual influence in controlling Florence and repelling external European powers.

            In The Qualities of the Prince Machiavelli uses contrasting parings on several issues concerning a Prince.  This allows Machiavelli to demonstrate the importance of doing what’s effective rather then “morally right”.  The most effective use of this is in his stance on Cruelty and mercy. 

Machiavelli starts of this contrast by explaining the historical significance of Cesare Borgia.   Cesare Borgia is known as a cruel and brutal man who was an exceptionally firm ruler.  However through his cruel leadership Borgia was able to unite Romagna, a region northeast of Tuscany. 

Machiavelli contrasts the cruelty of Borgia with the Florentine people in which he explains “If we examine this carefully, we shall see that he was more merciful than the Florentine people, who, in order to order to avoid being considered cruel, allowed the destruction of Pistoria” (Machiavelli Par. 12) Pistoria is a town near Florence that was disturbed during a civil war that could have been controlled and averted if the Florentines had rather been oppressive and “cruel” to the opposition instead of “merciful”.  Machiavelli furthers this point in paragraph twelve by explaining cruelty committed be a leader that controls and keeps the people loyal.  Instead of the people becoming cruel, causing riots or civil war, leading to looting, ransacking, and murders, which forces the hand of the leader to execute these plunders and murders, leaving the lasting air of cruelty any way.

 This is an effective procedure used by Machiavelli because it allows him to shoot down any argument against being cruel because he has already established the ineffectiveness of mercy in his point, leaving no other standing point for why cruelty should not be used.