Rating: 
Summary: The eternally misunderstood 16th century realpolitik guide
Review: Before Kissinger, there was Niccolo Machiavelli, a minor Florentine bureaucrat who was rotting in jail and being brutally tortured when his previous political benefactors lost power to the returning Medicis. The Medicis had thrown Niccolo in prison the year he wrote "The Prince", but his observations and opinions on the rule of kingdoms had been formed far earlier. These experiences provide the bulk of Machiavelli's proofs on the theories he would present later in "The Prince". As an envoy to the court of the ruthless Cesare Borgia (the duke of Valencia, Spain), for the French king in 1502, Machiavelli had a front row center seat to view the political intruiges that culminated in Borgia's murder, and Machiavelli's return to Florence. By this time (1503), Machiavelli felt he had gained revelatory insights into the nature of attaining and more importantly, maintaining power in the maddening turmoil and internecnine wars that defined the largely unaffiliated European papal states, and the structures of the monarchies and principalities of the day. In fact, the first eleven chapters merely describe, rather matter-of-factly, the structure of the kingdoms and princely city-states without even getting into the discussion of the rulers themselves. After a few more chapters defining the role of the military and examining the different types of armies employed in his day, the book reaches the chapters for which it has become unjustly infamous: Machiavelli's treatise on effective leadership. The advice is largely pragmatic. A prince should avoid bald faced flatters. On the question of whether it is better to be feared than loved, Macchiavelli's advice is merely to avoid being hated. Machiavelli's advice seems shockingly amoral to modern readers. In fact, he is downright dogmatic about treating the entire enterprise of governance as objectively as he sees fit, complete with his somewhat oversimplistic and overly-pragmatic (in his mind) counterbalanced traits that are the hallmark of an effective ruler. Machiavelli writes: "And again, [the prince] need not make himself uneasy at incurring a reproach for those vices without which the state can only be saved with difficulty, for if everything is considered carefully, it will be found that something which looks like virtue, if followed, would be his ruin; whilst something else, which looks like vice, yet followed brings him security and prosperity." When read without the benefit of historical context, or indeed, the context of the rest of "The Prince", it seems that Machiavelli encourages the pursuit of vice and cruelty as a tool of effective leadership. However, we must remember that "The Prince" was written with a concrete aim - to give the Medicis a blueprint for their rule, and an unashamed exhortation for their conquest of Italy, in the hopes that they would expel the foreign "barbarians" and unite Italy into a single kingdom. "This opportunity", he wrote, "therefore, ought not to be allowed to pass for letting Italy at last see her liberator appear". Sadly for Niccolo, the Medicis ignored "The Prince", as did most of the rest of the world for for the bulk of the following centuries. It's far too easy to read "The Prince" as a training manual for tyrants. Indeed, the infamous Haitian dictator Francois "Papa Doc" Duvalier *did* use "The Prince" in just this way. However, Machiavelli's very name has come to stand for something that he himself did not necessarily represent. There are many reviews of this book salaciously promising that "The Prince" is 'the ultimate in evil'. This unfortunate image has also launched a hundred hip hop variations on his rather unhip medieval name (how long will it be before a rapper names himself "Kissengah", one wonders?), which is also entirely undeserved. The lessons Machiavelli wished to teach the unresponsive Medicis must be divorced from modern sensibilities before the modern reader can draw lessons and conclusions about his intent, for the nature of government as we know it today bears far fewer similarities to the rulers of the kingdoms in Machiavelli's time and place. Rather, "The Prince" is the study of the natures of political power and the state themselves, and the book deserves to be understood as it is before his (somewhat disjointed) opinions presented in the book are analyzed for malice. Macchiavelli, like Sun Tzu, had finally collected a working knowledge of war and power into one handy tome, and virtually reinvented the discipline of political science singlehandedly.
Rating: 
Summary: BRILLIANT, MISUNDERSTOOD TREATISE ON LEADERSHIP
Review: This has to be one of the most innovative books ever written on leadership. Not only did The Prince turn the idea of being a leader on its head (most books up until this one focused on the virtues it took to be a prince), but it is also surprisingly comprehensive (Machiavelli touches on many subjects in just 80 pages), and restrained (Machiavelli says more than once that violence should only be used when there is no alternative). The danger comes in misinterpreting Machiavelli: using violence as a first and not a last alternative; and betraying people for no good reason, thinking it will not come back to haunt you. Most of the issues in this book are still relevant today. After reading this book, you should be armed with what a lot of books take hundreds of pages to explain: why it's important to take bold stances; why a prince must embark on great undertakings; and why developing your decision making and judgement are the only ways to be a wise leader.
Rating:
Summary: Un clásico incomprendido
Review: Usualmente cuando alguna figura pública comete alguna fechoria o acto inmoral ,se le tilde de tener conducta maquivelica, si bien es ciert oque maquiavelo en su texto indica como debe comportarse un principe y los actos que debe muchas veces hacer para tomar el contro lde alguna posición de poder, es relevante decir, que maquiavelo mismo hace dvertencias de los posibles resultados e incluso hace blances para justificar o no actos por ometer, el cometerlos o no esta en la formación del lector, el genio de maquiavelo trasciende su época.
Rating:
Summary: A political science classic
Review: The works of Niccolo Machiavelli have long been considered some of the most influential works in the field of political science. Among Machiavelli's works, perhaps the most prominent treatise is The Prince, which has been widely read for more than four and a half centuries, since its publication in 1531. Moreover, Machiavelli's name is well-known to countless numbers of people who have never read his works-Machiavelli is infamous for his support of political immorality, though the positive aspects of his works are often overlooked. First and foremost, The Prince is a handbook for rulers who wish to achieve success for themselves and their domains. Chapters 1 through 11 of The Prince delineate the various types of monarchical governments, or principalities, that exist and the manner by which those principalities may be instituted and sustained; in these chapters, Machiavelli focuses on hereditary, mixed, new, and ecclesiastical principalities. Chapters 12 through 14 illustrate the role that military might plays in fortifying the power of a monarch, and Machiavelli here describes different types of armies that may be employed by a prince, such as mercenary, auxiliary, native, and mixed. Chapters 15 through 23 present Machiavelli's notion of an effective prince's character traits and personal qualities in addition to his comments on the nature of leadership; in these chapters, Machiavelli expounds his recommendations for an effective prince through a series of opposite traits, by which he explores whether it is better to be free-spending or tightfisted, cruel or kind, loved or feared, dependent on his fortresses or dependent on the loyalty of his subjects, and whether to be used as a tool by advisers or able to use advisers as tools. Chapters 24 through 26 offer Machiavelli's commentary on the political situation of Italy during the time when he wrote The Prince, as well as a demand by Machiavelli for a ruler who would unite Italy and free the area from foreign dominion, someone like Lorenzo de' Medici, or so he hoped. There are a multitude of reasons why The Prince has become one of the most read and talked-about works of political theory in the history of mankind. One of these reasons is that The Prince is such a concise work; it can be quickly read and digested by a far-ranging audience. Since it is so brief, The Prince may have gained members of its audience that it may otherwise not have had. Another important strength of this treatise is the fashion in which Machiavelli makes his argument; he explains his arguments very clearly, providing concrete examples for his statements and thus making it easy for the reader to follow his points. Machiavelli is extremely deliberate and methodical in his writing, taking great care to identify and convey all possible points of contention and difficulty that might arise from specific points of policy, as well as elucidating rules of conduct for a vast variety of emergencies, in addition to providing helpful rationalizations for various tactical moves and countermoves. One of Machiavelli's greatest strengths as exhibited in The Prince is his use of historical events and figures alongside contemporary examples taken from sixteenth-century Florence. These historical examples serve to very effectively illustrate Machiavelli's position, providing the basis for practical application of his political theories. One aspect of The Prince may be classified as both a strength and a weakness in some respects, and that is the extremism of Machiavelli's beliefs. The strength of Machiavelli's convictions is the foundation on which the treatise rests. Machiavelli's strong words, however, can be taken by some readers as fanaticism, which should not be followed. Many people would disagree with his views on the morals of a prince, and the fact that Machiavelli believes morals to be completely unnecessary, and perhaps even detrimental to the effectiveness of a ruler. Consequently, many people discard Machiavelli's arguments entirely, without pausing to consider their merits. Other slight weaknesses of The Prince are its abrupt transitions, scattered thoughts, and lack of chronological order; these elements betray the fact that the book was written hastily, though in the grand scheme this fact matters little, as The Prince is much more famous for the ideas it contains than for the style of its prose. The overall importance of Niccolo Machiavelli's The Prince can be seen in its undiminished popularity for nearly the last five centuries. The Prince is a detailed but concise study of monarchial rule, of its merits and deterrents; as such, this work is of immeasurable value in the insight it offers on the political nature of humanity. Machiavelli's ideas continue to be as relevant today as they were when he wrote The Prince, and the revelations one can gather from reading this treatise are no less profound at present then they might have been in the sixteenth century.
Rating:
Summary: Wonderful edition
Review: I can't agree with the previous reviewer that this book is a prescription for living -- lying, cheating, fraud, deception, cruelty, and murder hardly appeal to me as a model for my personal life. Nor do I agree that the word virtu completely captures the essence of the work. But, the translation is excellent, and the supporting material is wonderful. Norton critical editions are generally good, but this one excels. I read it voraciously from cover to cover.
Rating:
Summary: Absolutely the best book on getting and keeping power!
Review: With a great and widely-read book like this one, making fresh observations is difficult. While some of the historical examples seem arcane, the basic principles expressed throughout are as true today as when the book went to press almost 500 years ago. Besides being applicable to politics, 'The Prince' can also be applied to business (especially in today's world) and even love. After all: "All is fair in both love and war." Machiavelli himself was a very astute Italian politician during the Renaissance and not surprisingly, a womanizer too. He would most likely approve of the lasting popularity of his work despite the fact that during his own life, he tried to hush it up. Page for page, no book in history has said more in fewer pages. Of all the books in the elite category of "Must Read" this book stands out like a beacon.
Rating: 
Summary: Hmmm...
Review: Machiavelli's The Prince is a great illustration of one of the best thinkers of that time. However, for the not-so-avid historical/philosophical reader, it came as a pretty hard pill to swallow. While reading I often found myself, reading and rereading and doing the same process again to fully grasp it. Not a one day read, as could be deceiving by the lack of bulk in the abridged version. For those who enjoy the historical and the idealist lifestyle, take a stab at this true work of brilliance. But don't be surprised if you find yourself sitting down and after an hour's time, only reaching page 15 and still not seeing how people call this guy a genius. You've got to be in the right mindset to read this, so don't prepare for something weak, this one is heavy, so brace yourself with a cup of coffee (maybe with an ample amount of brandy, that you'll most likely adhere to strictly once you hit the particularly granular middle of the text) and enjoy.
Rating:
Summary: Definitely worth spending a few hours on
Review: This little volume makes for some entertaining reading but it is not the supreme Renaissance literary or philosophical masterwork, as some would like us to believe. Based on admittedly sound insights in mass psychology and geopolitics, Machiavelli formulates some practical guidelines for autocratic rulers, helping them to seize power and to hold on to it. By no means the author's intention is to instill his target audience with cruelty and bad faith. His reasoning is thoroughly pragmatic in the sense that it outlines the implications of a particular course of action, substantiated by concrete examples from Machiavelli's own time and from Antiquity. I would say that many observations are still relevant and applicable today. In that sense, The Prince is as good a book on leadership as you will find on the shelves under the Management heading today. As a management consultant, I was quite sensitive to the point that is made in two of the final sections of the book - A prince's personal staff' and 'How flatterers must be shunned' - about the relationship between the prince and his advisers. Machiavelli makes a very good point when he holds forth that "The choosing of ministers is a matter of no little importance for a prince; and their worth depends on the sagacity of the prince himself." In other words: a leader gets the advice that he deserves. If the consultancy profession has been taken under fire lately because of malpractices, charlatanism and greed, then this is to a significant extent rooted in the immature and opportunistic attitude of many clients vis-à-vis their advisers. If external consultants are drawn in to turn the odds in political battles or to relieve the client of responsibilities about decisions he ought to take himself, then, yes, you can be sure that the sharks will come and take their due. It's a matter of choice and vigilance. Machiavelli knew it all along. (Review was based on George Ball's translation in the Penguin Classics series)
Rating:
Summary: What The World Needs Now
Review: The prince remains the quintessential treatise for understanding human nature in times of turmoil and dissension. With what our country is currently experiencing it would behoove our government to revisit this manual to take heed to it's timeliness and functionality.
Rating:
Summary: Still relevant
Review: Machiavelli's brilliant text (I read the N. H. Thomson translation, in the Dover Thrift edition) is sometimes disturbing, but ultimately brilliant in its analysis as to the achievement of political power. His arguments are rational and succinct, and it amazed me how relevant all this was to today's political landscape! Who could have thought that a document nearly 500 years old would survive and remain important.
|
