On the face of it, the answer to the question “Is Machiavelli a Friend or Foe to Liberty” seems relatively straightforward. Hartley, Machiavellian Definitions of LibertyĮlizabeth Hull, How Machiavelli Remembers the Ladies Harpham, Is Machiavelli a Friend or Foe to Liberty?: Reflections on My Colleagues’ Essays Khalil Habib, Is Machiavelli a Friend or Foe of Liberty? The ConversationĮdward J. Hartley, Is Liberty a Means or an End?Įlizabeth Hull, Liberty Is an Unconquered Country: Machiavelli’s The Prince and Liberty Harpham, Is Machiavelli a Friend or Foe to Liberty? We hope you enjoy the conversation.Įdward J. Whether we can arrive at a definitive answer to our question remains to be seen. Over the course of this month, you'll hear from a variety of disciplines and perspectives. Was he an advocate of republican government, or an adviser to tyrants? Did he preach a politics of fear or a politics of civility? We asked several scholars where they thought Machiavelli's place in this history ought to be. If you enjoyed The Prince, you might like Plato's Republic, also available in Penguin Classics.Niccolo Machiavelli remains one of the most contested figures in the history of liberalism. His most famous work, The Prince, was written in an attempt to gain favour with the Medicis and return to politics. When the Medici family returned to power in 1512 he was suspected of conspiracy, imprisoned and tortured and forced to retire from public life. Niccolò Machiavelli (1469-1527) was born in Florence, and served the Florentine republic as a secretary and second chancellor, as ambassador and foreign policy-maker. His introduction discusses Machiavelli's life and reputation, and explores the historical background to the work. Tim Parks's acclaimed contemporary translation renders Machiavelli's no-nonsense original as alarming and enlightening as when it was first written. How can a leader be strong and decisive, yet still inspire loyalty in his followers? When is it necessary to break the rules? Is it better to be feared than loved? Examining regimes and their rulers the world over and throughout history, from Roman Emperors to renaissance Popes, from Hannibal to Cesare di Borgia, Machievalli answers all these questions in a work of realpolitik that still has shrewd political lessons for today.
The Prince, his tough-minded, pragmatic handbook on how power really works, made his name notorious and has remained controversial ever since. Niccolò Machiavelli's brutally uncompromising manual of statecraft, The Prince is translated and edited with an introduction by Tim Parks in Penguin Classics.Īs a diplomat in turbulent fifteenth-century Florence, Niccolò Machiavelli knew how quickly political fortunes could rise and fall.
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