A Filosofia de Maquiavel - O Príncipe | Prof. Anderson

Online History of Philosophy Course: https://hotm.art/filosofia-maquiavel Discover our other courses: https://filosofiatotal.com.br/ --------------------------------------------------- Niccolo Machiavelli - The Prince --------------------------------------------------- The transformations undergone by political power did not go unnoticed by the Renaissance, and the most important figure in this field was the Florentine Niccolò Machiavelli (1469–1527). He assumed an important position in the government of Florence after the Medici family was removed from control of the city. He worked as a diplomat, making numerous trips to the great kingdoms that had been unified, and he was dissatisfied with the state of war in the Italian Peninsula. In Machiavelli's time, the most important cities in this region were Florence, Milan, Naples, and Venice. Despite their strong trade, they were politically fragile and completely vulnerable to external attacks. In his time, it was common for one city to invade and dominate another, hence his concern. Furthermore, Machiavelli believed that the Italian region would only benefit from unification. But how could this be achieved? This is the central question of The Prince (1515), his great masterpiece that would completely change the way Westerners viewed politics. Machiavelli is considered the father of modern political science because he did not write a theoretical treatise on what an ideal government should be. From the Greeks to his time, everyone did this. His concern was not how politics should be, but rather how it is actually practiced. With this in mind, using as an empirical foundation the lessons that history had taught and how the great politicians of his time behaved, he wrote a manual on how to build a strong state and how to maintain power to govern it. To this end, he understood that the prince should be guided by the results to be achieved, being able to do anything. He should not be concerned with moral issues; the important thing was to obtain power and maintain it. For Machiavelli, therefore, politics is not tied to morality, as the "ends justify the means." The prince must use every possible trick: lie, deceive, and mislead. He is the cunning man, clever enough to get what he wants. Thus, to achieve power, he must possess virtu, that is, special qualities that distinguish him from other men. It is this virtue that will enable him to recognize the right circumstances (fortune) to act properly at the right time. Fortune is what many call luck, but only those who are prepared can take advantage of it. This is the characteristic element of Renaissance thought in its teachings. Machiavelli knows that there are forces acting upon him, independent of human will. But humankind, as a rational being, endowed with intelligence, is not a simple puppet tossed from one place to another at the whim of chance. He can use his rationality to decide the course of his life. Once in power, one must know how to maintain it. For this, it's better to be feared than loved. Machiavelli had a pessimistic view of man, believing he's a wretched creature, that when everything's going well, everyone is his friend, but "when push comes to shove," everyone turns their backs on him. There's no such thing as the common good. Individuals live in constant conflict in society, and you can't please everyone. To maintain everyone's loyalty, it's best for them to fear you, as this makes it easier for them to obey and remain faithful. It's even good to skin a poor wretch every now and then so everyone sees the prince is no joke. For the superficial reader of Machiavelli, The Prince makes him, without a shadow of a doubt, one of the most unscrupulous writers of all time. This is the interpretation possible for those who analyze this work outside its historical context. Machiavelli wrote this work when the Medici family returned to power and he was ousted from the political scene. He dedicated it to Lorenzo de' Medici, the only man who, in his eyes, could unify Italy and restore the brilliance and splendor of republican Rome before the dictatorship of Julius Caesar. Machiavelli was a republican, and he did not write a work for a ruler who sought to perpetuate himself in absolute and despotic power.