|
Who is Machiavelli? And Where did Tupac's new name come from?
Read on to find out...
While in prison, Tupac Shakur studied in depth the teachings
of the political philosopher Machiavelli. Tupac said he learned a lot from reading Machiavelli's books, particularly The Prince
and The Art Of War.
After his release from prison, Tupac began using the name
Makaveli to represent his new way of thinking.
Niccoló Machiavelli (1469-1527)
ALSO: Niccoló Macchiavelli
"Men are always wicked at bottom unless they are made good
by some compulsion."
Biography:
The first great political philosopher of the Renaissance was
Nicolo Machiavelli (1469-1527). His famous treatise, The Prince, stands apart from all other political writings of the period
insofar as it focus on the practical problems a monarch faces in staying in power, rather than more speculative issues explaining
the foundation of political authority. As such, it is an expression of realpolitik, that is, governmental policy based on
retaining power rather than pursuing ideals.
Machiavelli was born in Florence, Italy at a time when the
country was in political upheaval . Italy was divided between four dominant city-states, and each of these was continually
at the mercy of the stronger foreign governments of Europe. Since 1434 Florence was ruled by the wealthy Medici family. Their
rule was temporarily interrupted by a reform movement, begun in 1494, in which the young Machiavelli became an important diplomat.
When the Medici family regained power in 1512 with the help of Spanish troops, Machiavelli was tortured and removed from public
life. For the next 10 years he devoted himself to writing history, political philosophy, and even plays. He ultimately gained
favor with the Medici family and was called back to public duty for the last two years of his life. Machiavelli's greatest
work is The Prince, written in 1513 and published after his death in 1532. The work immediately provoked controversy and was
soon condemned by Pope Clement VIII. Its main theme is that princes should retain absolute control of their territories, and
they should use any means of expediency to accomplish this end, including deceit. Scholars struggle over interpreting Machiavelli's
precise point. In several section Machiavelli praises Caesar Borgia, a Spanish aristocrat who became a notorious and much
despised tyrant of the Romagna region of northern Italy. During Machiavelli's early years as a diplomat, he was in contact
with Borgia and witnessed Borgia's rule first hand. Does Machiavelli hold up Borgia as the model prince? Some readers initially
saw The Prince as a satire on absolute rulers such as Borgia, which showed the repugnance of arbitrary power (thereby implying
the importance of liberty). However, this theory fell apart when, in 1810, a letter by Machiavelli was discovered in which
he reveals that he wrote The Prince to endear himself to the ruling Medici family in Florence. To liberate Italy from the
influence of foreign governments, Machiavelli explains that strong indigenous governments are important, even if they are
absolutist.
THE PRINCE. Machiavelli opens The Prince describing the two
principal types of governments: monarchies and republics. His focus in The Prince is on monarchies. The most controversial
aspects of Machiavelli's analysis emerge in the middle chapters of his work. In Chapter 15 he proposes to describe the truth
about surviving as a monarch, rather than recommending lofty moral ideals. He describes those virtues which, on face value,
we think a prince should possess. He concludes that some "virtues" will lead to a prince's destruction, whereas some "vices"
allow him to survive. Indeed, the virtues which we commonly praise in people might lead to his downfall. In chapter 16 he
notes that we commonly think that it is best for a prince to have a reputation of being generous. However, if his generosity
is done in secret, no one will know about it and he will be thought to be greedy. If it is done openly, then he risks going
broke to maintain his reputation. He will then extort more money from his subjects and thus be hated. For Machiavelli, it
is best for a prince to have a reputation for being stingy. Machiavelli anticipates examples one might give of generous monarchs
who have been successful. He concludes that generosity should only be shown to soldiers with goods taken from a pillaged enemy
city. In Chapter 17 he argues that it is better for a prince to be severe when punishing people rather than merciful. Severity
through death sentences affects only a few, but it deters crimes which affects many. Further, he argues, it is better to be
feared than to be loved. However, the prince should avoid being hated, which he can easily accomplish by not confiscating
the property of his subjects: "people more quickly forget the death of their father than the loss of their inheritance." In
Chapter 18, perhaps the most controversial section of The Prince, Machiavelli argues that the prince should know how to be
deceitful when it suits his purpose. When the prince needs to be deceitful, though, he must not appear that way. Indeed he
must always exhibit five virtues in particular: mercy, honesty, humaneness, uprightness, and religiousness. In Chapter 19
Machiavelli argues that the prince must avoid doing things which will cause him to be hated. This is accomplished by not confiscating
property, and not appearing greedy or wishy-washy. In fact, the best way to avoid being overthrown is to avoid being hated.
|
