Machiavelli suggests that the social benefits of stability and security can be achieved in the face of moral corruption. Machiavelli believed that public and private morality had to be understood as two different things in order to rule well.

The Renaissance value of humanism greatly influences The Prince because Machiavelli, a humanist himself, targets human nature in portraying the ideal monarchy. Humanists of the Renaissance were devout proponents of human potential; throughout The Prince, Machiavelli articulately examines the dynamics of humanity.

On May 3, 1469, the Italian philosopher and writer Niccolo Machiavelli is born. A lifelong patriot and diehard proponent of a unified Italy, Machiavelli became one of the fathers of modern political theory. Machiavelli entered the political service of his native Florence by the time he was 29.

In a nutshell, the medieval Italian philosopher asserted that a good leader: Should be feared rather than loved “if you cannot be both” in order to avoid a revolt. Should have the support of the people because it’s difficult to take action without their support. Should hold good virtues.

Cesare Borgia is Machiavelli’s primary example of a prince who has great prowess, as displayed by his efforts to secure his state quickly after he was put in power.

“Injuries, therefore, should be inflicted all at once, that their ill savour being less lasting may the less offend; whereas, benefits should be conferred little by little, that so they may be more fully relished.”

The prince’s control of his public image gets special attention in this chapter. A prince must always appear to be truthful, merciful, and religious, even if he must sometimes act in the opposite way. But the great mass of people will never see the prince as he really is; they will see only the image he projects.

Cruelties “well committed.” According to Machiavelli, princes should want to be seen as merciful and not cruel, but sometimes it is necessary to be cruel in order to keep his subjects and army united, faithful, and under his control.

Therefore, when a prince decides to seize a state, he must determine how much injury to inflict. He needs to strike all at once and then refrain from further atrocities. In this way, his subjects will eventually forget the violence and cruelty.

The best methods are to go and live there yourself, to establish colonies in them, to protect the neighboring minor powers, to weaken strong factions within the state, and to guard against foreign powers.

“The prince should be superior to his officers in the same degree that they are to the people” (Erasmus 186). “Nature created all men equal, and slavery was superimposed on nature, which fact even the pagans recognized” (Erasmus 186).

Fortune and merit relate to New Princes and Machiavelli states that if a prince relies on fortune to gain their position, they are likely to build stronger foundations to their rule. For these princes to succeed, they took advantages of the opportunities that were created for them and they build prosperous states.

how can being liberal with one’s expenditures lead to ruin? a reputation for generosity requires outward lavishness, which eventually depletes all of the prince’s resources. the prince will be forced to burden his people with excessive taxes in order to raise the money to maintain his reputation for generosity.

Reputation is key, a prince should be a good liar who puts on one face for his populace and one who is the real him, one should not do things to just appear generous though, it is better to be a feared leader than a loved one.

“For how we live is so far removed from how we ought to live, that he who abandons what is done for what ought to be done, will rather learn to bring about his own ruin than his preservation. A man who wishes to make a profession of goodness in everything must necessarily come to grief among so many who are not good.