Book Review : The Prince by Machiavelli

 

Everyone and their mother has heard of the book The Prince by Machiavelli. It is a classic written in the 1500s. I had always heard about the book. It is quoted in books and movies and is apparently the Bible of politics and power. So I decided to give it a read.

On the positive side, it is a very short read. You can finish it in a few days if you are lazy or you have other things to do. Machiavelli is a good writer and the prose flows well. I am not sure how it feels reading it in 16th century Italian but in English it is very easy to understand. There is no need to keep your dictionary at hand when reading it because it is quite simple and straightforward.

On the other hand, I was a bit disappointed. I was expecting to read the about the dark arts of politicking. Yes, the book gives advice on how to take and use power, but it is far from malevolent. Machiavelli doesnt necessary give instructions on how to be the next Stalin or Hitler.  In fact he encourages a leader to be generous and to look first for the people's interests. The worst thing that can happen to a prince is to be hated by the people. He writes that fortresses are useless if the people hate you. So one must be generous, as long as the leader is not using his own money. Machiavelli does not encourage cruelty, he writes that one must be cruel only in warfare and must commits acts of cruelty sparingly. 

Machiavelli warns the reader or aspiring prince against taking other people's property or wives and to give the appearance of being a merciful and just leader. He writes how it is a bad idea to rely on mercenaries and other powerful leaders. And he also advises a prince to arm his people and to rely on his own citizens for war. Machiavelli writes how a leader should be wary of flatterers and to be willing to take criticism from advisers.

In conclusion, I think Machiavelli gets a bad wrap. His greatest work has become notorious for allegedly teaching rulers how to be deceitful and ruthless. In reality, the book gives sound advice on how to be a fair but just ruler. However, I do not feel it is applicable in the daily life of an ordinary person. It was written for a member of the Medici family, encouraging him to liberate Italy from foreigners. The famous line about being better to be feared than loved is often quoted but people forget to add that one must avoid being hated.