What You'll Learn:
Niccolo Machiavelli was a diplomat and philosopher in Italy during the Renaissance. The Prince is an essay on how to rule effectively, which he offered to a local prince in the early 1500s. It was Machiavelli who posed the still-famous question of whether it is better to be loved or to be feared. The Prince was an attempt to resolve this and numerous other statecraft conundrums. Five hundred years later, the essay remains a thought-provoking classic.
Key Insights:
- The prince cannot be all virtue and no vice—he must learn to use necessary vices strategically.
- Princes who hope to appear liberal will appear mean; those who are mean will be remembered as liberal.
- It’s better to be both loved and feared, but if you must choose, being feared is more effective.
- It’s better to be feared than to be loved, but it’s vital to avoid being hated.
- Keep flatterers at bay by taking counsel with a small, trusted inner circle and prohibiting advice from anyone beyond that group.
- Those princes who try to stay neutral toward neighbors won’t be princes much longer.
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