Fortune And Power In Niccolo Machiavellis The Prince

Book Report Paper: Fortune and Power in The Prince by Niccolo Machiavelli Niccolo Machiavelli wrote the novel, The Prince, which was meant as a gift to Lorenzo de Medici, a ruling member of the Medici family (Machiavelli, 1998). The novel addresses politics, but more over managerial skills on how a prince should rule his state. Machiavelli goes on to describe ways in which are best practices for a prince to rule and continue to be in power by using historical examples and using metaphors to authenticate his advices. This novel is split up into four main sections that discusses: different types of principalities or states, different types of armies and how a prince should perform as a military leader, character and behavior of a prince, and†¦show more content†¦They do not know how to hold and they cannot hold that rank: they do not know how (Machiavelli, 1998). In other words, it is the belief that princes or people who gain power through fortune are less likely to be successful to remain in position due to the lack of experience to efficiently le ad (Machiavelli, 1998). Machiavelli also writes in the novel the comparison of fortune to a powerful and flooding river that inflicts destruction of plants, houses, and valuable resources (Machiavelli, 1998). Granting there isn’t anything that one can really do to stop a raging river already in progress, there are things that can be done to make sure that the least amount of damage from such a river will be made through building dams and barriers (Machiavelli, 1998). Also, fortune demonstrates her power where virtue has not been put in order to resist her and therefore turns her impetus where she knows that dams and dykes have not been made to contain her (Machiavelli, 1998). Similarly, as an individual can avoid catastrophic damage from a raging river by building dams, a prince should attempt or endeavor to expect that bad fortune is likely to occur and be prepared fight it when it should arise (Machiavelli, 1998). Subsequently, as Machiavelli’s view that fortune controls half of ones life and the otherShow MoreRelatedEssay about Niccolo Machiavelli1653 Words   |  7 Pages According to legend, just before his death, Niccolo Machiavelli told his friends that had remained faithful to him up until the very end about a dream he had had. In his dream, he had seen a group of peasants, wretched and decrepit in appearance. He asked them who they were. They replied, ‘We are the saintly and the blessed; we are on our way to heaven.’ Then he saw a crowd of formally attired men, aristocratic and grim in appearance, speaking solemnly of important political matters. Again, heRead MoreIn the Defense of The Prince1333 Words   |  5 Pagesfeared than loved ? 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