The Prince, Niccolo Machiavelli - BCF (#33)

eldergill (52)in #bookclub • 6 years ago (edited)

About the Author

Born on May 3, 1469, in Florence, Italy, Niccolò Machiavelli was a diplomat for 14 years in Italy's Florentine Republic during the Medici family's exile. When the Medici family returned to power in 1512, Machiavelli was dismissed and briefly jailed. He then wrote The Prince, a handbook for politicians on the use of ruthless, self-serving cunning, inspiring the term "Machiavellian" and establishing Machiavelli as the "father of modern political theory." He also wrote several poems and plays. He died on June 21, 1527, in Florence, Italy.

A little bit about the book

The prince is a book all about obtaining and maintaining power in society. It is most famous for its ties to political power and is well read by politicians within society, however, I personally see it as a book that can also be applied to business, life and relationships with others. It is written in 26 short chapters and its primary purpose is to speak of the traits and accomplishments of the 'princes' pre and during the Medici era in Italy. Most specifically, the book is said to be Cesare Borgia who rose to heights in Italy during the Renaissance era. There was a moment in time where Niccolo Machiavelli and Leonardo Da Vinci temporarily worked for Cesare Borgia and the Borgia family.

Niccolò Machiavelli inspired the term "Machiavellianism" which in psychology, refers to a personality trait which sees a person so focused on their own interests they will manipulate, deceive, and exploit others to achieve their goals.

The book is controversial in its teachings and I don't necessarily agree with everything written, however, the majority of the book clearly highlights important traits to adopt if you wish to 'climb the ladder' created by society.

It is important to learn how to live harmoniously with both Ethical traits along with understanding the power of the traits in the Dark triad, I agree with Niccolo Machiavelli to an extent that its important to foster some of the traits to achieve what you truly desire, however, I don't agree with his controversies such as TRUST NO ONE, and only surround yourself with FOLLOWERS or people you see as lesser than you.

It may be naive of me to write such a thing seeing as I am yet to be compromised with somebody who has explicitly attempted to belittle and screw me over. So it is likely that I will learn the hard way, however, I believe that that's why reading the book is a good way to defend yourself from people who strictly adopt the Machiavellian trait.

I do believe you can achieve great success by being a good person, and being a good person involves knowing how to behave in certain situations. Therefore, the book is a great resource to understand how a lot of the leaders in society think, and how to deal with them when the time comes.

The book includes a section of explanatory notes which are useful if you wish to know about the history of the writing also.