Question

Using about a page, explain Machiavelli’s argument for the claim that truth-telling and promise-keeping have reputation as their goal.

Answer 1

Ans) Machiavelli says that a leader must do to remain in power:
- A prince should only take and listen to the advice of his advisors
- Able to understand things independently
- Try to balance being loved and being feared (if it is not possible for the two to coincide then the latter is preferable)
- He must make it his first priority to escape the hatred of the most powerful parties
- Princes become great by defeating opposition
- He should honor his word
- Promises are not important when the grounds of the promise are no longer relevant or if the promise is holding the prince back
- Princes achieve the most success when they are crafty, cunning, and able to trick others.
- A prince must have no other objective, no other thought, nor take up any profession but that of war
- A prince's priority is to safeguard the state, even if this means possessing some negative qualities
- A prince should not concern himself with living virtuously, but rather with acting so as to achieve the most practical benefit.
- Above all, princes should win a reputation for being men of outstanding ability
- A prince's best defense is his own valor
- Times and circumstances change, so a prince must adjust to them in order to remain successful.