Synopses & Reviews
In
On Machiavelli: The Search for Glory, Alan Ryan illuminates the political and philosophical complexities of the often-reviled godfather of realpolitik. Thought by some to be the founder of Italian nationalism, regarded by others to be a reviver of the Roman Republic as a model for the modern Western world, Machiavelli remains a contentious figure. Often outraging popular opinion with his insistence on the amoral nature of power, Machiavelli eschewed the world as it ought to be in favor of a forthright appraisal of the one that is. Perhaps more than any other thinker, Machiavelli has suffered from being taken out of context, and Ryan places him squarely within his own time and the politics of a Renaissance Italy riven by near-constant warfare among rival city-states and the papacy.
A well-educated son of Florence, Machiavelli was originally in charge of the Florentine Republic’s militia, but in 1512 the city fell to papal forces led by Cardinal Giovanni de Medici, who thus restored the Medici family to power. Machiavelli was accused of conspiracy, imprisoned, tortured, and eventually exiled from his beloved Florence, and it was during this period that he produced his most famous works. While attempting to ingratiate himself to the Medicis, the historically minded Machiavelli looked to the imperial ambitions and past glories of the Roman Republic as a contrast to the perceived failures of his contemporaries.
For Machiavelli, the hunger for power and glory was inextricable from human nature, and any serious attempt to rule must take this into account. In his revolutionary The Prince and Discourses—both excerpted here—Machiavelli created the first truly modern analysis of power.
Review
"A brief and pithy summary of the contributions of Niccolò Machiavelli, a pivotal figure in modern political thought who is nevertheless often misunderstood.... Ryan's summary is accompanied by fairly substantial extracts from Machiavelli's key texts, allowing this book to serve as a teaching resource as well as a concise and readable introduction to its subject." Booklist
Review
"Alan Ryan captures Machiavelli's hold on the modern moral imagination when he says, "The staying power of comes from...its insistence on the need for a clear-sighted appreciation of how men really as distinct from the moralizing claptrap about how they to be." This moral clarity remains bracing in an era like our own, when politicians hide the necessary ruthlessness of political life behind the rhetoric of family values and Christian principles .... We are still drawn to Machiavelli because we sense how impatient he was with the equivalent flummery in his own day, and how determined he was to confront a problem that preoccupies us too: when and how much ruthlessness is necessary in the world of politics." Michael Ignatieff
Synopsis
“Anyone remotely interested in political theory will profit from reading or dipping into Ryan’s On Politics.” —Jeremy Waldron, New York Review of Books
Synopsis
A well-educated son of Florence, Machiavelli was originally in charge of the Florentine Republic s militia, but in 1512 the city fell to papal forces led by Cardinal Giovanni de Medici, who thus restored the Medici family to power. Machiavelli was accused of conspiracy, imprisoned, tortured, and eventually exiled from his beloved Florence, and it was during this period that he produced his most famous works. While attempting to ingratiate himself to the Medicis, the historically minded Machiavelli looked to the imperial ambitions and past glories of the Roman Republic as a contrast to the perceived failures of his contemporaries.
For Machiavelli, the hunger for power and glory was inextricable from human nature, and any serious attempt to rule must take this into account. In his revolutionary The Prince and Discourses both excerpted here Machiavelli created the first truly modern analysis of power.
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Synopsis
For his insistence on the amoral character of successful government, Machiavelli remains—even today—a contentious figure. Often reviled as a teacher of evil, Machiavelli had an influence on the modern state that is richly explored in this book. Essential passages from The Prince, The Discourses, The Art of War, and History of Florence are included.
Synopsis
An essential, comprehensive, and accessible guide to the life and works of Machiavelli.
Synopsis
In ,
About the Author
Alan Ryan was warden of New College, Oxford University, and professor of political theory. The author of On Politics, John Dewey and the High Tide of American Liberalism and Bertrand Russell: A Political Life, he currently teaches politics at Princeton University.