Diplomat of the week

DIPLOMAT OF THE WEEK

Nicholas Machiavelli was a diplomat, political philosopher, and writer. His writings on political skills made his name a synonym for cunning and duplicity.

His diplomatic activity played a decisive role in the formation of his political thought, focused on the functioning of the State and the psychology of its rulers. His main political objective was to preserve the sovereignty of Florence, always threatened by the great European powers, and to achieve this he created the national militia in 1505.

Throughout his career, Machiavelli tried to create a state capable of rejecting foreign attacks and consolidating its sovereignty. His writings deal with the principles on which such a state is based and the means to reinforce and maintain them. In his most famous work, The Prince (1532), he describes a theory that offers an idea of ​​what the ideal ruler would be like. To do this, the diplomat lists a series of essential traits that characterize a good politician, such as manipulation, cunning, immorality and lack of scruples.

Despite his cynicism, Machiavelli is not entirely alien to ethical issues, and among his greatest concern was the dilemma "is it better to be loved or feared?" His answer was always that it would be best to be both, but if he had to decide, he would rather be feared. It is better for the prince to be feared than loved, in this way people would respect him. From his point of view, the ruler should only be concerned with power, and should only surround himself with those who will guarantee him success in his political actions.

Maintaining power is the essential objective of politics according to Machiavelli; consequently, the ruler in charge of Italy should not waver. To command respect, it could go as far as murder. Machiavelli concluded: "We can say that cruelty is used well when it is used once and for all, and safety depends on it." In other words, it may be bad, but the new prince must use it to maintain his status.

In conclusion, Machiavelli was not an exemplary diplomat, his only interest was that the state maintains its power and be feared. From the point of view of diplomacy, this is not the right thing to do since it seeks to feel empathy for others without the need to exert some kind of force. This is a requirement that Machiavelli did not meet, if he had to do something wrong he would have done it without any problem because "the end justifies the means."

Bibliography

Mansfield, Harvey. “Niccolo Machiavelli | Beliefs, Books, The Prince, Philosophy, Accomplishments, & Facts.” Encyclopedia Britannica, 29 Apr. 2021, www.britannica.com/biography/Niccolo-Machiavelli.

History.com Editors. “Italian Philosopher and Writer Niccolo Machiavelli Born.” HISTORY, A&E Television Networks, 24 Nov. 2009, www.history.com/this-day-in-history/niccolo-machiavelli-born.

Stanford. “Niccolò Machiavelli (Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy).” Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy, 28 May 2019, plato.stanford.edu/entries/machiavelli.