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Warrant for Michiavelli dated 1513 found.
February 28, 2013
2:33 am
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Anyanka
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http://www.globalpost.com/disp…..rest-warra

A British academic stumbled across a rare find while combing through historical archives in Florence: an arrest warrant for the famous Italian writer and strategist Niccolò Machiavelli, dated to 1513 and subsequently forgotten.

“When I saw it I knew exactly what it was and it was pretty exciting,” said Manchester University professor Stephen Milner in a university press release.

“When you realize this document marked the fall from grace of one the world’s most influential political writers, it’s quite a feeling.”

The academic had been looking through town criers proclamations when he stumbled upon the document, says the Independent, as well as documents securing the pay of the horsemen who hunted for the political writer in Florence.

Florence celebrates the 500th anniversary of “The Prince” this year, a legendary (and infamous) document intimately linked with Machiavelli’s political downfall.

It's always bunnies.

February 28, 2013
2:04 pm
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black_mamba
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Thanks for posting this! There is a really good wikipedia article about “The Prince” by Machiavelli:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Prince

“As discussed by Johnston (1958) many authors have historically argued that “the book is, first and foremost, a satire, so that many of the things we find in it which are morally absurd, specious, and contradictory, are there quite deliberately in order to ridicule … the very notion of tyrannical rule”. Hence, Johnston says, “the satire has a firm moral purpose – to expose tyranny and promote republican government.”[60]

This position was the standard one in Europe during the 18th century, amongst the Enlightenment philosophes. Diderot thought it was a satire. And in his The Social Contract, the French philosopher Jean-Jacques Rousseau said:

Machiavelli was a proper man and a good citizen; but, being attached to the court of the Medici, he could not help veiling his love of liberty in the midst of his country’s oppression. The choice of his detestable hero, Caesar Borgia, clearly enough shows his hidden aim; and the contradiction between the teaching of the Prince and that of the Discourses on Livy and the History of Florence shows that this profound political thinker has so far been studied only by superficial or corrupt readers. The Court of Rome sternly prohibited his book. I can well believe it; for it is that Court it most clearly portrays.

— Social Contract, Book 3, n. 23

Whether or not the word “satire” is the best choice, there is more general agreement that despite seeming to be written for someone wanting to be a monarch, and not the leader of a republic, the Prince can be read as deliberately emphasizing the benefits of free republics as opposed to monarchies.

Differences of opinion amongst commentators revolve around whether this sub-text was intended to be understood, let alone understood as deliberately satirical or comic.

One such commentator, Mary Dietz, writes that Machiavelli’s agenda was not to be satirical, as Rousseau had argued, but instead was “offering carefully crafted advice (such as arming the people) designed to undo the ruler if taken seriously and followed.” By this account, the aim was to reestablish the republic in Florence. She focuses on three categories in which Machiavelli gives paradoxical advice:

He discourages liberality and favors deceit to guarantee support from the people. Yet Machiavelli is keenly aware of the fact that an earlier pro-republican coup had been thwarted by the people’s inaction that itself stemmed from the prince’s liberality.
He supports arming the people despite the fact that he knows the Florentines are decidedly pro-democratic and would oppose the prince
He encourages the prince to live in the city he conquers. This opposes the Medicis’ habitual policy of living outside the city. It also makes it easier for rebels or a civilian militia to attack and overthrow the prince.

According to Dietz the trap never succeeded because Lorenzo did not read the work and did not trust Machiavelli, a consistently staunch republican.

Antonio Gramsci argued that Machiavelli’s audience for this work was not even the ruling class but the common people because the rulers already knew these methods through their education.[citation needed]

Hans Baron is one of the few major commentators who argues that Machiavelli must have changed his mind dramatically in favour of free republics, after having written the Prince.”

What’s ya’lls take? Was “The Prince” written as a satire on tyrannical governments?

At times I almost dream, I too have spent a life the sages' way,
And tread once more familiar paths. Perchance I perished in an arrogant self-reliance
Ages ago; and in that act, a prayer For one more chance went up so earnest, so
Instinct with better light let in by death, That life was blotted out—not so completely
But scattered wrecks enough of it remain Dim memories as now, when once more seems The goal in sight again. -- Robert Browning, Paracelsus

March 1, 2013
5:26 am
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Anyanka
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I have a copy of The Prince. It’s in my pile of books I should read along with The Origin of Species, Don Quixote, The Iliad and other classical works.

I think I’ll give it a try after Sense and Sensibilty…

It's always bunnies.

March 2, 2013
2:17 am
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Barnettbuff
Murray, Kentucky USA
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Anyanka — Are you able to get Librivox there on your computer? There are lots of books being read there and they’re all free for the listening. Sometimes when I want to kick back and relax, I’ll put headphones on and listen to some of the classics being read. Great relaxation!
Here’s the LINK: http://librivox.org/ Try it sometime!

March 2, 2013
7:56 pm
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black_mamba
Texas, USA
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Thanks for posting this link! Was really glad to see that they had several really good classics on there. Will try to listen to Reflections on the Revolution in France by Edmund Burke before I go to sleep tonight….

At times I almost dream, I too have spent a life the sages' way,
And tread once more familiar paths. Perchance I perished in an arrogant self-reliance
Ages ago; and in that act, a prayer For one more chance went up so earnest, so
Instinct with better light let in by death, That life was blotted out—not so completely
But scattered wrecks enough of it remain Dim memories as now, when once more seems The goal in sight again. -- Robert Browning, Paracelsus

March 2, 2013
8:31 pm
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Sharon
Binghamton, NY
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Larry,
Thanks for posting the link. You always give us great places to visit.

March 3, 2013
2:41 am
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Anyanka
La Belle Province
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Barnettbuff said

Anyanka — Are you able to get Librivox there on your computer? There are lots of books being read there and they’re all free for the listening. Sometimes when I want to kick back and relax, I’ll put headphones on and listen to some of the classics being read. Great relaxation!
Here’s the LINK: http://librivox.org/ Try it sometime!

THanks for the link..I’ll look into it tomorrow..

It's always bunnies.

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