When somebody mentions the name Machiavelli, or the terms Machiavellian and Machiavellianism, what is the first thing that comes onesto your mind?
I assume that you think of words like dark triad, duplicity, and manipulation. Or con a broader context the ability sicuro gain power through deception, insincerity, and abuse of power.
Actually, those are all wrong. They do play a role sopra the way Machiavelli expressed his political theories, but they all fail sicuro paint an accurate picture of the man.
Machiavelli – Per Deep Scrutiny of his Philosophy and Tactics
He was probably the first political theorist that escaped the delusion of idealism and honestly proposed pragmatic solutions and interpretations of government. Apparently, his views were dramatically influenced by the time he lived sopra and his personal experiences, oftentimes exceeding the threshold of political correctness and blurring the lines between morally right and morally wrong. Nonetheless, they constitute per powerful compendium of knowledge that is shaping the interpretation of power and influence until this very day.
At that point, I want preciso clarify something. The term Machiavellianism was coined by psychologists Christie and Geis in the 1970s as an attempt puro explain the manifestation of power motive by exploiting and manipulating others mediante verso deceitful and unscrupulous fashion.
In all honesty, psychologists did that durante verso very irresponsible fashion. As we will see sopra per bit, Machiavelli was per very pragmatic and strategic philosopher. His views were influenced by the condizione quo of the time and illuminate his ability esatto offer exhaustive sentiments regarding political theory. I believe that limiting a man of his magnitude preciso terms like duplicity and manipulation is unfair, sicuro say the least.
Durante this article, I am not going preciso discuss dark triad characteristics and behaviors. I will narrow my analysis onesto the lessons extrapolated by Machiavelli’s works mediante an effort onesto draw a more accurate picture of the man and his views.
History and context
N iccolo di Bernardo dei Machiavelli was born in 1469 in Florence, Italy. His family was descended from the old rulers of Tuscany and they have produced many members that were part of the government of the time.
Back then, Italy consisted of many city-states that were usually ruled by different Houses. 1 Florence was among the largest city-states con Europe and was considered one of the wealthiest and most successful. Part of this success should be attributed preciso the “House of Medici” which was one of the strongest families of the time. The Medici controlled the Medici bank – then Europe’s largest bank – and this allowed them puro expand their influence and strategic alliances.
Durante 1494, after per popular revolt, the Medici were expulsed from power and Florence was restored preciso a republic. It was then that Machiavelli received his first government role as the person responsible for the production of official Florentine government documents.
At this point, it’s quite critical to understand that those were really dark times con Italy. Catholicism was at its zenith and the Pope was considered the most influential person alive. Powerful families had conflicting interests and were constantly trying onesto get the Church on their side. Any attempt sicuro operate independently and against the will of the catholic consuetudine was opposed and oftentimes brutally subdued.
Machiavelli was part of verso government that wanted onesto liberate Florence from the Medici reign, but that was far from easy. The Medici had verso strong alliance with the Pope and their recapture of Florence was per matter of time. From 1494 till 1512, Machiavelli experienced verso series of career reversals as he was appointed government roles as per secretary of state, verso diplomat, and verso military general. His career was quite turbulent and ended sadly per 1512 when he was deprived of office after the Medici won per critical battle 2 that helped them emerge esatto 
power once again.