In "Redeeming "The Prince," """ one of the world's leading
Machiavelli scholars puts forth a startling new interpretation of
arguably the most influential but widely misunderstood book in the
Western political tradition. Overturning popular misconceptions and
challenging scholarly consensus, Maurizio Viroli also provides a
fresh introduction to the work. Seen from this original
perspective, five centuries after its composition, "The Prince"
offers new insights into the nature and possibilities of political
liberation.
Rather than a bible of unscrupulous politics, "The Prince,"
Viroli argues, is actually about political redemption--a book
motivated by Machiavelli's patriotic desire to see a new founding
for Italy. Written in the form of an oration, following the rules
of classical rhetoric, the book condenses its main message in the
final section, "Exhortation to liberate Italy from the Barbarians."
There Machiavelli creates the myth of a redeemer, an ideal ruler
who ushers in an era of peace, freedom, and unity. Contrary to
scholars who maintain that the exhortation was added later, Viroli
proves that Machiavelli composed it along with the rest of the
text, completing the whole by December 1513 or early 1514.
Only if we read "The Prince" as a theory of political
redemption, Viroli contends, can we at last understand, and
properly evaluate, the book's most controversial pages on political
morality, as well as put to rest the cliche of Machiavelli as a
"Machiavellian."
Bold, clear, and provocative, "Redeeming "The Prince"" should
permanently change how Machiavelli and his masterpiece are
understood."
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