Machiavelli’s works remain relevant due to the many valuable ideas and theses that have no time frame. In his treatise The Prince, he reveals the difficulties and necessities that a new prince has to face and overcome to achieve greatness and recognition. Mansfield analyzes the ideas of Machiavelli and notes the difference between the acquired and hereditary status of a prince (47). In the first case, the ruler is forced to prove one’s superiority and gain authority as a key necessity that affects fame and reputation. Moreover, as Mansfield remarks, “adversity is thus a necessary condition for glory,” which explains constant battles for one’s place on the throne (27). Thus, one of the main necessities of a new prince is to achieve an unbreakable reputation as an indispensable aspect of dignified and self-confident ruler.
From the perspective of difficulties, Machiavelli’s ideas aim to present a new prince the one who can achieve fame and glory through direct evidence of individual greatness. In this regard, crushing enemies to accumulate greatness is a potential difficulty since, in the absence of obvious opponents, they have to be found and defeated to enhance reputation. Mansfield mentions Machiavelli’s thesis about the possibility of using enemies as a tool to achieve goals (48). In other words, the fight for reputation correlates with victories directly, and both these phenomena cannot be considered separately. A new prince needs to prove one’s wisdom not only by crushing opponents but also by creating them to secure the reputation of a reliable ruler. Such a difficult necessity is intended to defend the right of a new prince to the throne and eliminate any questions regarding his suitability.
Work Cited
Mansfield, Harvey. “Machiavelli on Necessity.” Machiavelli on Liberty and Conflict, edited by David Johnston. Nadia Urbinati, and Camila Vergara, The University of Chicago Press, 2017, pp. 39-57.