ABSTRACT
Machiavelli is history's most startling political commentator. Recent interpreters have minimised his originality, but this book restores his radicalism. Robert Black shows a clear development in Machiavelli's thought. In his most subversive works The Prince, the Discourses on Livy, The Ass and Mandragola he rejected the moral and political values inherited by the Renaissance from antiquity and the middle ages. These outrageous compositions were all written in mid-life, when Machiavelli was a political outcast in his native Florence. Later he was reconciled with the Florentine establishment, and as a result his final compositions including his famous Florentine Histories represent a return to more conventional norms.
This lucid work is perfect for students of Medieval and Early Modern History, Renaissance Studies and Italian Literature, or anyone keen to learn more about one of history's most potent, influential and arresting writers.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
part |70 pages
Machiavelli and Florence
chapter |11 pages
Florence and the Machiavelli family
chapter |16 pages
Early life, education and first writings
chapter |19 pages
Chancery career: Machiavelli and Florentine politics
chapter |22 pages
The chancery years: diplomatic activities and literary production
part |56 pages
The voice of experience
chapter |26 pages
The Prince: context
chapter |28 pages
The Prince: message and meaning
part |50 pages
The return to classical humanism
chapter |13 pages
The Discourses: context
chapter |35 pages
The Discourses: meaning and significance
part |33 pages
Man of letters
chapter |31 pages
Poetry, theatre, narrative
part |77 pages
The return to diplomacy and public service