To be Loved or Feared: Machiavelli and the Politics of Power

Modern politics cannot be fully understood without Machiavelli. To help us unpack this claim, Rabbi Rocklin will explore the following questions:

1. How does Machiavelli shift the way that virtue is understood?
2. Why do some scholars consider Machiavelli to be the first modern political philosopher?
3. How does Machiavelli justify his claim that a ruler should use cruelty and fear as tools to control the people?

Recommended Reading: Machiavelli, Niccolo. The Prince, 2nd edition. Translated by Harvey Mansfield, University of Chicago Press: 1998.