gain success. Machiavelli even supports all of his given qualities with a great leader in history who has become great due to that characteristic. When Machiavelli explains how a prince must know how to wage war, he gives a great example of a military leader who overthrew the government of Milan in 1450 and went on to become its duke (Machiavelli, 280). Machiavelli also explains that is very wise to follow great leaders of the past. He points out that it is said that Alexander the Great followed the path of Achilles, Caesar followed Alexander, and Scipio followed Cyrus. According to Machiavelli, “ . . . A wise prince ought to do likewise . . .” (Machiavelli, 281)Though Machiavelli’s ideas can be thought of as very good, they can also be thought of as very bad. Success doesn’t always excuse the means taken to get there. Most of the qualities that Machiavelli provided are justifiable because they don’t really cause very much harm and they just look out for the main interest of the country. Of coarse a great leader must know how to wage war and they must be able to be aware and dominant of enemies that could possibly harm them, but cruelty and liberality are not always the right things. When explaining that one must be feared rather than loved, Machiavelli goes into talking about how “ . . . men love as they please but fear as the prince wills . . .” because the prince holds a higher position and power (Machiavelli, 286). If one does not obey a prince, cruelty can become a punishment. Though this cruelty may gain success, the loss of many lives is the price, which is a high price to pay. In conclusion, I think that Machiavelli’s document, The Prince, is a very good depiction of what a good leader should be. The only thing that I think to be questionable is his idea of the end justifying the means. Success can be considered different by many and in my opinion; success is not real if there wa...
