The Discourses Format: Paperback

Machiavelli, Niccolo (Author); Walker, Leslie J. (Translator); Crick, Bernard (Editor)

ISBN 10: 0140444289 / ISBN 13: 9780140444285

Published by Penguin Random House, 1984

About this Item

Brand New.

Seller Inventory # 9780140444285

Bibliographic Details

• Title: The Discourses Format: Paperback
• Publisher: Penguin Random House
• Publication Date: 1984
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0140444289
• ISBN 13: 9780140444285
• Binding: Soft cover
• Condition: New

About this title

Synopsis

"It is not the well-being of individuals that makes cities great, but the well-being of the community"

Few figures in intellectual history have proved as notorious and ambiguous as Niccolò Machiavelli. But while his treatise The Prince made his name synonymous with autocratic ruthlessness and cynical manipulation, The Discourses (c.1517) shows a radically different outlook on the world of politics. In this carefully argued commentary on Livy's history of republican Rome, Machiavelli proposed a system of government that would uphold civic freedom and security by instilling the virtues of active citizenship, and that would also encourage citizens to put the needs of the state above selfish, personal interests. Ambitious in scope, but also clear-eyed and pragmatic, The Discourses creates a modern theory of republic politics.

For more than seventy years, Penguin has been the leading publisher of classic literature in the English-speaking world. With more than 1,700 titles, Penguin Classics represents a global bookshelf of the best works throughout history and across genres and disciplines. Readers trust the series to provide authoritative texts enhanced by introductions and notes by distinguished scholars and contemporary authors, as well as up-to-date translations by award-winning translators.

About the Author

Niccolò Machiavelli (1469-1527) was a Florentine statesman who was later forced out of public life. He then devoted himself to studying and writing political philosophy, history, fiction, and drama.