The Prince (Oxford World's Classics) - Softcover

Machiavelli, Niccolò; Bondanella, Peter

Softcover

ISBN 10: 019280426X ISBN 13: 9780192804266

Publisher: Oxford University Press, 2005

Synopsis

When Machiavelli's brief treatise on Renaissance statecraft and princely power was posthumously published in 1532, it generated a debate that has raged unabated until the present day. Based upon Machiavelli's first-hand experience as an emissary of the Florentine Republic to the courts of Europe, The Prince analyses the usually violent means by which men seize, retain, and lose political power. Machiavelli added a dimension of incisive realism to one of the major philosophical and political issues of his time, especially the relationship between public deeds and private morality. His book provides a remarkably uncompromising picture of the true nature of power, no matter in what era or by whom it is exercised.

This fluent new translation is accompanied by an introduction that considers the true purpose of The Prince and dispels some of the myths associated with it. It has the most comprehensive explanatory and critical notes found in any currently available English translation and the most comprehensive bibliography in any edition of the work. It also contains a helpful Glossary of Proper Names, an Index and a map.

About this title

About the Author:

Peter Bondanella is Distinguished Professor of Comparative Literature and Italian at Indiana University. Maurizio Viroli is Professor of Politics at Princeton University.

Review:

Literary scholar Peter Bondanella rightly seeks the cold elegance and readability of the original. Serious English readers will want both translations. Lauro Martines, TLS

About this edition

• Publisher: Oxford University Press
• Publication date: 2005
• ISBN 10: 019280426X
• ISBN 13: 9780192804266
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 186