/lit/ - Literature

[Anonymous No.19075283]

Was this book satire or actual political discourse?

[Anonymous No.19075764]

Don't like the truth? Just call it satire!

[Anonymous No.19075787]

How could it possibly be considered satire? Have you even read it?

[Anonymous No.19075798]

>>19075764
>https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Poe%27s_law
It’s a perfectly reasonable position to take in regards to Machiavelli’s work.
Why did he praise republics before AND after writing the Prince?

[Anonymous No.19075812]

>>19075798
How the world works and how ideal worlds work does not mean the former is a satire. You'd have to be mentally defecient to really argue otherwise.

[Anonymous No.19075815]

>>19075798
Because he did prefer republics. Doesn't mean he can't give advices on how to take over Italy as a prince.

[Anonymous No.19075833]

>>19075812
Just because post-Enlightenment governments took it literally doesn’t negate the autor’s intent.

[Anonymous No.19075842]

>>19075833
You have no reason to believe it was a satire if you've read it. His intent was to give advice to a prince how to rule. The satire angle is a contemporary academic notion to conceal how the world really is.

[Anonymous No.19075957]

>>19075842
Again, just because modern governments took it literally is irrelevant to authorial intent.
Don’t you think it highly coincidental that Machiavelli praised republics in his writing before and after writing the Prince?
He wrote the latter under imprisonment and torture by the Borgias.
I’ve actually read the book, there’s a chapter where he discourages hiring mercenaries because they would not be loyal to the kingdom. This chapter is obviously criticizing the Borgias for hiring Swiss Guards (they were at their height of prominence and effectiveness between the 1490s-1510s, smack dab during the reign of the Borgias).
Machiavelli is obviously satirizing them and their regime, writing the book as an instruction manual for state-making is obviously a way to obfuscate intent.
Don’t tell me you also think Swift’s A Modest Proposal is 100% sincere?

[Anonymous No.19075994]

>>19075957
>before
What pre-Prince Works have you read? He has 4 main works with The Prince being the first.

No because you are looking at it too singularly. The book is a commentary of the reconciliation of Divine Law and Judicial Law, did you not read the part about the Papal states? The book is about tact and will and morality, the actuality of what he says about state-making is irrelevant. If by satire, you mean it shouldn't be taken at face-value and there is more to it than an instruction manual for state-building, the yes: The Republic, A Modest Proposal, Barry Lyndon, Trifles for a Massacre, The Prince are all 'satires.' However, I'd simply just refer to that as great literature, since the word satire has been diluted to SNL-tier retardation, along with the word comedy and humor in general.

[Anonymous No.19076504]

>>19075957
>Don’t tell me you also think Swift’s A Modest Proposal is 100% sincere?
Like the elite have no desire to eat children.

[Anonymous No.19076516]

>UGH CESARE BORGIA IF ONLY HE UNITED ITALY UNDER HIM
>RETARDS ON /lit/ and reddit: NO MACHIAVELLI WAS A GOOD BOY IT WAS ALL SATIRE IN ORDER TO BAIT THE MEANY AUTHORITARIANS

[Anonymous No.19076540]

>>19075283
This is Machiavelli's satirical work

[Anonymous No.19076543]

>>19075283
Have you even read it?
It's fairly self explanatory lol