Machiavelli's View of Human Nature

Machiavelli was a political philosopher in Italy during the Renaissance. His book The Qualities of the Prince was a practical guide for how future princes should maintain power and rule their country. In his book, Machiavelli tries to reinforce his points by speaking about human nature. He says that "men: they are ungrateful, fickle, simulators, and deceivers, avoider of danger, and while you work for their good they are completely yours [...] when danger is far …

…things out of fear or interest. I don't believe that it is in human nature to be ungrateful. People do not return good deeds with ungratefulness. I believe that human nature is the cause of war. <Tab/> <Tab/> Work Cited Machiavelli, Niccolo. "The Prince". McLeod, et al 44-47 McLeod Susan, John Jarvic, and Shelley Spears. Writing About the World. <Tab/>New York: Thompson, 2004