The Prince

'A prince must not have any other object nor any other thought...but war, its institutions, and its discipline; because that is the only art befitting one who commands.' 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 comprehensive notes and an introduction that considers the true purpose of The Prince and dispels some of the myths associated with it.

ISBN 0199535698   Pages 192 ISBN13 9780199535699 (What's this?)   Volumes 1 Publisher Oxford University Press   Weight (grammes) 148 Imprint Oxford University Press   Published in Oxford Format Paperback   Series title Oxford World's Classics Publication date 17 Apr 2008   Previous ISBN 9780192804266 Translator Peter Bondanella   Height (mm) 196 Writer of introduction Viroli, Maurizio   Width (mm) 128 Library of Congress JC   Spine width (mm) 13 DEWEY 320.01   Academic level General DEWEY edition DC22   Alternative ISBN 9781605146744

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

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