2/18/2023 0 Comments Machiavelli and thrasymachus![]() ![]() In addition, he perceives outstanding political skills as virtuous. Machiavelli considers those leaders that are capable of transforming the world to meet their needs to be virtuous. One wonders if he accords any significance to moral virtue. In this way, he restricts the scope that moral virtue can cover. He claims, “For something to be a virtue in the moral sense, it cannot seriously compromise our worldly well-being” (Machiavelli 69). Machiavelli comes up with a utilitarian understanding of virtue. Consequently, Machiavelli believes that when deciding on what is virtuous, people should not consider only what is ethically right or abide by custom authorities. At times, people fail to acknowledge virtue not due to flaws in their perception, but because they may have been wrongly instructed. In a way, Machiavelli is referring to both authority and self-examination. On the other hand, things that were once considered virtuous can turn out to be erroneous. He posits that an individual might have limited cognitive abilities and thus can fail to fathom why something is erroneous. ![]() Machiavelli uses an empirical approach to explain what entails virtue. AristotleĪccording to Machiavelli, “if one considers everything well, one will find something appears to be virtue, which if pursued would be one’s ruin, and something else appears to be vice, which if pursued results in one’s security and well-being” (62). ![]() Machiavelli posits, “Therefore, if a prince wants to maintain his rule, he must be prepared not to be virtuous and to make use of this or not according to need” (65). Unlike Aristotle, Machiavelli does not find virtue to be of great significance. On the other hand, Machiavelli takes a different position with respect to ethics and virtue. According to Aristotle, civic virtue is critical to politics and it facilitates in promoting national harmony. ![]()
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