The Essential Writings of Machiavelli

April 1, 2007
The synonym for political cynicism, Niccol Machiavelli wrote much more than The Prince, for which he is (in)famous. It leads off this anthology, which both spans his range of compositionsfrom state papers to histories to personal lettersand imparts a greater complexity to his insights on politics and human nature than his reputation would imply. To be sure, translator-editor Constantine includes Machiavellis cold-eyed advice on how to plot a conspiracy, but that rumination on assassination is embedded in The Discourses (on ancient Roman historian Livy), which otherwise shows Machiavelli as antityranny and favorable toward liberty and republicanism. Machiavelli was more than a theorist, however. Constantines healthy representation of Machiavellis reports as, in effect, the foreign minister of Florence in the early 1500suntil thrown out of office and tortured by the Medici in 1513illustrates Renaissance Italys dangerous political environment, on which Machiavelli drew for his insights on political conduct. Since The Prince is a collection standard, you can get more bang for the buck with this fluently translated anthology.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2007, American Library Association.)