Il Principe, e gli Scritti Politici

Barbera, Bianchi e Comp, 1858. Hardcover. Good. In Italian. 1858 Barbera, Bianchi e Comp. (Florence, Italy), 2 7/8 x 4 1/4 inches tall white leather bound, ornate gilt design and lettering to spine, ribbon marker sewn in, engraved frontispiece portrait of Machiavelli with tissue guard, xviii, 480 pp. Slight to moderate soiling to covers, with slight rubbing and edgewear. Pencil underlining and marginalia (erasable) throughout much of the first half of the book. Otherwise, a nice, complete copy of this uncommon Florence printing, in a sumptuous binding with a handsome shelf appearance. ~SP36~ [1.0P] A 16th-century political treatise written by the Italian diplomat, philosopher, and political theorist Niccolo Machiavelli (1469-1527) in the form of a realistic instruction guide for new princes. As a remarkable general theme, The Prince appears to take it for granted that immoral acts are justified if they can help achieve political glory. From Machiavelli's correspondence, a version appears to have been distributed in 1513, using a Latin title, De Principatibus (Of Principalities). However, the printed version was not published until 1532, five years after Machiavelli's death. This was carried out with the permission of the Medici pope Clement VII, but 'long before then, in fact since the first appearance of The Prince in manuscript, controversy had swirled about his writings.' The Prince is sometimes claimed to be one of the first works of modern philosophy, especially modern political philosophy, in which practical effect is taken to be more important than any abstract ideal. Its world view came in direct conflict with the dominant Catholic and scholastic doctrines of the time, particularly those on politics and ethics.