Name: What "Machiavellian" really means
Uploaded: 2019-03-25T19:47:34Z
Duration: 4 min 51 s
Description: From Shakespeare's plays to modern TV dramas, the unscrupulous schemer for whom the ends always justify the means has become a familiar character type we love to hate. For centuries, we've had a single word to describe such characters: Machiavellian. But is it possible that we've been using that word wrong this whole time? Pazit Cahlon and Alex Gendler investigate the origins of the term.

From Shakespeare's plays to modern TV dramas, the unscrupulous schemer for whom the ends always justify the means has become a familiar character type we love to hate. For centuries, we've had a single word to describe such characters: Machiavellian. But is it possible that we've been using that word wrong this whole time? Pazit Cahlon and Alex Gendler investigate the origins of the term. 

Pazit Cahlon and Alex Gendler: What "Machiavellian" really means

What "Machiavellian" really means

Machiavelli's 'The Prince' flips traditional morality, suggesting power's necessity over virtue for political stability.

Insight into Machiavelli’s past reveals 'The Prince' may critique, not champion, tyrannical rule, enlightening the oppressed.

By exposing the mechanisms of power, 'The Prince' serves as both a ruler's guide and a citizen's warning against subjugation.