GE CLST 21A Lecture Notes - Lecture 2: Republic Of Florence, Cardinal Virtues, Tyrant
13 Nov 2013
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Document Summary
Attacks traditional conception of virtu and condemned by church for such a contradiction. We need to use the force of virtue to overcome the capricious nature of lady fortune. In actuality, fortune is not the great force acting, but instead it is god and nature directing the events that unfold and there is a reason behind everything. Two crucial princely virtues: clementia (clemency, mercy - to become divine) Defining mark of tyrant: cruelty (definitely must avoid during the renaissance: liberalitas (liberality generosity - giving freely) Your sins will lead to punishment - as a prince you need to not have a guilty conscience (answerable to conscience and god) Goes to work for florentine republic (concerned with how to govern the outlying regions, due to expansion) Placed on war council (travels abroad, conducts diplomacy with foreign powers, organizes civil militia) Medici return (1512), machiavelli sacked (imprisoned for suspected conspiracy)
