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Machiavelli’s work The Prince is a contradiction of the political philosophy of his time. Machiavelli’s philosophy is to put all political power in the hands of a single person, who would make decisions for all of society, while above all serving in the best interests of himself. These interests included gaining, maintaining, and expanding his political power. Machiavelli promotes a secular society where morality is unnecessary, and stood in the way of an effectively governed principality. Although Machiavelli’s theories seem very authoritarian and against representative government it is important to note that during his lifetime in Italy there was a very unstable and deteriorating political state of affairs. His solution seems harsh and very risky; however he describes this Prince as a savior from the turmoil of his times. During Machiavelli’s time in Florence, Italy was politically divided into a number of city states; these states were given greater allegiance by their citizens than the country as a whole. The governments of these city-states often changed between dictatorships and republics, and this is illustrated by the history of Florence, where tyrannical rule was exercised by the Medici family from the middle to late l3th century before the restoration of democracy by Savonarola.
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