The End of Machiavellianism

Abstract

My purpose is to consider Machiavellianism. Regarding Machiavelli himself, some preliminary observations seem necessary. Innumerable studies, some of them very good, have been dedicated to Machiavelli. Jean Bodin, in the XVIth Century, criticized The Prince in a profound and wise manner. Later on Frederick the Great of Prussia was to write a refutation of Machiavelli in order to exercise his own hypocrisy in a hyper-Machiavellian fashion, and to shelter cynicism in virtue. During the XIXth Century, the leaders of the bourgeoisie, for instance the French political writer Charles Benoist, were thoroughly, naïvely and stupidly fascinated by the clever Florentine.

Personalist Business Ethics and Humanistic Management: Insights from Jacques Maritain

“…In his essay ''The end of Machiavellianism'' (1942Machiavellianism'' ( , 1952b, Chap. XI), Maritain argued that Machiavellian politics involves the ''artistic use of evil'' to achieve and maintain power; consequently, this power is illusory and can last neither from a metaphysical nor from a practical point of view (1942, 1952b1951a, pp. 56-64).…”

Maritain's Middle Way: A Resource for U.S. Policy in the Middle East

“…Maritain calls this false presentation "hypermoralism." 5 Just as Aquinas found no contradiction between faith and reason, Maritain found no contradiction between morality and cunning. Christians, for example, need not always tell evildoers the truth.…”

Escape From Machiavellianism? Thomist Themes in Twentieth Century Political Realism

“…The former is supposedly equated with ethics, while the latter is supposedly equated with politics. If this is so then politics is art, not ethics; ethical and religious systems simply become material for the political artist to manipulate for the end of power (Maritain 1942, 3–9).…”

“…In other words, realists tend to see morality as an instrument of security (following morality is good if it brings security) but only as long as it is useful (Donnelly 1992, 94–96). In contrast, Wight sees morality or justice as intrinsically leading to security, as being “fructifying.” Given the natural law ontology assumed by the Grotian tradition and questioned or rejected outright by the Machiavellians, Wight can be more confident that moral action will “strengthen the fabric of political life” (Wight 1966, 130–31; Maritain 1942, 17).…”

“…In contrast, political thought that is unable to orient itself to a transcendent source will be unable to escape Machiavellianism. “What is able to face Machiavellianism…is not merely natural, as it were, just politics, it is Christian politics” (Maritain 1942, 20). If the end of politics is merely to gain material goods, then there is no reason not to jettison ethics so as to achieve success.…”