Commonalities of Niccolo Machiavelli’s the Prince and Giorgio Vasari’s Life of Leonardo Da Vinci.

Elzara Akhmedov

September 2, 2012

HIS 107; European History, 1500-1815

Response Journal #1

If there is something in common to Niccolo Machiavelli’s The Prince and Giorgio Vasari’s Life of Leonardo da Vinci, it is that each shows a desire to perpetuate something of value. However, whereas Machiavelli’s vision of a prince’s power is limited to that prince’s life, da Vinci’s inventions and art are intended to live on to enrich future generations to come.

Machiavelli was devoted to a singular art, as he states: “The Prince ought to have no other aim or thought, nor select anything else for his study, than war and its rules and discipline; for this is the sole art that belongs to him who rules . . .” (emphasis supply). He studied the art of war and has a great sophistication to how to preserve one’s power. For example, he claims: “. . . a prince ought to inspire fear in such a way that, if he does not win love, he avoids hatred; because he can endure very well being feared whilst he is not hated . . . .” Also, by way of another example, when he says, “Hence, it is necessary for a prince wishing to hold his own to know how to do wrong, and to make use of it or not according to necessity.” This power seems to be a power for its own sake, for that it is given no greater purpose other than keeping this one prince in power for the duration of his life; it may even be considered as a sage advice to a ruler how to maintain his state in stability.

On the other hand, there was Leonardo da Vinci, who was exploring all different sorts of work that would not benefit him, but they would benefit others. For example Vasari writes: “And he was continually making models and designs to show men how to remove mountains with ease, and how to bore them in order to pass from one level to another . . . .” His inventions would aid mankind in a practical manner, “He made

designs of flour-mills, fullingmills, and engines . . . .” Likely, these designs and inventions would...