Machiavelli in Hell

De Grazia's book on Machiavelli is an example of a kind of old-fashioned intellectual study one rarely finds these days: a close reading of the original texts--all of them, from "The Prince" to the least known of the letters--unencumbered by secondary sources and filled with arcane details that gradually build to a comprehensive and exacting overview of the man and his life. It is not an introduction for the uninitiated; rather, it's an explicative guide to all Machiavelli's works and a cohesive summary of the unique worldview imagined by this archetypal Renaissance man. More specifically, it tries to reconcile the goal (in political terms) of the "common good" pursued by the ideal ruler with the morality (in theological terms) of the "evil acts" this same ruler must sometimes perform to achieve this goal. In its crudest terms, the question is: How can the "good" (e.g., successful) prince avoid going to hell? "It is permissible to say good of evil," according to De Grazia's reading of Machiavelli, "if that evil is but seeming evil and converts to a true good." The qualities of such actions become "means, tools, instruments, detachable from the person using them." Nevertheless, the prince "has to steer a course between cruelty and compassion"; his action must be accompanied by "grace and glory." And in the end, the virtuous leader whose worth is misunderstood in this life will be rewarded in the afterlife; indeed, God prefers political action to spiritual activity. Along the way to reconciling Machiavelli's moral philosophy and his political philosophy, the author provides so much more: a solid biographical account of the episodes and experiences that influenced Machiavelli's thinking, the contemporary realpolitik that limited and often determined his advice to rulers and mentors, a portrait of the whimsical side of a man whose comic works have been neglected in recent decades (especially the farcical "Mandragola," a satire ripe for rediscovery). Overall, for a literary-biographical study of such picayune detail, De Grazia's work is surprisingly readable--and, at times, unexpectedly funny. But its one fault major is the total lack of an introductory outline of the book's somewhat meandering journey through Renaissance history, culture, metaphysics, and etymology; I fear that many otherwise interested fans of Machiavelli may give up after the chapter devoted to the single phrase "God more a friend to them than to you" in all its possible variations and meanings and interpretations. It's really quite unclear until much later where the author's arguments are headed or why they are important, and the organization of the book as a whole makes sense only after one has finished it. Still, if you're truly interested in what Machiavelli "meant" to his contemporaries (and especially if you are hunting for a book unscarred by the political axes wielded by many of his modern interpreters), this is probably the best study available.

To those of you looking for an easy read on Machiavelli, I recommend going somewhere else. This book isn't going to skimp on the scholarly side just to make it easier to read for others. This is an intelligent book for an intelligent reader. Grazia intricately weaves together the mindset of Machiavelli as we see him through his many works and letters to friends. At first I was a little disappointed, perhaps because I was looking more for the momentous doings of Machiavelli. Yet, as I worked through the sheer volume of this biography (not by number of pages, yet rather by the number of words per page) I began to grow and respect Grazia as I slowly began to realize who Machiavelli was and how his thoughts and ideas influenced so many. His thoughts are his astounding accomplishments and those we certainly see here. For those interested in reading an intellectual book, definitely read this one. Machiavelli always believed that a person becomes a learned person through reading. For someone who agrees with this mindset I would wholeheartedly recommend this book to anyone that has intelligence enough to want to learn rather than those readers who simply are looking for an easy read.

I give this book an easy 5 stars. This is much less intimidating than many of Nicolo's own writings... De Grazia is interested in his subject, fun, and ultimately very sympathetic to Machiavelli. The book shows how Machiavelli was a poet, a lover, a (really good!) comic playwright, and a champion of democracy, in addition to being one of the founding fathers of political science. I've read the majority of Nicolo's surviving work, often in the Italian, and De Grazia truly portrays him as he was... a courtier after Castiglione's model who (even after his death) suffered more than his share of the "unremitting malice of fortune." READ IT!!!

Let me say first that I did not find this book difficult to read or comprehend, as some reviewers have implied it might be. It was, and is, a scholarly work, but Grazia makes the material lively, interesting, and above all understandable. Each thread in the tapestry that he weaves around the life and philosophy of Niccolo (as he calls him throughout the entire work) is discussed separately but folded back into the whole at regular intervals.Grazia introduces us to Niccolo Machiavegli (Machiavelli in the Tuscan style) in Chapter 1, a figure often reviled in later ages. From Chapter 2 onward we are treated to an analysis of his works, political, social, and dramatic in the context of an overarching political philosophy. What I found most interesting about Machiavelli In Hell is the interleaving of Niccolo's life with this analysis. He becomes a person rather than the one-dimensional cutout we are often given in school texts - a man of feeling, ideals, and intelligence. With some persistence and careful reading you can it make through this book with a greater understanding of what Niccolo gave to later generations, or even his own. It is not a substitute for The Prince, The Art of War, or the Mandragola but an introduction.

This is a work of scholarship, not intended to be a page-turner, as other reviewers noted. It is rare to find historical studies that succeed in giving a sense of the subject's mindset. Here one can develop a sense of the Renaissance statesman and philosopher's intellectual journey, without modern idealistic baggage. I have read several studies of Niccolo, and this is the the best by far.