Commentary

[in chronological order]

Machiavelli’s Common Good

- Mark Blitz, "Machiavelli's Common Good," Library of Law and Liberty, August 14, 2017.
Machiavelli’s Politics is aptly named. Catherine Zuckert’s new book concentrates intently on Niccolo Machiavelli’s judgment about how best to govern political communities in the ordinary sense—places such as Florence and Rome. Her views about what… More

“Machiavelli’s Enterprise” by Harvey Mansfield

- Mansfield, Harvey. "Machiavelli’s Enterprise." The New Criterion 32, no. 2 (October 2013): 4–10.
In his essay “Machiavelli’s Enterprise,” published in The New Criterion, Harvey Mansfield examines the profound impact of Niccolò Machiavelli’s works, particularly The Prince and the Discourses on Livy, on the formation of the modern… More

Machiavelli and Us

- Louis Althusser. Machiavelli and Us. Translated by Gregory Elliott. 2nd ed. London: Verso, 2011.

The Cambridge Companion to Machiavelli

- John Najemy, ed. The Cambridge Companion to Machiavelli. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2010.
The Cambridge Companion to Machiavelli, edited by John M. Najemy, is a comprehensive anthology that delves into the multifaceted works and enduring influence of Niccolò Machiavelli, the renowned Renaissance political thinker. This volume assembles sixteen… More

“The Problem of the Prince”

- Eric Nelson. "The Problem of the Prince." Chap. 17 in The Cambridge Companion to Renaissance Philosophy, edited by James Hankins. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2007.

“Law and Innovation in Machiavelli’s ‘Prince'”

- Nathan Tarcov. "Law and Innovation in Machiavelli's 'Prince'." Chap. 5 in Enlightening Revolutions: Essays in Honor of Ralph Lerner, edited by Svetozar Minkov, with the assistance of Stéphane Douard. Lanham, Md.: Lexington Books, 2006.

Machiavelli’s God

- Maurizio Viroli. Machiavelli's God. Translated by Antony Shugaar. Princeton: Princeton University Press, 2010. Originally published as Il Dio di Machiavelli e il problema morale dell'Italia (Rome: Laterza, 2005).

Machiavelli and Empire

- Mikael Hörnqvist. Machiavelli and Empire. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2004.

“Arms and Politics in Machiavelli’s ‘Prince'”

- Nathan Tarcov. "Arms and Politics in Machiavelli's 'Prince'." Chap. 8 in Entre Kant et Kosovo: études offertes à Pierre Hassner. Edited by Anne-Marie Le Gloannec et Aleksander Smolar. Paris: Presses de Sciences Po, 2003.

“Interpretive Essay”

- Christopher Lynch. “Interpretive Essay.” In Niccolò Machiavelli, Art of War, translated by Christopher Lynch, 179–226. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2003.

“Bruni and Machiavelli on Civic Humanism”

- Harvey C. Mansfield Jr. "Bruni and Machiavelli on Civic Humanism." Chap. 8 in Renaissance Civic Humanism: Reappraisals and Reflections, edited by James Hankins. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2000.

“Situating Machiavelli”

- Paul Rahe. "Situating Machiavelli." Chap. 10 in Renaissance Civic Humanism: Reappraisals and Reflections, edited by James Hankins. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2000.

Niccolò’s Smile: A Biography of Machiavelli

- Maurizio Viroli. Niccolò's Smile: A Biography of Machiavelli, translated by Antony Shugaar. New York: Hill and Wang, 2000.
A biography of Machiavelli, with lots of good translations of Machiavelli.

Machiavelli’s Virtue by Harvey Mansfield

- Harvey C. Mansfield Jr.  Machiavelli’s Virtue. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1996.
From the publisher: “Uniting thirty years of authoritative scholarship by a master of textual detail, Machiavelli’s Virtue is a comprehensive statement on the founder of modern politics. Harvey Mansfield reveals the role of sects in Machiavelli’s… More

Machiavelli’s Virtue.

- Harvey C. Mansfield Jr. Machiavelli’s Virtue. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1996.

“Machiavelli and the Fecundity of Evil” by Pierre Manent

- Manent, Pierre, Rebecca Balinski, and Jerrold Seigel. “Machiavelli and the Fecundity of Evil.” In An Intellectual History of Liberalism, 1:10–19. Princeton University Press, 1995.
Excerpt: “How shall we begin? Where do we begin? The period preceding the establishment of liberal regimes is conventionally called the ancien régime—an entirely retrospective or negative designation to which another, positive or prospective one is… More

Machiavelli and Republicanism by Bock, Skinner, and Viroli

- Bock, Gisela, Quentin Skinner, and Maurizio Viroli, eds. Machiavelli and Republicanism. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1990.
From the publisher: “This highly acclaimed volume brings together some of the world’s foremost historians of ideas to consider Machiavelli’s political thought in the larger context of the European republican tradition, and the image of… More

Machiavelli in Hell

- Sebastian DeGrazia. Machiavelli in Hell. Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1989.

“Niccolò Machiavelli”

- Leo Strauss. "Niccolò Machiavelli." In History of Political Philosophy, edited by Leo Strauss and Joseph Cropsey. 3rd ed. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1987.
In the essay “Niccolò Machiavelli,” included in the third edition of History of Political Philosophy (1987), editor Leo Strauss offers a profound analysis of Machiavelli’s political theories. Strauss examines Machiavelli’s departure… More

Machiavelli

- August Buck. Machiavelli. Darmstadt: Wissenschaftliche Buchgesellschaft, 1985.

Citizen Machiavelli

- Mark Hulliung. Citizen Machiavelli. Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1983.

Machiavelli’s New Modes and Orders: A Study of the “Discourses on Livy”

- Harvey C. Mansfield Jr. Machiavelli’s New Modes and Orders: A Study of the “Discourses on Livy”. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1979.
From the publisher: Machiavelli’s New Modes and Orders is the only full-length interpretive study on Machiavelli’s controversial and ambiguous work, Discourses on Livy. These discourses, considered by some to be Machiavelli’s most… More

Machiavelli in the Making

- Claude Lefort. Machiavelli in the Making. Translated by Michael B. Smith. Evanston, Ill.: Northwestern University Press, 2012. Originally published as Le travail de l'oeuvre Machiavel (Paris: Gallimard, 1972).

The Life of Niccolò Machiavelli

- Roberto Ridolfi. The Life of Niccolò Machiavelli. Translated by Cecil Grayson. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1963.

Thoughts on Machiavelli by Leo Strauss

- Strauss, Leo. Thoughts on Machiavelli. Glencoe, IL: Free Press, 1958.
From the publisher: “Leo Strauss argued that the most visible fact about Machiavelli’s doctrine is also the most useful one: Machiavelli seems to be a teacher of wickedness. Strauss sought to incorporate this idea in his interpretation without… More

Machiavelli

- J. H. Whitfield. Machiavelli. Oxford: Blackwell, 1947.