Introduction: The debate on political philosophy has long been centered on the conflict between the ideal and reality. One of the most interesting debates is that between Machiavelli and Aristotle. Although both philosophers aim to achieve an ideal state, they differ in their approaches. Background: Aristotle believes that the ideal state is the ultimate goal of human society and that investigating this ultimate goal is more important than any other topic. On the other hand, Machiavelli questions the feasibility of ideal states and focuses on developing reliable methods for achieving practical goals. For Machiavelli, practical methodology is more important than the ideal model, since it is something that can be controlled and experimented with. By comparing the different paths taken by Aristotle and Machiavelli in their political thought, we can better understand their views on achieving the most important goal in politics. Therefore, exploring the theme “Machiavelli vs. Aristotle” in this essay is essential to understanding their political theories. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original Essay Topic Sentence: Among these practical thinkers, Machiavelli has the greatest influence on later generations. He believes that people do not follow philosophers' prescriptive instructions about what they should do, but act according to their own interests. Evidence and quotes: In The Prince he states that “the gap between how people actually behave and how they should behave is so great that anyone who ignores everyday reality to live up to an ideal will soon find that he has been taught how to behave in destroying oneself, not how to preserve oneself" (48). Comment: This quote comes from his belief that men by nature are selfish and only fight for their own interests. Life is a process of pursuing one's desires; once one stops pursuing, his life ends. Evidence and Quotations: He bitterly satirizes the nature of men by stating that “men forget the death of their father more quickly than the loss of their inheritance” (52). People will not forget the wrongs suffered by you even when you do them good (38). Men are less nervous about offending someone who makes themselves lovable, compared to someone who makes themselves scary (52). He thinks that what people want is, provided they are safe, to preserve their property and acquire more things that people “are ungrateful, fickle, deceitful and deceitful, avoidant of danger, greedy of gain” (52) . Comment: Machiavelli concludes that men's desire for power and property is infinite, while actual power and property are limited by natural conditions; therefore, people are always in a state of competition. To some extent, individual interest is the highest value in the society in which he lived; everything that is not the ultimate interest of his extreme individualism is meaningless. Machiavelli's political philosophy and policies are all based on the premise that men by nature are selfish and evil. This vision also lays one of the foundations of Hobbes' philosophical system according to which the right of nature is "the freedom every man has to use his own power, as he will, to preserve his own nature" (Ch. XIV, 1). ) and the state of nature is the state of war. Topic Sentence: In contrast to Machiavelli's theory of human nature, Aristotle states that "the human being is by nature a political animal" (1253a2-3), meaning an animal with an innate propensity to develop complex communities. Evidence and quotes: He also thinks “a human is more of an animalpolitical than a bee" (1253a8-9) because he is naturally equipped for life in a type of community that is itself "more essentially political" than a hive, that is, a family or a city-state (Politics, xlviii). What allows human beings to live in such communities is the ability to speak rationally, which is peculiar to human beings. Because rational speech “serves to make clear what is beneficial or harmful, and therefore also what is right or unjust… and it is the community in these that constitutes a family and a city-state” (1253a16-7). Also in the Nicomachean Ethics, Aristotle suggests that the character that defines human beings is rationality, since he states that “the function of man is an activity of the soul that follows or implies a rational principle” (1098a2-4 Comment: As a political animal, man thrives in his rationality – especially in the creation of laws and traditions, which means sacrificing one's own interest to help others. Aristotle emphasizes that people naturally form a city-state to achieve self-sufficiency and live well. In a community, individuals must take care of others and sometimes even enforce their rights for the good of the community. It is rationality that suggests making such an altruistic sacrifice because we know we depend on the community. This sacrifice, which arises from self-interest and develops beyond self-interest, constitutes the most primitive and innate goodness of human nature in Aristotelian theory. Topic sentence: It is worth noting that Machiavelli thinks that the power of rulers is given by the election of his subjects, and subsequently becomes hereditary. Comment: There is no divine right of kings. It frees itself from the political theory of divine power of Augustine and Aquinas, expelling Catholic philosophy from the regime of politics. He applies his theory of human nature to discover the natural order of states through rational deduction and empirical evidence. Evidence and Citations: Throughout The Prince, he uses over 78 different examples to demonstrate his political theory, ranging from Carthage to Turkey, ancient Greece to modern Italy, from small military leaders to Roman emperors. Furthermore, in each of his statements, he starts from the analysis of a certain situation and develops his theory by applying psychoanalysis. He also sometimes applies game theory when discussing the behavior of two opposing parties, assuming that people act in their own self-interest and care about their own preservation. When explaining why rulers need not fear the assassination of their conspirators, he applies game theory to the question of whether a conspirator's accomplice should betray him and whether the people will turn against him even if the conspiracy is successful. It abandons the incomplete induction and logical harangue of Aquinas and Augustine in favor of a strictly scientific process of reasoning. This is one of the reasons why Machiavelli's theory is so popular. Topic Sentence: Behind the difference between Aristotle's and Machiavelli's theories of human nature lies a more fundamental conflict. Machiavelli's political philosophy is based on his own experience of business, concerned with establishing the means to achieve the assigned ends. According to him we should worry more about the means than the ends, since it is useless to pursue a political goal with methods destined to fail; “If the end is considered valid, we must choose the appropriate means to achieve it” (Russell, 510). Furthermore, the question of means can be treated in a purely scientific way, without taking into account the goodness or badness of the ends. Evidence and Citations: In chapter seven of The Prince, Machiavelli details how Cesare Borgia came to power and examinescarefully every step taken by Cesare Borgia. From the passage, we can say that Machiavelli recognizes that the Duke is bloodthirsty and harsh, but still praises him without restraint saying that he "can think of no better example [he] could offer to a new ruler than that of [Cesare Borgia's] actions ]" ( 22). One must assume that Machiavelli's admiration for Cesare Borgia was only due to his ability, not his goals. The stories of Agathocles and Oliverotto also exemplify Machiavelli's admiration for skillful means of acquiring power, although he views their means as “evil deeds” (27). Comment: Machiavelli believes that as long as the end is justified, any means can be chosen to achieve the goal. On the other hand, any means that can help achieve the goal is justified. It comments positively on political conspiracy and violence and demonstrates that any means, no matter how ferocious, brutal and evil, can be used to acquire and preserve power. He describes Pope Alexander VI this way: “look now at how this honorable pope pays his debts: he simply canceled them all” (37) and implies that no one thinks the pope's action is despicable. It also shows that governing is a kind of art and that to unite Italy one must rely on power to overcome obstacles. Topic Sentence: As a teleologist, Aristotle was more concerned with ends than means. Politics begins by emphasizing the importance of the city-state, the highest type of community aimed at the greater good. For him every form of community and government aims for the good. Evidence and Citations: Aristotle in Book III Chapter Nine states: “families and families live well as communities whose goal is a complete and self-sufficient life” (1280b33-4) and “the city-state must concern itself with virtue” (1280b6 -7). Aristotle further shows the end of virtue in Book VII Chapter Eight that "happiness is the best thing, however, and is a kind of activation or complete exercise of virtue" (1328a36-7). Happiness, or eudaimonia, is considered by Aristotle to be “final and self-sufficient, and is the end of action” in the Nicomachean Ethics (1097b20-1) and politics is the science of the good so that man achieves eudaimonia as in Politics, “The greatest and best good is the end of the science or art which has the most authority of all, and this is the science of the art of government; but the political good is justice, and justice is the common good” (1282b14-7). Comment: It is not difficult to see that Aristotle's politics of virtue has several meanings. First, in ethics, politics is the science of achieving happiness for the majority, which is opposite to the violent and evil government suggested by Machiavelli. Subsequently, ideally, politics aims at justice, which is the only measure of government, rather than at the acquisition of power for Machiavelli. Topic Sentence: Furthermore, Machiavelli believes in situationism, which is opposed to Aristotle's theory of moral character. Comment: Machiavelli thinks that people react to the situations they find themselves in, rather than to some internal state. It is always prudent not to draw general conclusions, but to discuss every possible situation and analyze the outcome. When he talks about avoiding hatred and contempt, he divides situations based on whether one is a new ruler or has inherited power, whether the soldiers are stronger or the population, and whether one has a large territory or not. He is alert to the fact that political policies are determined by many factors and that one should “adapt to changing circumstances” (75). Comment: However, Aristotle thinks that people's actions are not random. Evidence and quotes: people get used to and become virtuous by performing virtuous actions, as in the Nicomachean Ethics, it says "to virtue belongsvirtuous activity" (1098b31-2). He therefore believes that it is the moral character of people that determines their behavior and not inconstant external situations. Topic sentence: However, the two great philosophers have something in common, partly because Machiavelli , especially his Discourses, was largely influenced by Aristotle. First, their methodologies are both scientific and reasoning-related. Second, Machiavelli seems to agree on some objectives that is worth pursuing: national independence, security and a well-ordered constitution Comment: In his mind the two things coexisted, love of skill and patriotic desire for the unity of Italy, as can be seen from the final exhortation to unite Italy in The Prince. Thematic sentence: Aristotle also differs from his teacher Plato in which he is most concerned about the feasibility of a political theory. Evidence and quotes: In Politics, he emphasizes that “what is the best constitution and What is the best life for most city-states and most humans, judging not by an upbringing that requires natural gifts and resources that depend on luck? , nor by the ideal constitution, but by a life that most people can share and a constitution in which most city-states can participate” (1295a25-30). Comment: This is totally different from Plato's utopia designed for the “kings of philosophy”. In this sense, Aristotle can be called the founder of practical and realistic political philosophy and a critical heir to his master's rational and idealistic political philosophy. After examining all these similarities and differences of the two philosophers, it is time to discuss the question raised in the beginning of this essay as to whether political philosophy should be more concerned with reality or ideal models. From this question also derives the divergence of Aristotle and Machiavelli on ends or means. According to Machiavelli, the means pave the way for the end and its consequences are predictable. However, since we can only conduct thought experiments on the ideal model of states, we cannot apply scientific methodology to examine its correctness; therefore it is quite risky to follow the guidance of an ideal model. It therefore gradually neglects the transcendental moral demands behind political theory and emphasizes the procedural justice of government rather than substantive justice, cutting the relationship between politics and ethics. This moral indifference leads modern politics into pettiness. In this sense it is fundamental to recover the transcendental role of virtue in politics. For Aristotle, only the concept of virtue can give a republic substantive justice in addition to procedural justice and free individual human rights from political interests. Compared to Machiavelli, Aristotle's political philosophy lies between ideal and reality. His political ideal was entirely in keeping with Plato's in setting an ethical purpose as the primary end of the city-state, but Aristotle suggests that the ideal must be embodied in practice to be valid. He is trying to reconcile the discrepancy between ideal and reality to find a political philosophy that can truly guide the Greeks. Please note: this is just an example. Get a custom paper from our expert writers now. Get a Custom Essay Concluding Paragraph: It is surprising to see Aristotle and Machiavelli having developed different paths of their philosophy noting that Renaissance Italy is very similar to classical Greece with both warring principalities and cities. Thus the Greek philosophers owe their theoretical education to the wars of the small states, just as Machiavelli learned the lesson from the incessant conflicts between the,.