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The Prince & The Grand Inquisitor

Niccolo Machiavelli, in The Prince, and Fyodor Dostoevsky, in "The Grand Inquisitor" section of his novel The Brothers Karamazov, present similarly pessimistic and cynical views of human nature. Both the Prince and the Inquisitor argue that human beings are basically beasts who need to be controlled by any means necessary, including deception and violence. Although they may claim that they serve the happiness of their subjects, in fact, it is not happiness that their deceived and manipulated subjects experience but a false security based on conformity and fear.

The Prince is concerned only with the maintenance of power, rather than with any ethical consideration or the "happiness" of the people he rules. The Prince would have honored Hitler, Franklin Roosevelt, and Stalin equally, because they were able to maintain power, though in different ways. The Prince would not advocate brute force or terror as the only or primary tool of the leader, but instead would use reasonable persuasion, as long as such persuasion worked. Clearly, however, the effective Prince would use force when necessary and would let the people know that such violence is available at any moment.

The argument of the Grand Inquisitor for a godless society is internally logical, consistent and systematic, just as is the argument of Machiavelli in his presentation of the Prince. Both the Prince and the Inquisitor exist in a context in which the material world is all that exists or matters. Such materialism is without a moral basis and allows any tools or tactics necessary to maintain order and to control the masses for purposes of the ruler or rulers. The rulers tell the people that the rulers use their power to make the people happy, but the "happiness" is like the happiness of a dog which wags its tail as the man who has just beaten it speaks to it with "love" in his voice. The dog is relieved that the man has stopped beating it and now seems to be caring f...

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The Prince & The Grand Inquisitor. (1969, December 31). In LotsofEssays.com. Retrieved 12:52, March 28, 2024, from https://www.lotsofessays.com/viewpaper/1700420.html