Machiavelli, The Discourses on Livy

Vocabulary flashcards covering Niccolò Machiavelli's analysis of republics, corruption, and religion in The Discourses on Livy.

Republic

A city-state where the public interest is the guiding principle and everything that furthers the common good is carried out, even if certain private individuals suffer.

Free State

A state that is not subject to internal domination (control by the wealthy or tyrants) or external domination (control by a foreign power or conqueror).

Romulus

A founder whose extralegal violence in the death of his brother was excused because his actions were aimed at the public good and not at self-advancement.

Lone Legislator

The principle that one person alone must have sole responsibility for deciding strategy and key decisions when establishing good institutions for a republic or kingdom.

Corruption

The process by which a polity’s original goodness is destroyed over time unless it is periodically brought back to its founding principles.

Virtù (in Roman Elections)

The competence or virtue that originally determined who was elected to high office, later replaced by flattery, charm, and patronage once the city became corrupt.

Incremental Reform

A strategy for dealing with corruption by catching it early and reforming institutions little by little, which is often difficult because corruption is hard to spot at early stages.

Dramatic Reform

Major institutional reform carried out through extraordinary measures like violence or civil war once corruption is obvious, usually requiring a leader to become sole ruler.

Numa

A Roman leader who used divine authority by pretending to be advised by a nymph in order to win acceptance for new, unaccustomed institutions from the populace.

Classical Religion

A belief system that deified men with worldly glory, such as generals and rulers, valorizing boldness of spirit and strength of body.

Christian Religion

A belief system that glorifies the humble and contemplative and requires people to demonstrate strength by undergoing suffering without complaint.

Nobility-Populace Clashes

The tensions between the elite and the masses that served as the primary factor making for Rome’s continuing freedom and the creation of laws fostering liberty.

External Accident

An outside shock or event, such as Rome's fall to the French, that forces a state to renew its institutions and return to its first principles.

Domestic Wisdom

A type of reform occurring through local legal requirements for stock-taking or through the example and skillful policies of a single virtuous individual.

Who wrote the discourses on livy

Machiavelli

Liberty and Self-Governance

Free states are most likely to be successful when they are free republics because they are not subject to internal or external domination

Foundational Violence

those who are violent to help build a republic are excused

Civic Virtue

everyone has the responsibility of maintaining the state