Cynthia Brantley Johnson ( editor ) - The Prince

The most famous book on politics ever written, The Prince remains as lively and as shocking today as when it was written almost five hundred years ago. Initially denounced as a collection of sinister maxims and as a recommendation of tyranny, it has more recently been defended and indeed applauded as the first scientific treatment of politics as it is rather than as it ought to be. A masterpiece of effective prose, The Prince is at once comic and formidable, imaginative and calculating, fascinating and chilling. Its influence in modern history has been profound, and -- often considered to be the first modern book -- it was surely a primary text for the modern philosophers who challenged the traditions of ancient and medieval thought and morality. Harvey C. Mansfield's translation brilliantly recreates the subtlety and terseness of Machiavelli's own prose while presenting an eminently readable text. Written in accessible and idiomatic English, it is the most literal and accurate translation available. In thi