The Prince

My accommodating hosts here bought me a book as a farewell gift. The book is a great classic, Niccolo Machiavelli's, "The Prince". I have long heard of this book, although it being a classic, I never bought it, fearing it may be too wordy, too full of prehistoric vernacular. As I flip through the book, I see that is is not. In fact, after translation, it seems to have been written yesterday.

For those of you who have never read "The Prince", here is a short synopsis. Niccolo Machiavelli was a mid-level executive about 400 years ago during the Renaissance, working for richest corporation of the time, Florence, whose CEO was Lorenzo de Medici. One day, Mr. Machiavelli did something that angered his boss, (backed the wrong side in a trade deal, lost some files, beat the boss at golf, something like that) and was sent to prison, where he shuffled paper, doomed never to take part in another business deal ever again.

But while he was in prison, he wrote "The Prince", which he sent to grumpy old Medici as a gift, with hopes of returning to the corner office on the 32nd floor. Lorenzo was so impressed with his former employee, he exercised executive amnesia and welcomed Niccolo back with a big fat bonus and a renewed contract. Machiavelli's popularity with his bosses has increased ever since.

In this magical book that rescued Niccolo Machiavelli from the paper pushing position he was regaled to was bits of information on how to properly lead. The core idea in his book was that of preserving power was of the utmost importance. To hold on to power, the leader must maintain stability in his/her kingdom. The methods outlined in the book are considered rather immoral at this time, but as Machiavelli said, "Moral principals must yield to every circumstance, especially in such cases where unethical, perhaps even inhumane practices are necessary to maintain power.

The book, being addressed to a member of Italian nobility, gives insight on how to acquire, maintain and protect a state. The methods given preach ruthlessness and hostile takeovers.

To understand such a great book, I bought a book that makes sense of it all. It was "What Would Machiavelli Do? The Ends Justify the Meanness" by Stanley Bing, one of my all time, favorite authors. Mr. Bing puts Machiavelli's teachings in a modern light. It may not exactly show us the original author's point of view, but it sure is hilarious!

This is my first book review. I strongly urge fans of classic literature to go out and buy "The Prince". If you, like me, are not the least bit interested in reading 500 year old Italian literature, why not buy Stanley Bing's work instead? Its entertaining, and it makes a great gift for Father's day!