DOCSLIB.ORG

Machiavellian Heroes Through the Prism of Aristotle Robert Acosta University of Texas at El Paso, [email protected]

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
Machiavellian Heroes Through the Prism of Aristotle Robert Acosta University of Texas at El Paso, Roberta@Miners.Utep.Edu University of Texas at El Paso DigitalCommons@UTEP Open Access Theses & Dissertations 2009-01-01 Machiavellian Heroes Through the Prism of Aristotle Robert Acosta University of Texas at El Paso, [email protected] Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.utep.edu/open_etd Part of the Philosophy Commons, and the Political Science Commons Recommended Citation Acosta, Robert, "Machiavellian Heroes Through the Prism of Aristotle" (2009). Open Access Theses & Dissertations. 193. https://digitalcommons.utep.edu/open_etd/193 This is brought to you for free and open access by DigitalCommons@UTEP. It has been accepted for inclusion in Open Access Theses & Dissertations by an authorized administrator of DigitalCommons@UTEP. For more information, please contact [email protected]. MACHIAVELLIAN HEROES THROUGH THE PRISM OF ARISTOTLE ROBERT ACOSTA Department of Political Science APPROVED: ___________________________________ Robert Webking, Ph.D., Chair ____________________________________ Charles Boehmer, Ph.D. ____________________________________ William Springer, Ph.D. _____________________________________ Patricia D. Witherspoon, Ph.D. Dean of the Graduate School Dedicated to my models of excellent men: Joaquin Acosta Jr. Joaquin Acosta Sr. and Raul Rivas Sr. And for my muse, Vanessa Desiree Garcia, 0.4. -Robert Acosta MACHIAVELLIAN HEROES THROUGH THE PRISM OF ARISTOTLE By ROBERT ACOSTA, B.A., POLITICAL SCIENCE THESIS Presented to the Faculty of the Graduate School of The University of Texas at El Paso in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of MASTER OF ARTS Department of Political Science THE UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS AT EL PASO May 2009 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS First, I would like to thank my all-star thesis committee of Robert Webking, Charles Boehmer, and William Springer. Dr. Springer, for providing an indispensable moral compass; Dr. Boehmer for helping me navigate the labyrinths of the graduate school bureaucracy; and Dr. Webking for being a mentor and friend, Ethics 1156b8-33. I would like to thank my editors-in-chief: my mother, Evangelina Acosta and my brother, Adrian Acosta. Not only did they read and edit, they both inspired me to return to my studies. In this I have found peace. I would like to thank my sister, Veronica Carmona, and my nephews and godsons, Adrian Noe Carmona and Andres Esteban Carmona. They provided the much needed distractions that allowed me to finish this thesis happy and whole. I would like to thank my grandmother, Angelina G. Rivas, for showing me the strength of perseverance through faith. Lastly, I would like to thank my godfathers, Armando Acosta and Raul Rivas Jr. Thank you for all your support, it has meant more than you could know. iv TABLE OF CONTENTS Page ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS………………………………………………………………………………………………………iv TABLE OF CONTENTS…………………………………………………………………………………………………………..v Chapter 1. INTRODUCTION……………………………………………………………………………………………………………….1 2. PART ONE…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………14 3. PART TWO………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..35 Theseus…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….36 Romulus……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………51 Cyrus…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………68 Moses………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..94 4. PART THREE………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………114 LIST OF REFERENCES………………………………………………………………………………………………………………143 CURRICULUM VITA…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………149 v “Forgive us our virtues-thus one should pray to men.” -Friedrich Nietzsche INTRODUCTION: “Don’t worry if I say anything that seems to you different from what we want, because all will turn out to the purpose”-Ligurio in Machiavelli’s Mandragola1 This thesis is concerned with a traditional problem of political philosophy. The problem is primarily concerned with the thought and enterprise of Niccolo Machiavelli. Machiavelli’s political thought is believed to represent a radical break with the philosophy of the ancients. Machiavelli’s uniqueness lies in his apparent re-conception of human nature, human fulfillment, and the subsequent idea of human virtue. Machiavelli regards his venture as both dangerous and excellent, as it represents the foundation of new modes and orders for the common benefit of mankind.2 Machiavelli’s thought has had practical consequences and is therefore worthy of analysis. The central problem that this thesis is concerned with then, is the problem that is presented by the character of Machiavelli’s philosophy; in essence Machiavelli’s virtue. The problem confronted by this thesis is neither unique nor original. The originality of this thesis lies not in the problem, but in the nature of the solution to the problem that is presented in the person of Machiavelli. The novelty of this work lies in its analysis of Machiavelli through the prism of Aristotle. The hypothesis of this paper is that there is a direct correlation between the political philosophies of Aristotle and Machiavelli. Machiavelli incorporates three fundamental theses of Aristotelian political philosophy: 1. Machiavelli agrees with Aristotle’s thesis that politics is the master science. 2. Machiavelli agrees with 1 Machiavelli, Niccolo. Mera J. Flaumenhaft, translator. Mandragola. Long Grove, Illinois: Waveland Press 1981. Page 29. 2 See Preface to the Discourses on Livy. 1 Aristotle’s thesis that man is a political animal. 3. Machiavelli’s ideal prince reflects Aristotle’s conception of human nature. This thesis contends that Machiavelli’s radical re-conception of human nature is actually a re-packaging of Aristotle’s fundamental political philosophy. The validity of these hypotheses will be tested by an examination of the case studies that Machiavelli advocates studying in Chapter VI of The Prince. The extent of Aristotle’s influence can be measured by the extent that the case studies reflect these general Aristotelian premises. If the case studies reflect Aristotle then our hypotheses would be validated. If Machiavelli incorporates elements of Aristotle’s thought, it is presumed that Machiavelli’s heroes: Theseus, Romulus, Cyrus, and Moses would reflect Aristotle by way of Machiavelli. The notion of a direct connection between Aristotle and the thought of Machiavelli is significant because many interpretations of Machiavelli focus singularly on his claim of innovation and ignore the relationship between his ideas and those of Aristotle. The void in this area of Machiavelli scholarship is indicated by this passage, “But, and this is more noteworthy, there is no trace of Platonic or Aristotelian teleology, no reference to any ideal order, to any doctrine of man’s place in nature in the great chain of being.”3 This thesis will attempt to exhibit a direct link between Aristotelian teleology, Aristotelian conceptions of human nature, and the thought of Machiavelli. As students of Machiavelli, we must remain wary and remember that it is dangerous to take Machiavelli at face value. It would not be surprising if Machiavelli was to heed the advice that he offers in Chapter XVIII of The Prince,”-And the one who has known best how to use the fox has come out 3 Berlin, Isaiah. The Originality of Machiavelli, in Against the Current. Princeton: Princeton University Press, 2001. P. 37. 2 best. But it is necessary to know well how to color this nature, and to be a great pretender and dissembler; and men are so simple and so obedient to present necessities that he who deceives will always find someone who will let himself be deceived.”4 Despite this, it is assumed by most analysts that Machiavelli is simply stating the truth when he declares he is departing “from the orders of others.”5 In addressing the Machiavellian mission, Leo Strauss puts it bluntly, “Accordingly he rewrites, as it were, Aristotle’s Ethics.”6 Machiavelli’s thought becomes an eradication of the political philosophy of Aristotle. Machiavelli advises his readers in Chapter XXI of The Prince, that “A prince is also esteemed when he is a true friend and a true enemy, that is, when without any hesitation he discloses himself in support of someone against another…And it will always happen that the one who is not friendly will seek your neutrality, and he who is friendly to you will ask that you declare yourself with arms.”7 Let us heed Machiavelli’s advice and issue a blunt call to arms, and announce that the purpose of this thesis is to correct the “old-fashioned and simple opinion” that Machiavellian thought cannot be understood by virtue of an Aristotelian prism. The Significance of the Problem: A Review of the Literature: The significance of the problem of Machiavelli is manifest by the consequence of his thought. It is by virtue of the famous, or perhaps infamous, Machiavellian maxims that we have become familiar with the adjective: Machiavellian. Leo Strauss begins his analysis on 4 Machiavelli, Niccolo. Harvey C. Mansfield, translator. The Prince. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1998, p. 70. 5 Ibid, p. 61. 6 Strauss, Leo. Niccolo Machiavelli in Studies in Platonic Political Philosophy. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1983. P. 214. 7 Machiavelli, Niccolo. Harvey C. Mansfield, translator. The Prince. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1998, p. 89-90. 3 Machiavelli by stressing the climate of the conventional opinions regarding Machiavelli. “We shall not shock anyone, we shall merely expose ourselves to good-natured or at any rate harmless ridicule, if we profess ourselves inclined to the old-fashioned and simple opinion according to which Machiavelli
Load more

Recommended publications
  • Voltaire's Candide
    CANDIDE Voltaire 1759 © 1998, Electronic Scholarly Publishing Project http://www.esp.org This electronic edition is made freely available for scholarly or educational purposes, provided that this copyright notice is included. The manuscript may not be reprinted or redistributed for commercial purposes without permission. TABLE OF CONTENTS CHAPTER 1.....................................................................................1 How Candide Was Brought Up in a Magnificent Castle and How He Was Driven Thence CHAPTER 2.....................................................................................3 What Befell Candide among the Bulgarians CHAPTER 3.....................................................................................6 How Candide Escaped from the Bulgarians and What Befell Him Afterward CHAPTER 4.....................................................................................8 How Candide Found His Old Master Pangloss Again and What CHAPTER 5...................................................................................11 A Tempest, a Shipwreck, an Earthquake, and What Else Befell Dr. Pangloss, Candide, and James, the Anabaptist CHAPTER 6...................................................................................14 How the Portuguese Made a Superb Auto-De-Fe to Prevent Any Future Earthquakes, and How Candide Underwent Public Flagellation CHAPTER 7...................................................................................16 How the Old Woman Took Care Of Candide, and How He Found the Object of
    [Show full text]
  • Ap European History Summer Assignment – 2018
    AP EUROPEAN HISTORY SUMMER ASSIGNMENT – 2018 Welcome to AP European History! I am so excited about this course. While not a “Grand Tour” in the formal sense of 17th –mid -19th century travels through Europe, it will be an informative and insightful journey through the intellectual, social, political, economic, and cultural history of Europe. Thank you for joining the class. Our studies begin in the Renaissance, and although this is “only “ the history of a continent, the breadth and depth of the curriculum is challenging. So, as you know by now, we need to get a head start on our work with an AP Summer Packet. The summer assignment includes map work and a terms/vocabulary list. ALL the work is due on the FIRST DAY OF SCHOOL. It is imperative that your work be completed and ready to turn in the first day of school. I intend for the class to be seminar-based, but your preparation by reading the material and completing assignments out of class is absolutely fundamental. We cannot have lively, informative discussions if we have not done the readings or the homework. Preparation for the AP exam requires that we maintain a faithful, rigorous, and timely adherence to the AP European curriculum framework and schedule. As with all AP classes, writing will also be a significant component of the class. Please read each section of the summer packet for the directions specific to the map work and terms/vocabulary. I have provided maps for you and the vocabulary terms can be researched on the Internet.
    [Show full text]
  • Baruch Spinoza Chronology
    Baruch Spinoza Chronology 1391 Spanish Jews are forced to convert to Catholicism for the sake of "social and sectarian uniformity." 1478 Establishment of the Spanish Inquisition, whose primary task is to convict and execute those found "judaizing." 1492 All practising Jews in Spain are given the choice to convert or be expelled. 1497 All Portuguese Jews (including Spinoza’s ancestors) are forced to convert. A steady stream of Jewish refugees begins to flow from Portugal. 1587/8 Spinoza’s father Michael is born in Vidigere, Portugal, to Isaac d’Espinoza 1609 Beginning of the twelve year truce between the United Provinces and Spain, effectively establishing political independence (after nearly a 100 year struggle) for the seven northern provinces as well as their (Protestant) sectarian separation from the (Catholic) southern provinces. 1618 Defenestration of Prague and beginning of the Thirty Years War. Calvinist-inspired coup d’état in the Dutch Republic, led by the Prince of Orange, leading to the execution of Oldenbarnevelt and imprisonment of Grotius. Uriel d’Acosta (or da Costa), a Portuguese “New Christian” who had returned to Judaism in Amsterdam but became disillusioned with the Jewish community, is excommunicated for the first time in Venice for denying the immortality of the soul and questioning the Mosaic authorship of the Torah, a decree later affirmed in Amsterdam in 1623 and renewed in 1633. 1619 Batavia, Java is established as headquarters of the Dutch East India Company. 1620 Francis Bacon writes Novum organum. 1621 Hostilities resume between Spain and the United Provinces. 1622 Probable date Spinoza’s father arrives in Amsterdam, probably from Nantes.
    [Show full text]
  • David Hume--Of the Original Contract
    Of the Original Contract David Hume 1752 XVI.DAVID HUME, OF THE ORIGINAL CONTRACT, 1752When we consider how nearly equal all men are in their bodily force, and even in their mental powers and faculties, till cultivated by education; we must necessarily allow, that nothing but their own consent could, at first, associate them together, and subject them to any authority. The people, if we trace government to its first origin in the woods and deserts, are the source of all power and jurisdiction, and voluntarily, for the sake of peace and order, abandoned their native liberty, and received laws from their equal and companion. The conditions, upon which they were willing to submit, were either expressed, or were so clear and obvious, that it might well be esteemed superfluous to express them. If this, then, be meant by the original contract, it cannot be denied, that all government is, at first, founded on a contract, and that the most ancient rude combinations of mankind were formed chiefly by that principle. In vain, are we asked in what records this charter of our liberties is registered. It was not written on parchment, nor yet on leaves or barks of trees. It preceded the use of writing and all the other civilized arts of life. But we trace it plainly in the nature of man, and in the equality, or something approaching equality, which we find in all the individuals of that species. The force, which now prevails, and which is founded on fleets and armies, is plainly political, and derived from authority, the effect of established government.
    [Show full text]
  • Niccolò Machiavelli's Use of Cesare Borgia in the Prince
    Narrativizing the Self: Niccolò Machiavelli’s use of Cesare Borgia in The Prince Alex Mizumoto-Gitter University of Kansas Introduction When Niccolò Machiavelli wrote The Prince in 1513 it was as a professional diplomat who had not only been fired, but also imprisoned and tortured after a political reversal brought a sudden downturn to his fortunes. While he had never managed to achieve high rank, he had made a career out of representing his beloved Florence beyond its borders and sending back information to his supe- riors from as far away as Spain. Machiavelli had even briefly served Florence as a military commander, although he is best remembered today as a political theorist and author.1 The Prince was influenced by his work experience and was intended to bolster his chances at finding employment under a new patron. Within its pages, Machiavelli set himself up as an authoritative figure, capable of offering military and governmental advice to a ruler through his analysis of other historical commanders, most famously Cesare Borgia. Machiavelli had been working as a Florentine diplomat during Borgia’s Italian military campaigns and had spoken with him several times, both then as well as later during Borgia’s imprisonment in Rome.2 Thus, it is not surprising that Niccolò Machiavelli recounted Cesare Borgia’s successful campaigns in the Italian Romagna starting in 1499 or his fall from power after his father’s death in 1503. These were prominent political events that he had observed firsthand and as part of his professional career. Historians have long considered Machiavelli’s description of Borgia in The Prince valuable because of his professional insight and because he penned it only a few years after Borgia’s death in 1507.3 © 2018 Alex Mizumoto-Gitter.
    [Show full text]
  • Montesquieu on Commerce, Conquest, War, and Peace
    MONTESQUIEU ON COMMERCE, CONQUEST, WAR, AND PEACE Robert Howse* I. INTRODUCTION:COMMERCE AS THE AGENT OF PEACE:MONTESQUIEU AND THE IDEOLOGY OF LIBERALISM n the history of liberalism, Montesquieu, who died two hundred and Ififty years ago, is an iconic figure. Montesquieu is cited as the source of the idea of checks and balances, or separation of powers, and thus as an intellectual inspiration of the American founding.1 Among liberal internationalists, Montesquieu is known above all for the notion that international trade leads to peace among nation-states. When liberal international relations theorists such as Michael Doyle attribute this posi- tion to Montesquieu,2 they cite Book XX of the Spirit of the Laws,3 in which Montesquieu claims: “The natural effect of commerce is to bring peace. Two nations that negotiate between themselves become recipro- cally dependent, if one has an interest in buying and the other in selling. And all unions are based on mutual needs.”4 On its own, Montesquieu’s claim raises many issues. Montesquieu’s point is that trade based on mutual dependency discourages war. Here, Montesquieu abstracts entirely from the relative power of the states in question, a concern that is pervasive in his concrete analyses of relation- ships among political communities. For example, later on in the same section of the Spirit of the Laws he mentions that trade relations between Carthage and Marseille led to jealousy and a security conflict: There were, in the early times, great wars between Carthage and Mar- seille concerning the fishery. After the peace, they competed in eco- nomic commerce.
    [Show full text]
  • Zuckert, Catherine H. "Machiavelli's Democratic Turn."
    Zuckert, Catherine H. "Machiavelli’s Democratic Turn." Democratic Moments: Reading Democratic Texts. London: Bloomsbury Academic, 2018. 57–64. Bloomsbury Collections. Web. 25 Sep. 2021. <http://dx.doi.org/10.5040/9781350006195.ch-008>. Downloaded from Bloomsbury Collections, www.bloomsburycollections.com, 25 September 2021, 02:31 UTC. Copyright © Xavier Márquez and Contributors 2018. You may share this work for non- commercial purposes only, provided you give attribution to the copyright holder and the publisher, and provide a link to the Creative Commons licence. CHAPTER SEVEN Machiavelli’s Democratic Turn Catherine H. Zuckert Against the common opinion that says that peoples, when they are princes, are varying, mutable, and ungrateful, I affirm that . a prince unshackled from the laws will be more ungrateful, varying, and imprudent than a people. The variation in their proceeding arises not from a diverse nature – because it is in one mode in all – but from having more or less respect for the laws. A people is more prudent, more stable, and of better judgment than a prince. If a people hears two orators who incline to different sides, when they are of equal virtue, very few times does one see it not take up the better opinion. If it errs in mighty things or those that appear useful, . often a prince errs too in his own passions, which are many more than those of peoples. It is also seen in its choices of magistrates to make a better choice by far than a prince; a people will never be persuaded that it is good to put up for dignities an infamous man of corrupt customs – of which a prince is persuaded easily.
    [Show full text]
  • GROUP a Roshni B Watching Naomi Wolf Interview Harvey Mansfield, on C-SPAN's Show After Words, Was Painful. Their Back And
    1 GROUP A Roshni B Watching Naomi Wolf interview Harvey Mansfield, on C-SPAN’s show After Words, was painful. Their back and forth battle was reminiscent of witnessing a bloody jousting match. The sound of the lance’s wood splitting matches that of Mansfield’s words when he describes what he believes the role of women in society should be. Mansfield describes the difference between masculinity and manliness as physical appearance versus a general attitude. He explains that men are right to expect their wives to be lying in wait with a martini for them after a long day, and for women to expect nothing in return. Wolf is quick to question why reciprocity should not be expected. Our current generation is full of powerful women that, not only work full-time, but also take care of the household and community. Mansfield argues that men do not feel needed anymore; the importance of their role in society has been reduced. It is not wrong to question, why men have not taken more initiative to have a greater significance in the household. Wolf is able to reveal that Mansfield is a contradiction of himself throughout the interview. His interpretation of a “manly” man is one that does not submit to women; however, he repeatedly submits to Wolf’s criticisms of the book. The strides women have made in the realm of equality are stacking-up. Mansfield may not approve, but society needs women to function properly. Men have allowed themselves to crumble from a Superman- like figure, to a couch-potato that chooses to live off unemployment.
    [Show full text]
  • Mousiness Garry Wills
    Mousiness Garry Wills Manliness man and against men in general. Harvey Mansfield by Harvey C. Mansfield. The fact that her man is probably Yale University Press, 289 pp., $27.50 no worse than any other she can I once described in these pages a meet- find may induce her to be resigned to her fate, or it may not. Either ing or the Women's Caucus of the American Bar Association at San Fran- way she cannot be happy in the cisco in 1992. The woman presiding society that was supposed to bring began by asking attendees to stand if the liberation of women. they were the first woman to be an ed- Well, no improvement of society itor of her law school's journal-or the brings perfect bliss in an imperfect first woman to be made senior partner world. But I know few if any women of her firm, to become a law school who would like to go back to the con- dean, to become a judge on her bench, dition of women before they won their and so forth. There were hundreds and recent rights. hundreds of women standing by the Mansfield gives no evidence for time she went through her list. That his certainty that woman "cannot be scene is one of many things that both- happy" in this society. There is one ers Harvey Mansfield-"tbe willing- rough measure of happiness. imperfect ness of women to claim solidarity with too, but better grounded than what other women." He claims that "a man's Mansfield asserts (he calls "assert" "my movement would be more divided favorite word").
    [Show full text]
  • Master Bibliography for Sports in Society, 1994–2009
    1 MASTER BIBLIOGRAPHY Sports In Society: Issues & Controversies, 1994–2015 (5,089 references) Jay Coakley This bibliography is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Unported License. CSPS Working Papers may be distributed or cited as long as the author(s) is/are appropriately credited. CSPS Working Papers may not be used for commercial purposes or modified in any way without the permission of the author(s). For more information please visit: www.creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/3.0/. 60 Minutes; ―Life after the NFL: Happiness.‖ Television program, (2004, December); see also, www.cbsnews.com/stories/2004/12/16/60minutes/main661572.shtml. AAA. 1998. Statement on ―Race.‖ Washington, DC: American Anthropological Association. www.aaanet.org/stmts/racepp.htm (retrieved June, 2005). AAHPERD. 2013. Maximizing the benefits of youth sport. Journal of Physical Education, Recreation & Dance 84(7): 8-13. Abad-Santos, Alexander. 2013. Everything you need to know about Steubenville High's football 'rape crew'. The Atlantic Wire (January 3): http://www.theatlanticwire.com/national/2013/01/steubenville-high-football-rape- crew/60554/ (retrieved 5-22-13). Abdel-Shehid, Gamal, & Nathan Kalman-Lamb. 2011. Out of Left Field: Social Inequality and Sport. Black Point, Nova Scotia: Fernwood Publishing Abdel-Shehid, Gamal. 2002. Muhammad Ali: America‘s B-Side. Journal of Sport and Social Issues 26, 3: 319–327. Abdel-Shehid, Gamal. 2004. Who da man?: black masculinities and sporting cultures. Toronto: Canadian Scholars‘ Press. www.cspi.org. Abney, Roberta. 1999. African American women in sport. Journal of Physical Education, Recreation & Dance 70(4), 35–38.
    [Show full text]
  • Machiavelli: Prince Or Republic - an Examination of the Theorist’S Two Most Famous Works
    The Corinthian Volume 17 Article 9 2016 Machiavelli: Prince or Republic - An Examination of the Theorist’s Two Most Famous Works Sean McAleer Georgia College & State University Follow this and additional works at: https://kb.gcsu.edu/thecorinthian Part of the Political Science Commons Recommended Citation McAleer, Sean (2016) "Machiavelli: Prince or Republic - An Examination of the Theorist’s Two Most Famous Works," The Corinthian: Vol. 17 , Article 9. Available at: https://kb.gcsu.edu/thecorinthian/vol17/iss1/9 This Article is brought to you for free and open access by the Undergraduate Research at Knowledge Box. It has been accepted for inclusion in The Corinthian by an authorized editor of Knowledge Box. The Corinthian: The Journal of Student Research at Georgia College Volume 17 • Spring 2016 Machiavelli: Prince or Republic world, or from the harm done to many Christian provinces An Examination of the Theorist’s Two Most Famous Works and cities by an ambitious idleness, as from not possessing a Sean McAleer true understanding of the histories, so that in reading them, we fail to draw out of them that sense or to taste that flavor Professor Benjamin Clark they intrinsically possess.1 Faculty Mentor This passage, taken from one of Machiavelli’s two different prefaces to his work, demonstrates several important aspects of the author’s thought process that is prevalent throughout the entire book. First, Nicollò Machiavelli is one of the most well-known and it shows that Machiavelli’s focus is not entirely centered on repub- influential political theorists in history. He coined phrases that lics, even in his book based upon a republican history of Rome, are still applicable even five hundred years after his death, and his for he believes anyone in power can learn from history.
    [Show full text]
  • Oday the Very Word Manliness Seems Quaint and Obsolete. We Are in The
    oday the very word manliness seems quaint and obsolete. We are in the process of making the English language gender-neutral, and manliness, the quality of one gender, or rather, of one sex, to describe the essence of the enemy we are attacking, the evil we are t._col<lUl\.duu~. Recencly I had a call from the alumni magazine at the university I work, asking me to comment on a former professor of mine now honored. Responding too quickly, I said: "What impressed all of us him was his manliness." There was silence at the other end of the line, the female voice said: "Could you think of another word?" We now avoid using "man" to refer to both sexes, as in the glowing phrase of man" to which America was once dedicated. All the man-words been brought to account and corrected. Mankind has become human­ . man of the year, person of the year; and so on. But even when "man" only male, "manly" still seems pretentious in our new society, and L .uu.cat.cuJtHI!. to it as well. A manly man is making a point of the bad attitude .. ought to be playing down. attempt to make our language gender-neutral reveals something of the ldu.tuu~vu of our democracy today. A gender-neutral language implies a gender­ society, marking a pervasive change in the way we live our lives. Our has adopted, quite without realizing the magnitude of the change, a !PraLctl<:e of equality between the sexes that has never been known before in .~ ..~ ..
    [Show full text]