Machiavelli was the first writer to call for philosophers to step into political life and re-order it. He did so over and against both the biblical and classical understandings of virtue. In our first session (reading the dedicatory letter and chapters 1–14), we examine key aspects of his attack on the biblical understanding, looking especially at his presentations of Moses, David, Cesare Borgia, and Pope Alexander VI and their “modes and orders.” In our second session (reading chapters 15–26), we examine his own introduction of “new modes and orders,” his redefinition of the virtues and of man, his foxy conspiracy, and his call for the conquest of Fortuna.
Participants: Fifteen selected students who are high school juniors or seniors or college undergraduates—participants will receive certificates of participation
Required Reading: Niccolò Machiavelli, The Prince, ed. Harvey C. Mansfield—a book by this careful, devious, and profound writer and thinker, given to each participant upon registration, to be read carefully beforehand: each participant is required to take an active part in the discussion
Seminar Faculty: Timothy W. Burns, Professor of Political Science at Baylor University; sessions will be moderated by Forrest A. Nabors and James W. Muller, Professors of Political Science at the University of Alaska, Anchorage
Co-sponsors: Department of Political Science, University of Alaska, Anchorage, with funding from the Intercollegiate Studies Institute
Date: Friday, March 31
Location: Lewis E. Haines Meeting Room, UAA/APU Consortium Library, Room 307, at the University of Alaska, Anchorage
Parking: Free on Friday in lots adjacent to the library