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Chapter 4 - Political Prudence

from Part II

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  18 February 2020

Joanne Paul
Affiliation:
University of Sussex
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Summary

In the Machiavellian literature on counsel, the distinction between private and public prudence becomes more pointed, leading to a distinction between a private sphere ruled by morality, and a public sphere in which moral flexibility, or even amoralism, is appropriate. As Machiavellian principles spread, such a view became accepted even amongst self-described anti-Machiavellians, especially in considering ‘policy’ and political deliberation. Counsellors must weigh both private and public expectations, offering advice that takes into account necessity and advantage politically but with an awareness of traditional expectations, embracing the skill of redescription when occasion, still in the tradition of kairos, calls for the employment of vice. Not only does this redefinition of prudence establish a separate sphere of morality (or lack thereof) for politics, it also introduces a language of contingency and exceptionalism, which becomes associated with the counsellor. In contrast with earlier writings on the topic, in this tradition the counsellor must mitigate not the tyranny of the prince, but of fortune.

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Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2020

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  • Political Prudence
  • Joanne Paul, University of Sussex
  • Book: Counsel and Command in Early Modern English Thought
  • Online publication: 18 February 2020
  • Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/9781108780407.005
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  • Political Prudence
  • Joanne Paul, University of Sussex
  • Book: Counsel and Command in Early Modern English Thought
  • Online publication: 18 February 2020
  • Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/9781108780407.005
Available formats
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Save book to Google Drive

To save content items to your account, please confirm that you agree to abide by our usage policies. If this is the first time you use this feature, you will be asked to authorise Cambridge Core to connect with your account. Find out more about saving content to Google Drive.

  • Political Prudence
  • Joanne Paul, University of Sussex
  • Book: Counsel and Command in Early Modern English Thought
  • Online publication: 18 February 2020
  • Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/9781108780407.005
Available formats
×