Machiavelli vs. Rousseau Lord of the Flies Machiavelli vs. Rousseau

Rousseau vs. Machiavelli

Jean-Jacques Rousseau Believed that human nature is basically good and only turns evil because of exposure to an evil or negative environment He argued that all people are born good “Good” in the sense of able to take care of themselves Just as animals are neither good nor evil, people, if they live by natural instinct, are neither good nor evil It is our natural state By being close to nature we are more likely to live a life of virtue We are corrupted by society

R- General Will He does acknowledge that as a whole we have a “general will” Common good/ public interest All citizens should be committed to the common good even if it goes against personal or private interests Put the group before the individual

Problems with this? If we put the general whole over the individual, then there need to be safeguards to protect individuals from being exploited If may be dangerous to have a common good, the majority may get all power over the minority or the minority may have all the power over the majority Either way, at least one group of people are being unheard

Niccolo Machiavelli Believed human nature is basically evil and that only laws keep us from becoming violent creatures Basically, he argues that there is sometimes a need for evil and we must be able to be evil when it is needed Mainly, he is addressing his argument to that idea of having power, those who need to keep power must be willing to be cruel if need be It is through keeping power that the ruler is able to keep everyone else in line

Machiavellianism The political doctrine of Machiavelli, which denies the relevance of morality in political affairs and holds that craft and deceit are justified in pursuing and maintaining political power By any means necessary

Problems with this? It encourages people to be cruel It tells people of power that it is right and justifiable to be cruel and do evil things For these ideas, Machiavelli was considered a “teacher of evil”

Who do you support? Who do you think you most identify with or most believe? Or will use in your essay? Why did you pick that one? What do you have to say about the problems that your decision has?