When Leaders Lie: Machiavelli in International Context

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This course examines the writing of Niccolò Machiavelli, a Renaissance author praised and condemned for his insistence on analyzing the realities of politics, rather than the ideals of political behavior. Machiavelli's view of the tenuous relationship of ethics to politics has cast him as the founder of political science and the proponent of "consequential morality" or the notion that the ends justify the means. We will also examine precedents for his ideas and conclude by examining the relevance of Machiavelli's insights for understanding political practices and ethics in the twenty-first century.