tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4176769156825838190.post4995736162574781897..comments2022-04-11T01:28:17.873-07:00Comments on A Blog of Beasts!: Foxiness of a Fox...Lionness of a LionAnimals in the Middle Ageshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10809281152134119502noreply@blogger.comBlogger1125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4176769156825838190.post-73714886904389872112010-12-06T08:06:25.331-08:002010-12-06T08:06:25.331-08:00Very nice observation about Machiavelli's use ...Very nice observation about Machiavelli's use of animal imagery. Yes, it is very likely that he was thinking of the ways in which animals were used in stories like <i>Renard</i>. It is very Machiavellian of him, of course, to use animals as examples of ways in which the Prince should behave that in other contexts were considered less than desirable role models. I don't think Machiavelli means this comparison with the Prince to be particularly "good", however. This is wholly in keeping with his provocative suggestions about how the Prince should rather be feared than loved: whereas other writers might be inclined to suggest that one should avoid such "bestial" characteristics as cunning and ferocity, Machiavelli is suggesting that the Prince should "become the beast"--not the usual medieval advice!<br /><br />RLFBAnimals in the Middle Ageshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10809281152134119502noreply@blogger.com