9780062641243
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Machiavelli audiobook

  • By: Ross King
  • Narrator: Tim Reynolds
  • Length: 7 hours 11 minutes
  • Publisher: HarperAudio
  • Publish date: July 12, 2016
  • Language: English
  • (425 ratings)
(425 ratings)
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Machiavelli Audiobook Summary

Part of the acclaimed Eminent Lives series, Machiavelli is a superb portrait of the brilliant and revolutionary political philosopher–history’s most famous theorist of “warfare, terror, murder, and bloodshed”–and the age he embodied. Ross King, the New York Times bestselling author of Brunelleschi’s Dome, argues that the author of The Prince was a far more complex and sympathetic character than is often portrayed.

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Machiavelli Audiobook Narrator

Tim Reynolds is the narrator of Machiavelli audiobook that was written by Ross King

Ross King is the author of the New York Times bestsellers Michelangelo and the Pope’s Ceiling and Brunelleschi’s Dome as well as several novels. Born and raised in Canada, he lives outside Oxford, England.

About the Author(s) of Machiavelli

Ross King is the author of Machiavelli

Machiavelli Full Details

Narrator Tim Reynolds
Length 7 hours 11 minutes
Author Ross King
Publisher HarperAudio
Release date July 12, 2016
ISBN 9780062641243

Additional info

The publisher of the Machiavelli is HarperAudio. The imprint is HarperAudio. It is supplied by HarperAudio. The ISBN-13 is 9780062641243.

Global Availability

This book is only available in the United States.

Goodreads Reviews

Marks54

December 16, 2021

This is a short one volume biography by an author who has written extensively about Renaissance Florence. The main strand of Machiavelli’s life is recounted effectively. The last portion of the book covers his time out of power, during which he wrote The Prince, The Discourses, and his other classics. Ross King obviously knows a lot about Machiavelli and the literature on his life and works. He is especially effective in discussing his literary works and how they may or may not link to his political and historical works.The is a well done and easy to read biography on an exceptionally important thinker. There are other recent biographies that are more detailed and provide more analysis of Machiavelli’s ideas as expressed in his work. This biography is a really good starting point for looking at his life and works very well if an introduction to Machiavelli is sought. It is engaging and well worth reading.

MashailGhammas

October 16, 2011

"It was easy to find oneself on the wrong side of the ruler-du-jour in 16th-century Italy, which was controlled by corrupt families and defended by contract soldiers whose loyalties were readily purchased. Machiavelli ventured into this world with his diplomatic acumen, then, when he fell out of favor, turned his ambitious mind to brutal political writings, satirical plays and the occasional courtesan. A theoretician of conspiracy and duplicity, he was also a brilliant observer of his times. Sympathizing with Machiavelli, King provides a convincing portrait of one of the most misunderstood thinkers of all time. Machiavelli's writings shed a dark light on the man, but less so when set against the tapestry of Florence's Palazzo della Signoria. King's book is everything a short biography should be and more, due to King's sharp wit and zesty anecdotes: "As the document was being signed, a dove came through the window and flew over the heads of the Ten. The dove then crashed into a wall and fell dead at the feet of the Ten, but its appearance was still considered a good omen." It provides a strong sense of the history of both the man and his times and a nice introduction to Machiavelli's writings. Moreover, like one of Machiavelli's bawdy plays, it is a riveting and exhilarating read, full of salacious details and brisk prose. (June)" Publishers Weekly (Starred Review) (Copyright Reed Business Information, Inc.)

Marisa

January 06, 2014

What else can I say about Ross King's books that I haven't said already? This book, like his others, was an interesting and exciting read. I continue to be amazed at the author's detailed research, his ability to discern fact from fiction, and present the facts in a comprehensive manner that tells the whole story of the subject, their work, and the world around them.

Brock

September 25, 2008

A Fascinating book about a very misunderstood man. The Prince didn't even come out until about 200 years after his death, in fact when he was alive, few people even knew about it. He was better know for being a lower tier politician and a play write than anything else. Very intersting

Pritam

July 15, 2019

Title: Machiavelli: Philosopher of Power (Eminent Lives) Author: Ross King Price: Rs 462.39 /-Format: Kindle EditionFile Size: 547 KBPrint Length: 258 pagesPublisher: HarperCollins e-books; Reprint edition (13 October 2009)Sold by: Amazon Asia-Pacific Holdings Private LimitedLanguage: EnglishThere isn’t an uncomplicated way to initiate reviewing a book of this kind. Here stands an author, who tenders unwrapped support to politicians to take and proffer bribes, defraud, swindle, intimidate, and even slay if obligatory. Then again, one would do well to remember that ‘The Prince’ didn't see the light of day until about two centuries after the death of Machiavelli. While the foremost part of when he was alive, very few people even knew about it. Machiavelli, to the best part of the masses was a stunted, scheming politician and a second rate playwright, more than anything else. Again, in all fairness it can be said that Machiavelli left a remarkable authority on the modern age. Princes like Frederick the Great were in effect Machiavellian, although they fervidly disavowed Machiavelli. Art historian Ross King provides a venerable prologue to the life and struggles of Machiavelli. More than anything, this journalistic foreword proves to the reader that in no scheme of political philosophy the sway of milieu is furthermore apparent than in that of Machiavelli. Niccolò was by no means ceremonial. Arising out of a modest middle-class environment, he served as a diplomat for the Republic of Florence, enjoying restricted eminence as the author of coarse plays. Noverthelss, he was to the core of his heart a true Florentine, a man concerned with practical politics and the art of statecraft. In both of his celebrated works, thus, he deals with a) the rules for the acquisition, expansion and maintenance of power, b) with the causes of rise and fall of States and, c) the means by which statesmen can keep themselves in power. The subject matter of both of his books 'Prince' and 'Discourses' is thus, fundamentally the same -- the promotion of a more scientific statecraft; the art of acquiring power and the craft of retaining it.King begins his discussion with the young Machiavelli, who at the tender age of 29, in 1498, was put up as the leader of the Second Chancery. This granted him charge of the city's foreign affairs. The modern epoch in political thought was ushered in by two forces at work in Europe in the 15th century - Renaissance and Reformation. In the medieval age, people mused on matters of spirit, deliverance and God. Renaissance made ‘man’ the theme of study instead of God. However, despite the fact that renaissance had made appearance in Italy, Machiavelli's epoch was also called an epoch of "bastards and adventurers." It was a society academically brilliant and artistically ingenious, while at the same time, a casualty to the nastiest political dishonesty and relapse where not only was brutality, sly and assassination the standard method of Government, but might and dexterity were the means to triumph. King shows, how Machiavelli stood his ground until Florence was beguiled by the Medicis, who had been ousted in 1494. Machiavelli personally supervised the conscription and exercise of mercenaries in order to combat the Medicis. His army, if truth be told, was routed. With the patronage and support of the papal militia of Rome, the Medicis proved insuperable. Reclaiming Florence in 1512, they dismissed Machiavelli and may have also subjected him to physical torture. The reader would do well to remember that George Holland Sabine in his classic work ‘A History of Political Theory’ avows that Machiavelli, in an odd sense is the ‘political theorist of the masterless man’. At the head of the 16th century the monarchist retort had swept the democratic tendencies of the concilior movement. In the Church, the Pope had become absolute, while on the secular side, unlimited monarchy was overriding feudal aristocracy. It was known as ‘the period of the strong man’. Despite this, during this century, Italy was divided into five States -- Naples, Milan, Venice, Florence and the Papal State. Some of these like Venice and Florence were republics and despots ruled others. Internal anarchy was rampant. Machiavelli chose to intriguingly side with the Medicis. King shows the dynamics of the progression through which Machiavelli sucked up to the Medicis. His "The Prince" was dedicated to a Medici. King states that one of the greatest contributions of Machiavelli lies in the fact that he amalgamated political theory with political practice, following the empirical method of observation and experience. The part that the State has played in modern politics is an index of the clearness with which Machiavelli grasped the drift of political evolution. His political philosophy was realistic, mirroring the conditions of the moment. He was ready to sacrifice the peace and solidarity of humanity at the altar of an efficient national state and as such was one of those who are chiefly responsible for the growth of modern nationalism. Personally, his life was one of potholed alliances and broken commitments. His gargantuan infidelity was a source of abundant pain to his wife. Machiavelli held the Church to be principally responsible for the putrid state of affairs. He is said to have remarked: "We, Italians, owe to the Church of Rome and to her priests our having become irreligious and bad. The Church has kept and still keeps our country divided." In such times of current and cross currents Machiavelli’s contribution was the most remarkable which gave the Italian nation not only the doctrines of sustenance and predominance but lasted for along time in future political analysis. All the same, King shows that Machiavelli was not free from inconsistencies in his thought. If in accordance with Machiavelli, man is intrinsically selfish, unsocial and inept of doing good, how can he agree to lower his private interests to public interests. Moreover, the need for security (an ample cause for the State coming into existence) would barely give an explanation for its continued subsistence and ever escalating activities. In fine, King’s non-academic style of narration, underscores the verity that Machiavelli was a true Florentine nationalist with artistic designs for the republic's foreign policy in the voracious pitch of Renaissance Italy. It is an exceedingly comprehensible portrait. A 4 on 5 I’ld say.

William

September 18, 2017

Niccolo Machiavelli was a true Renaissance Man according to this volume. It is sized in such a way that it is shorter than it seems at first glance. Thus, it is simple to plow through it in a single sitting. Machiavelli's most famous work is also his most controversial. In advising Princes to ignore ethics and morality in their dealings with other nations earned him a name synonymous with evil and duplicity.Ross King's main thesis of this book is to explore the life and times of Machiavelli in order to explain his hardened stances on politics. The book illustrates the political realities of 15th century Europe quite well. With a fractured Italy and a horribly weak government, it is hardly a surprise that he supports such ideals.

Greg

December 25, 2019

I enjoyed this book. Ross King writes very well, and has a very good grasp of Machiavelli. I don't believe this book to be a scholarly contribution to the study of Machiavelli, but rather a readable summary of his life and thoughts. I've read The Prince, and was interested to learn about what created Machiavelli, and transformed him into such a reviled figure. He was an important figure, but one whom the shifting fortunes of 16th century Italy frequently cast aside. He was a womanizer, funny, and smart. He was not evil, but more a reflection of his times. I recommend this book to anyone interested in Machiavelli or the time in which he lived.

Joe

November 04, 2022

Who was Machiavelli? Was he the evil champion of murderous tyranny that we meet in The Prince or the staunch advocate of republican self-government that we encounter in his Discourses on Livy? This is the question that Ross King tries to answer in this insightful and well-honed biography. Like many Machiavelli scholars before him, King offers no definitive answer to this age-old question since Machiavelli himself is too much a bundle of self-contradiction. Nonetheless, King gives us a lively and colorful picture of the enigmatic man who all agree is history's first great political philosopher.

Niall

March 11, 2018

While not expansive on Machiavelli's actual philosophy, this is a succinct and very readable account of his life. It colourfully describes his world and the forces that helped form his thoughts. His basic humanity, nasty warts and all, is clear and confounds the traditional charicatures of evil incarnate that still persist. He was definitely no saint, but equally he was no demon. He was just a man, more accomplished in word than deed and so more liable to celebrate the imagined than the real. Anyhow whatever your thoughts on Machiavelli, this a a good overview and worth a read.

Raimo

February 11, 2022

I've enjoyed a few of King's books about history and, specifically, art history, and here he offers a very accessible biography of one of history's most notorious figures. This short bio, a contribution to an 'Eminent Lives'-series, is a whirlwind tour through the 58-yr life of a man who truly did live in interesting times. King establishes that there is more to the man than the one-dimensional characterization that has stuck, through the centuries, as a result of one of his writings.

Dave

September 15, 2020

We all know the name. I decided it was time to discover the man. He turns out to be a complex character who lived during turbulent times. Imagine knowing Leonardo da Vinci and acting as the peace broker or war monger for various tyrants , depending on circumstances while negotiating personal surviving while dealing with power crazy Popes, kings, mercenary condottieri, and other greedy leaders of city states, then one can understand how he came to write The Prince.

Kevin

August 22, 2022

Good book. It's interesting to learn of Machiavelli's life, it would have been nice to see a clearer link between his political writings and his experience. Given that he lived hundreds of years ago such specificity is hard to imagine, though. This is not to give the impression that there is no detail: much is written of Machiavelli's work as "second counselor" and the militia he created.

Charles Dusenbury

June 16, 2019

More Than the Man; A Clear HistoryA very in-depth and engaging narrative of the era, or more accurately, the several distinct eras of Florentine politics, economics and art that influenced the man Machiavelli aspired to be.

Dale

September 04, 2021

Good read

Selene

March 28, 2021

In my opinion, anything by Ross King is worth reading! I have learned so much from his well-written and fascinating biographies.

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