Art of War by Niccolo Machiavelli

Niccolo Machiavelli understood the relationships between politics and war very well, and believed that there was a causal relationship between these two crucial pillars of society. An examination of the author's 16th century text, The Art of War, readily demonstrates as much. In Machiavelli's view, war was an essential function of politics as manifested by the state. As such, the author had very opinionated beliefs about what sort of state could optimize the function of war, what sort of effect a state had on its soldiers, and how the political virtues exemplified by the state would inherently affect its soldiers and war prospects. Within this text the author emphasizes the value of politics in terms of its effect on creating a desirable state entity, while arguing that war is nothing more than a function of the state and its politics/political agenda.

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