Revisiting Machiavelli
The Italian political philosopher Niccolò Machiavelli (1469–1527) is often remembered negatively as an unscrupulous political thinker. In his posthumously published work Il Principe (The Prince, 1532), he advised rulers to exercise power without regard for the lives of their enemies—or even their subjects. In his 2014 book Thoughts on Machiavelli (University of Chicago Press), Leo Strauss famously called him a “teacher of evil.”
More recently, Italian screenwriter and director Franco Bernini, in his historical novel Il trono (The Throne, Edizioni e/o 2023; Europa Editions 2024), explores how Machiavelli became the historical figure we know today.
In this Circolo Letterario, moderated by Pieranna Garavaso, professor emerita at the University of Minnesota Morris, we will first look at the historical context of Machiavelli’s political career and then consider why his thought continues to attract such enduring interest.
Don’t miss this opportunity to revisit one of Italy’s most provocative thinkers and reflect on his lasting impact.
Pieranna Garavaso is native Italian and came to the US to earn a PhD in Philosophy (at the U of Nebraska Lincoln). She taught Philosophy at the University of Minnesota Morris for 34 years. She was awarded the UMN Morris Alumni Association Teaching Award (2003), the Horace T. Morse Alumni Association Undergraduate Teaching Award (2004) and the UMN Morris Faculty Research Award (2017). Her areas of research include History of Analytic Philosophy, Philosophy of Mathematics, and Feminist Philosophies. She has published articles in Italian and English and authored, co-authored or edited several books; the last collection she has edited is the Bloomsbury Companion to Analytic Feminism (2018). As Emerita/retired she plans to devote more time to reading and discussing Italian literature.
In 2021, ICC was appointed Presidio Letterario of the Società Dante Alighieri (DA), one of the most important Italian institutions for the promotion and appreciation of Italian language and culture since 1889. ICC is now part of a network of cultural centers in Italy and abroad promoting events and initiatives related to Italian literature. Since 2009 DA has officially been part of the jury of Premio Strega, the most prestigious Italian literary award.
