According to Leo Strauss, Niccolò Machiavelli formulated his innermost thought in his little, ironical work The Life of Castruccio Castracani. In the first place, this paper analyzes the philosophical depth of this Straussian statement, focusing on the singular character of Thoughts on Machiavelli as a whole (§§1-2). Secondly, it investigates the argument of the action of Machiavelli's historical fiction, which portrays a quite unsung 14th century Italian tyrant (§§3-5). Lastly, it presents an interpretive account of Castruccio's sayings (§6). This paper aims to show how The Life of Castruccio Castracani conveys Machiavelli's teaching on the limits of politics, and his real thought concerning the relation between virtue, necessity, and chance.
L'armatura del filosofo. Leo Strauss e la Vita di Castruccio Castracani
Marco Menon
2016-01-01
Abstract
According to Leo Strauss, Niccolò Machiavelli formulated his innermost thought in his little, ironical work The Life of Castruccio Castracani. In the first place, this paper analyzes the philosophical depth of this Straussian statement, focusing on the singular character of Thoughts on Machiavelli as a whole (§§1-2). Secondly, it investigates the argument of the action of Machiavelli's historical fiction, which portrays a quite unsung 14th century Italian tyrant (§§3-5). Lastly, it presents an interpretive account of Castruccio's sayings (§6). This paper aims to show how The Life of Castruccio Castracani conveys Machiavelli's teaching on the limits of politics, and his real thought concerning the relation between virtue, necessity, and chance.I documenti in IRIS sono protetti da copyright e tutti i diritti sono riservati, salvo diversa indicazione.
