MACHIAVELLI AND THE FIRST WAVE OF MODERNITY
54 Pages
1 File ▾
Presentation slides for a lecture on the "modern revolution" in thinking that occurred ca 1500 CE. A brief overview of the Medieval worldview is presented in order to highlight the order that was overturned by the moderns. Some of the historical factors contributing to the modern revolution are enumerated: linear perspective in painting, the fall of Constantinople, Gutenberg's Bible, the Voyages of Discovery, modern warfare, Luther's 95 Theses, and the Copernican revolution. The notion of "Three Waves of Modernity", as articulated by Leo Strauss, is briefly presented. Finally, the philosophy of Machiavelli is summarized as a way of understanding the modern shift in thinking. For instance, war is no longer judged as the "right" course of action if it is in accordance with a Providential design (the Medieval view); rather, war is judged as the right course of action if it advances the overall "human designs" of the Machiavellian leader.
No comments:
Post a Comment