Montesquieu's anti-Machiavellian Machiavellianism

Rahe, Paul A.

doi:10.1016/j.histeuroideas.2011.01.007

Cited by 8 publications

(5 citation statements)

References 0 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…Perhaps. Montesquieu's account of the English separation of powers in 1748 (described above) resembles Machiavelli's sixteenth century analysis of the classical Roman republic, where an adversarial balance of powers loomed large (Rahe, 2011;Sullivan, 2006).…”

Section: Balance Of Strengthsmentioning

confidence: 98%

“…Montesquieu rejected Machiavelli's ferocious populism as one-sided, preferring the English system where the citizen's security is protected from all sides (and not only against the nobles). Yet Montesquieu nevertheless appreciates Machiavelli's basic insight: liberty can be protected because, and not in spite of, discord within the polity (Rahe, 2011;Sullivan, 2006).…”

Section: Balance Of Strengthsmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 1 more Smart Citation

Dividing To Conquer: Using The Separation Of Powers To Structure Institutional Inter-relations

Breakey¹

2014

Achieving Ethical Excellence

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

The separation of powers constitutes a vital feature of western democracies, enshrined in myriad federal and state constitutions. Yet, as a broad principle, theorists struggle to pin down its precise nature, and many contend that the tripartite separation of state powers into legislative, executive and judicial branches proves simplistic and infeasible. I argue we should understand the separation of powers as a strategy used to structure relations between the separated institutions. This process of structuring empowers the creation of novel interrelations among institutions (relations of balancing, checking, dividing, coordinating and so on), with the goal of improving their institutional integrity. In short, we separate only to reconnect.

show abstract

Section: Balance Of Strengthsmentioning

confidence: 98%

Section: Balance Of Strengthsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Dividing To Conquer: Using The Separation Of Powers To Structure Institutional Inter-relations

Breakey¹

2014

Achieving Ethical Excellence

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…The network's primary goal is the promotion of integrity; combating its opposite (corruption) remains a secondary and derivative, though necessary, element (Sampford, Smith, & Brown, 2005). This attention to structuring external relations to achieve institutional integrity resurrects insights dating all the way back to ideas on the separation of powers, balance of powers, and checks and balances, arising in the work of Machiavelli, Locke, Montesquieu and other early modern political theorists (Breakey, 2014a;Rahe, 2011;Sullivan, 2006;Vile, 1998;Zuckert, 2012).…”

Section: Context-integrity For Institutionsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…In either case the sub-institution may enjoy different sorts of relations with its larger regime and the other parts of that regime. As part of institutional design, the institution might relate antagonistically to other elements of the same regime, as occurs for example in some incarnations of the separation of powers (Rahe, 2011). Alternatively, the institution may have a supportive or 'associational' relation to other institutions surrounding it in the regime, with each acknowledging the others' role in securing the larger objective (Little, 2000, pp.…”

Section: Nested Institutionsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Conceptualizing Personal and Institutional Integrity: The Comprehensive Integrity Framework

Breakey¹,

Cadman²,

Sampford³

2015

Research in Ethical Issues in Organizations

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

We present a conceptual and terminological system-what we term the 'Comprehensive Integrity Framework'-capable of applying to both personal and institutional integrity, and to different levels of institutions (including sub-institutions and institutional complexes). We distinguish between three sorts of integrity: consistency-integrity (whether the agent's acts accord with her claimed values); coherence-integrity (whether the agent's character and internal constitution accord with her claimed values), and; context-integrity (whether the agent's environment facilitates her living up to her claimed values). We then employ this conceptual system to explore similarities, differences and overlaps between personal and institutional integrity, drawing in particular on moral philosophic work on personal integrity (on the one hand) and 'integrity systems' and public administration approaches to institutional integrity (on the other).

show abstract

“…The question long has called out for attention and (relative to the rest of Montesquieu scholarship) long met with silence. 1 There are exceptions, of course, but they are few (e.g., Carrese 2005;Levi-Malvano 1912;Rahe 2011;Shackleton 1964;Sullivan 2006). And none has dwelled on the matter in the way that I propose.…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Montesquieu’s (Anti-)Machiavellianism: Ordinary Acquisitiveness inThe Spirit of Laws

Hendrickson¹

2013

The Journal of Politics

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

This article dwells on what ways Montesquieu's transformative thought can be understood as an adaptation of Machiavelli's philosophy of aggrandizement. It turns especially on the question of ordinary acquisitiveness, which Montesquieu is glad to find flourishing in a world cured of Machiavellianism. But he is no simple Anti-Machiavel. Joining Machiavelli in excusing worldly acquisitiveness and facing its obstacles, Montesquieu departs from his predecessor on behalf of the ordinary individual whose wish to improve his lot in life the philosophe favors and whose security is among his first concerns. Beginning from Machiavelli's beginnings, Montesquieu moves from the grand acquirer to the ordinary and here takes Machiavellianism to a liberal conclusion. This is Montesquieu's (anti-)Machiavellianism. 1 As Carrese (2005, 122-23) notes, the view of Machiavelli as a ''pillar of the classical republican tradition'' informs the predominant understanding of the relationship. The republican reading of Montesquieu is hardly uniform; on this, see the excellent sampling of the literature in Rahe (2009, 280-81n40). 2 Citations of The Spirit of Laws (SL) refer to book and chapter, separated by a period. For all works but Mes Pensées and Le Spicele`ge, for which I have used Montesquieu (1991), I have used Montesquieu (1949). Translations are mine. 3 See Rahe (2011), who speaks of ''Montesquieu's Anti-Machiavellian Machiavellianism'' and considers Montesquieu's critique of Machiavelli in its relation to the earlier ''anti-Machiavellian Machiavellianism'' of Thomas Hobbes and Pierre Nicole, I focus on Montesquieu's pointed remarks on the Florentine. 4 On the impact of Montesquieu's tour on his thinking, see Spector (1998), who emphasizes the negative impressions of the moral effects of commerce recorded in his notebooks (e.g., Pensées, nos. 552, 592; Notes sur l'Angleterre; and Voyage de Gratz à La Haye); contrast Rahe (2009, 311n14), who finds such impressions overturned in SL. See also Haskins Gonthier (2010, 43-73) for a discussion focusing especially on England. 8 Mansfield (1979, 130), suggests that Machiavellian moderation might mean keeping extremism out of sight. 9 Carrese (2005) aptly refers to Montesquieu's ''moderated Machiavellianism,'' which he finds in the latter's separation of powers. Mansfield (1989, 213-46) similarly considers Montesquieu's constitutional moderating of Machiavellianism.

show abstract

Montesquieu's anti-Machiavellian Machiavellianism

Cited by 8 publications

References 0 publications

Dividing To Conquer: Using The Separation Of Powers To Structure Institutional Inter-relations

Dividing To Conquer: Using The Separation Of Powers To Structure Institutional Inter-relations

Conceptualizing Personal and Institutional Integrity: The Comprehensive Integrity Framework

Montesquieu’s (Anti-)Machiavellianism: Ordinary Acquisitiveness inThe Spirit of Laws

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About