Moses´'s New Orders and the Grandi: Machiavelli on Combating Envy
Abstract
In both The Prince and Discourses on Livy, Machiavelli associates the resistance to the introduction of new orders with envy. Although in none of these he offers a systematic treatment of envy, from its use in specific textual contexts its possible to extract important theoretical consequences, particularly in regard with the maintenance of new institutions. Especially relevant in this sense is his interpretation of the golden calf episode in the Bible (Discourses, III, 30), an event he interprets as a rebellion against Moses motivated by envy. From a “judicious” reading of this passage, I suggest, one can derive two conclusions: that the enemies of the Mosaic institutions were the “few” and that the only way to fight the envious is by arming the people.
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