In his political science classic, The Prince , Niccolo Machiavelli gives a realistic portrayal of his ideas on how to become and remain an effective ruler. Throughout the book, Machiavelli repeatedly says that one characteristic a successful prince must have is prudence, in all decisions and actions. In chapters 22 and 23 of his classic work, Machiavelli specifically addresses the importance of having prudence in choosing worthy counselors and in keeping them loyal. This decision should be, as he says in the first line of the chapter, “of no small importance” to a prince.

The first point Machiavelli makes in chapter 22 is that a prince’s wisdom is often judged by the competency of his advisors. As proven by the example given in the text, this concept was quite true five hundred years ago and is also true today, in politics and other arenas. The prince of Siena, Pandolfo Petrucci, was judged “to be a most worthy man” because of the wisdom of his minister (pg 92). Even today, world leaders are often judged by the officers that surround them. Recently, President George W. Bush was viewed negatively because of his refusal to release his unpopular Secretary of Defense. Machiavelli goes further with this observation, stating that there are three “kinds of brains” (pg. 92): one that is capable of understanding on its own, one that cannot comprehend ideas independently but can see others’ ideas and understanding, and the useless brain, the one that can neither understand by itself or through others.

This classification of different types of minds emphasizes Machiavelli’s belief that a prince’s most important attribute is intellect: if not enough to understand all things by himself, he should at least have enough intelligence to appoint wise advisors and have the intelligence to understand their ideas. Later, in chapter 23, Machiavelli again revisits the concept of intellect. A prince who has not intelligence will be unable to choose good advisors, to distinguish their good advice from poor advice, and in fact, unable to understand advice at all. Machiavelli goes so far as to say that a prince will be unable to maintain control over his state if he does not have intelligence.

While Machiavelli writes that choosing a counselor is vital for a successful prince, he also goes into depth about how to keep advisors loyal and faithful. He writes that a minister is untrustworthy when he is “thinking more of himself than of you” and “in all actions looking for something useful to himself” (pg. 93). Naturally, an advisor who thinks more of himself and his own ends is dangerous both to the ruler and to the state. Interestingly, Machiavelli doesn’t mention the state in this paragraph. The advisor is either loyal to the prince or self-centered. It seems that the best type of advisor would be one who is loyal and faithful to the state, rather than simply to only the ruler. In modern political thought, the welfare of the citizens and the state as a whole is undoubtedly more important than one man’s power.

In the United States, for instance, the government is “by the people” and “for the people.” This is in direct conflict with Machiavelli’s political ideas: namely, that a person’s gaining and keeping power is more important than the people’s wellbeing and satisfaction. It follows with the rest of The Prince and Machiavelli’s political theory, however. The advisor is only worthy as long as he is useful to the prince; as long as he “never think[s] of himself but always of the prince” and “never remember[s] anything that does not pertain to the prince” (pg. 93).

Machiavelli continues in chapter 23 with more advice on how to relate to counselors. In addition to keeping advisors honest and trustworthy, he writes that it is necessary for a ruler to take steps to avoid becoming a victim to flattery from his officers. Machiavelli relates that this is a common problem among courts of his time. Flattery, in different forms, has been prevalent among men throughout history. Even today, men and women in office are seduced with compliments and, in some cases, bribes. Human nature gives us pleasure in being courted with flattery. This flattery can be interpreted as a vice of the previously mentioned selfish counselors who put themselves before the prince. A ruler’s advisors could feel the need to flatter him for many reasons, such as fear in relating the truth of a situation or to secure their own self-interests.

Machiavelli presents an interesting approach to the defense of this “plague” (pg. 93). His solution is to give to certain wise men the “freedom to speak the truth to him, and of those things only that he asks about and nothing else” (pg. 94). Giving men license to speak their mind would perhaps eliminate one of their excuses for excessive flattery; they would no longer need to worry about pleasing the prince for their own sake. But, as Machiavelli writes, “when everyone can tell you the truth, they lack reverence for you” (pg. 94). If everyone realizes they can tell the ruler whatever they choose, they will lose respect for his position and title and perhaps even begin to besiege the prince with useless or unwarranted information. This is combated by allowing only the wisest to speak the truth and even then, only when solicited directly by the prince. This way, the most important advisors to the prince would feel confident in giving their honest opinion on matters asked about. They would still be respectful, however, because they would only be able to give advice if asked for it, and would recognize the prince’s prerogative to ignore them completely.

Machiavelli next emphasizes the importance of, once having received honest advice from well-chosen, trusted advisors, making a swift and “obstinate” decision. This action serves to further improve the ruler’s image. His advisors would realize their advice is still only advice, and that they hold no immediate sway with the prince. He will not be coerced or bribed into making a decision contrary to what he desires or into vacillating in his decision. The people he rules would form a low opinion of him as well, which would only further the discord within the state. As Machiavelli states earlier in the work, a prince does not need his people to love him; rather, he only needs to pursue their fearful reverence and the avoidance of total hatred. A prince who vacillates would be perceived as a weak and a poor ruler, which is not hatred, but is certainly not the respect and reverence a prince deserves.

Machiavelli concludes his teachings on choosing counselors with the idea that “good counsel, from wherever it comes, must arise from the prudence of the prince, and not the prudence of the prince from good counsel” (pg. 95). This suggests that good counsel should never be absolutely necessary; that a prince should not have to rely on his advisors for wisdom and intelligence. A good prince must have the prudence to choose good counselors and the intelligence to keep them loyal and honest. They are worth keeping only as long as they keep the prince’s best interests in mind. A prince must be able to keep them at arm’s length: not too influential, intrusive, selfish, disrespectful, or flattering, and must, once again, maintain all aspects of his court and principality through any means necessary, including manipulation and cruelty.