Beginner question
Is Machiavelli's The Prince worth reading?
Short answer: Yes, if you want to understand political power: it's short (151 pages in Mansfield's edition). Pick an edition with notes; our pick is Harvey Mansfield's translation (editorial), with Bondanella (Oxford) a strong alternative.
What to read with The Prince
The Prince (tr. Harvey Mansfield)
Niccolò Machiavelli
Short: 151 pages in this edition. Widely called the standard translation, with a glossary and notes.
151 pp≈4 h●○○ GentleRead this first: Chapters XV–XVIII hold the famous arguments about virtue, cruelty and keeping faith.
Edition: University of Chicago Press · ISBN 9780226500447
Discourses on Livy
Niccolò Machiavelli
The republican Machiavelli. Readers on r/books call The Prince the 'Sparks Notes' for it.
424 pp≈11 h●●● DemandingEdition: University of Chicago Press · ISBN 9780226500362
Machiavelli: A Very Short Introduction
Quentin Skinner
Context from a leading historian of political thought.
Edition not yet verified; link opens a Bookshop search.
The 48 Laws of Power
Robert Greene
Popular, not academic the modern self-help take, read best after the original.
463 pp≈12 h●○○ GentleEdition: Profile Books Ltd · ISBN 9781861972781
Best translation of The Prince
Our pick: Harvey Mansfield (University of Chicago Press). r/PoliticalPhilosophy replies call it 'the current gold standard'; the publisher quotes reviewers praising its balance of accuracy and readability. Alternatives: Peter Bondanella (Oxford World's Classics, introduction by Maurizio Viroli, based on the Inglese critical text), Russell Price (Cambridge, introduction by Quentin Skinner), and George Bull (Penguin).
Free public-domain sample (W. K. Marriott translation, Chapter XVII):
Upon this a question arises: whether it be better to be loved than feared or feared than loved? It may be answered that one should wish to be both, but, because it is difficult to unite them in one person, it is much safer to be feared than loved, when, of the two, either must be dispensed with.
Source: Project Gutenberg #1232. Mansfield is in copyright, so we don't quote it.
Where people get stuck
- Reading it without the Italian history: good editions have notes on names and events (a point made in the Philosophy Stack Exchange answer).
- Taking it as a straight 'how to be evil' manual: r/books commenters debate whether it is satire, advice or a job application to the Medici.
- Stopping at The Prince: several replies say read the Discourses on Livy for the fuller Machiavelli.
Frequently asked questions
Is The Prince worth reading?
Yes, if you want to understand political power; it's short. Our verdict is editorial; the threads we cite are broadly positive.
Is it hard to read?
The text is short; the many historical names are the hard part, so choose an edition with notes.
Does it say 'the end justifies the means'?
Not in those words. A commenter on r/PoliticalPhilosophy notes Bondanella renders the line closer to 'one must consider the final result'.