Lao-tzu and Machiavelli
Lao-tzu and Machiavelli wrote essays on what a leader should do to lead his country. They both believed their own notions were correct. Lao-Tzu's idea of peace is very appealing and Machiavellis thoughts on keeping the country armed in times of peace just in case sounds very secure. Both of them were wealthy men with links to royalty. Lao-Tzu lived with an emperor and Machiavelli was an aristocrat. Their opinions, on the other hand, were as different as night and day. But who was right? Was Lao-Tzu correct advising everyone to lay down their weapons and love their fellow man? Or was Machiavelli ahead of his time knowing that one should remain armed if one wants to keep the country secure? Lao-Tzu had a peaceful outlook on life. He believed in total and complete pacifism. No human being should be cruel, use weapons, or become a soldier. For this, they would have to lay down all weapons and put themselves at the mercy of others. In modern times, this sort of life would be next to impossible to come by. Humans are, by nature, too violent and suspicious of his fellows to even conceive of putting his weapons down. An example of this is the early invasion of Africa by the slave traders. Many peaceful villages were deci
The idea of not being completely truthful, is the only point on which the two writers agree. Lao-Tzu mentions ~{!0~}throw away holiness and wisdom, and people will be a hundred times happier.~{!1~} Both of these men thought that keeping the populace in the dark was a good idea. It is true to this day. If America was going to be bombarded by nuclear warheads, the president would probably not get onto national television and let the people know what was about to befall them. Panic and riot would ensue and it would be a horrible mess. Leaving them in the dark, means that peace would ensue until they were obliterated. On the other hand, the ideas and thoughts of Machiavelli are practiced to this day. His idea to arm oneself, just in case, is mimicked by every major power in the world. He thought that to leave oneself open, one would invite others to take lands and wealth not belonging to them. America and the communist Soviet Union, until recently, had kept themselves armed to the teeth for fear that the other would either invade or blow its enemy to smithereens. The idea of pacifism was alien to the both of them. If they disarmed, the populace might think that the government could not protect the country. The unrighteous would come out of hiding and riots would ensue. More force would be needed to quell the people then before, completely negating the idea of a peaceful community. mated because they did not believe in fighting. They also believed that the sl
Some common words found in the essay are:
Soviet Union, Lao-tzu Machiavelli, Lao-Tzu~/~s Maybe, slave traders, ideas machiavelli, peaceful world, machiavelli writes, peaceful community, lay weapons, lao-tzu peaceful,
Approximate Word count = 1000
Approximate Pages = 4 (250 words per page double spaced)
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