Machiavelli in Context | Was Machiavelli a Machiavellian? (Lecture 24)

Lecture 24: The title question sounds like a silly tautology. However, given what the word Machiavellian has often come to mean in American political discourse, it is an important question.

Some important points to consider after having examined the life and writings of Machiavelli are the following:
(1) Is the way people commonly think of Machiavelli today fair? If not, then what is the value in trying to reread and rethink what he wrote?
(2) Beyond the oft-perceived legacy of Machiavelli as a counselor to dictators, how has the thought of Machiavelli contributed to the development of republican theory and practice?
(3) If indeed Machiavelli is an important republican thinker, how can the study of his works today further our understanding of mixed and balanced government?
(4) Why is Machiavelli such a vital model, even after five centuries?

Recommended Readings:
Article by Quentin Skinner, in Machiavelli and Republicanism, Gisela Bock, Quentin Skinner, and Maurizio Viroli, et al., eds., pp. 293–309.