# XXI: How a Prince Should Conduct Himself So as to Gain Renown explained — The Prince

> Chapter companion for The Prince by Niccolò Machiavelli.

## What happens

Machiavelli advises that a prince gains renown through great enterprises and decisive alliances, avoiding neutrality. He uses Ferdinand of Aragon as a model for using religion and war to build power. The chapter also emphasizes the importance of patronizing the arts, encouraging commerce, and entertaining the people while maintaining princely dignity.

## Themes in this chapter

### Acquisition and Maintenance of Power

Ferdinand of Aragon's rise from an insignificant king to the foremost in Christendom through calculated enterprises.

### Pragmatism Over Morality

Advocacy for decisive alliances and the rejection of neutrality as a practical necessity, even if it means choosing the lesser evil.

### The Importance of Public Perception

The prince must show himself a patron of ability, encourage commerce, and entertain the people to gain renown.

### The Use of Cruelty and Clemency

Ferdinand's 'pious cruelty' in driving out the Moors is cited as an admirable example of using harsh measures under a religious pretext.

## Character check-ins

### Ferdinand of Aragon

Presented as a model new prince who rose to prominence through great enterprises, using religion as a cloak for his actions.

### Antiochus

Mentioned in the historical example of the Aetolians and the Achaeans, illustrating the folly of neutrality.

### The Prince

The central subject of the chapter, receiving advice on how to gain renown through decisive action and patronage.

## Key lines

> Nothing makes a prince so much esteemed as great enterprises and setting a fine example.

A prince earns respect through ambitious undertakings and exemplary conduct.

_Opening statement establishing the chapter's core thesis._

> He can almost be called a new prince, because he has risen, by fame and glory, from being an insignificant king to be the foremost king in Christendom.

Ferdinand of Aragon is nearly a new prince, having ascended from obscurity to become the leading monarch in Christendom through fame and glory.

_Characterization of Ferdinand as a model for new princes._

> Never let any Government imagine that it can choose perfectly safe courses; rather let it expect to have to take very doubtful ones, because it is found in ordinary affairs that one never seeks to avoid one trouble without running into another; but prudence consists in knowing how to distinguish the character of troubles, and for choice to take the lesser evil.

No government should expect perfectly safe choices; instead, it must accept uncertain ones, as avoiding one problem often leads to another. Prudence lies in recognizing the nature of troubles and choosing the lesser evil.

_Key advice on decision-making under uncertainty._

> A prince ought also to show himself a patron of ability, and to honour the proficient in every art.

A prince should act as a patron of talent and honor experts in all fields.

_Advice on cultivating a reputation for supporting the arts and skills._

## Links

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