Thoreau and Machiavelli; Compare and Contrast

Henry David Thoreau and Niccolo Machiavelli are two men who have influenced some of the most influential people in the world, from Martin Luther King Jr. to Guiliano De Medici. As the two were writing to different audiences, it's easy to see why their ideologies might clash or unite.

The ideologies of Machiavelli and Thoreau unite  because both believe that the ends justify the mean. This can be seen in The Morals of the Prince when Machiavelli says “In the actions of all men, and especially of Princes who are not subject to a court of appeal, we must always look to the end.” That means the Prince must always be concerned with what the result of his actions are, not with the actual actions. This is seconded by Thoreau who writes in Civil Disobedience “If the injustice has a spring, or a pulley, or a rope, or a crank, exclusively for itself, then perhaps you may consider whether the remedy will not be worse than the evil; but if it is of such a nature that it requires you to be the agent of injustice to another, then, I say, break the law.”  Therefore if a law being abolished helps more than the process of it being abolished hurts its fine to be disobedient. That is one important similarity between the writers.

Machiavelli and Thoreau’s ideologies clash because Machiavelli believes that the government can thrive even if underhanded things are being done. On the other hand Thoreau believes that any unjust laws and government should be overthrown. For example, in Civil Disobedience, Thoreau says “Let your life be a counter friction to stop the machine” Meaning that your life and everything you have should be used as an equal and opposing force to the unjust government.  This is the complete opposite of Machiavelli who says “To preserve the state, he often has to do things against his word, against charity, against humanity, against religion. To him, making sure the country stays together is dependent on the monarch tricking the people and going back on the things that people value the most. These are two obviously different points of view, both of which found the basis of the wrtiters works.

As shown, Thoreau and Machiavelli’s ideas are similar and different in many ways. Those include many of their fundamentals. Their bases are so strong its no wonder they have survived the test of time.