Final answer:
Machiavelli's The Prince depicts how a skillful archer compensates for wind, suggesting rulers should adjust to fortune with wisdom. Fortune and merit together aid new princes, who must balance innovation with popular sentiment. Once in power, a prince should secure their position through strategic actions and avoid being despised.
Step-by-step explanation:
Understanding Machiavelli's The Prince
In The Prince, the skillful archer analogy represents the idea that a prudent ruler, like a skilled archer, must aim for a target and adjust his aim according to the strength of the wind. Machiavelli uses this analogy to suggest that a wise ruler should have the foresight to compensate for the unpredictability of fortune while progressing towards their goals.
Machiavelli posits that fortune and merit are interconnected in the ascent of new princes. Fortune may provide opportunities, but it is ultimately one's merit, in the form of wisdom, virtue, and shrewdness, that enables a prince to seize and maintain power.
The relationship between a new prince, innovation, and the multitude is quite delicate. Machiavelli suggests that, while innovations may help consolidate power, a prince must be cautious not to alienate the established order and the general populace to the point of inciting rebellion.
Once in power, Machiavelli advises a new prince to establish authority swiftly and effectively. This includes securing his position by building alliances, enforcing discipline, and stabilizing the state against internal and external threats. A prince must be both loved and feared but should always avoid being despised.