Machiavelli, Islam and the East : Reorienting the Foundations of Modern Political Thought

This volume provides the first survey of the unexplored connections between Machiavelli’s work and the Islamic world, running from the Arabic roots of __The Prince__ to its first translations into Ottoman Turkish and Arabic. It investigates comparative descriptions of non-European peoples, Renaissance representations of Muḥammad and the Ottoman military discipline, a Jesuit treatise in Persian for a Mughal emperor, peculiar readers from Brazil to India, and the parallel lives of Machiavelli and the bureaucrat Celālzāde Muṣṭafá. Ten distinguished scholars analyse the backgrounds, circulation and reception of Machiavelli’s writings, focusing on many aspects of the mutual exchange of political theories and grammars between East and West. A significant contribution to attempts by current scholarship to challenge any rigid separation within Eurasia, this volume restores a sense of the global spreading of books, ideas and men in the past. Preface 5 Contents 7 Editors and Contributors 9 Chapter 1 Introduction: Reorienting Machiavelli 12 Part I From Readings to Readers 26 Chapter 2 Islamic Roots of Machiavelli’s Thought? The Prince and the Kitāb sirr al-asrār from Baghdad to Florence and Back 27 “The Most Popular Book of the Middle Ages”? 27 From the Reception to the Texts: Connecting The Prince and Kitāb sirr al-asrār 29 The Secret and the Secretary 34 “Let All Thy Affairs Be Strategetic and Cunning”: War and Politics 35 With Aristotle Beyond Aristotle 38 Mirrors for Princes, Mirrors for Cultures 40 Chapter 3 Turkophilia and Religion: Machiavelli, Giovio and the Sixteenth-Century Debate About War 47 Faith, Arms and Discipline 48 Imperialist Responses 53 In Giovio’s Wake 56 Admiring the Turks, Beating the Turks 59 Chapter 4 Machiavelli and the Antiquarians 71 I 71 II 72 III 72 IV 74 V 76 VI 78 VII 79 Part II Religions and Empires 86 Chapter 5 Roman Prophet or Muslim Caesar: Muḥammad the Lawgiver Before and After Machiavelli 87 Introduction: Momigliano and the Wise Men of Antiquity 87 Muḥammad, Zoroaster and Buddha 89 The Origins of Venice 93 Muḥammad Among the Caesars 95 Reading Valerius Maximus in the Renaissance 97 Muḥammad the Lawgiver After Machiavelli 99 Italian Pro-Ottoman Propaganda 102 Conclusion: Reading the Alcorano di Macometto in Seventeenth-Century Florence 104 Chapter 6 Mediterranean Exemplars: Jesuit Political Lessons for a Mughal Emperor 112 Introduction: Jesuits and Mughals 112 A Jesuit and “His” Text 118 Conclusion 131 Chapter 7 Machiavelli, the Iberian Explorations and the Islamic Empire: Tropical Readers from Brazil to India (Sixteenth and Seventeenth Centuries) 137 Machiavelli, Ancient Rome and a New Age of Empires 138 “As in Our Time the Turk Does”: Competing for the Roman Legacy 141 Thinking of the Ottoman “Great Lord” from the New World 146 Living at the Court of a Machiavellian Empire 150 Concluding Remarks 154 Part III Beyond Orientalism 161 Chapter 8 A Tale of Two Chancellors: Machiavelli, Celālzāde Muṣṭafā and Connected Political Cultures in the Cinquecento/the Hijri Tenth Century 162 Connecting Machiavelli with Celālzāde Muṣṭafā 163 Connected Lives: From Secretary to Litterateur 166 Convergences and Divergences: Virtù and ʿAḳl 170 Convergences and Divergences: Political Leadership 172 Convergences and Divergences: Religion 173 Concluding Remarks 175 Chapter 9 Machiavelli Enters the Sublime Porte: The Introduction of The Prince to the Eighteenth-Century Ottoman World 182 The Enigma of a Manuscript 183 Translating Anti-Machiavel as a Response to Stagnation? 188 Ottoman Words for European Classics 191 Conclusion: From Anti-Machiavel to Machiavelli 196 Chapter 10 Translating Machiavelli in Egypt: The Prince and the Shaping of a New Political Vocabulary in the Nineteenth-Century Arab Mediterranean 204 Mediterranean Connections 206 Travelling to the East 207 The Dragoman and The Prince 209 Creating the Language, Creating the State 213 The Prince Outside the Court: Anti-Colonial Readings 216 The Lezione Degli Antichi: A Conclusion 219 Bibliography 230 Index 257 Front Matter ....Pages i-xi Introduction: Reorienting Machiavelli (Lucio Biasiori, Giuseppe Marcocci)....Pages 1-14 Front Matter ....Pages 15-15 Islamic Roots of Machiavelli’s Thought? The Prince and the Kitāb sirr al-asrār from Baghdad to Florence and Back (Lucio Biasiori)....Pages 17-36 Turkophilia and Religion: Machiavelli, Giovio and the Sixteenth-Century Debate About War (Vincenzo Lavenia)....Pages 37-60 Machiavelli and the Antiquarians (Carlo Ginzburg)....Pages 61-75 Front Matter ....Pages 77-77 Roman Prophet or Muslim Caesar: Muḥammad the Lawgiver Before and After Machiavelli (Pier Mattia Tommasino)....Pages 79-103 Mediterranean Exemplars: Jesuit Political Lessons for a Mughal Emperor (Muzaffar Alam, Sanjay Subrahmanyam)....Pages 105-129 Machiavelli, the Iberian Explorations and the Islamic Empire: Tropical Readers from Brazil to India (Sixteenth and Seventeenth Centuries) (Giuseppe Marcocci)....Pages 131-154 Front Matter ....Pages 155-155 A Tale of Two Chancellors: Machiavelli, Celālzāde Muṣṭafā and Connected Political Cultures in the Cinquecento/the Hijri Tenth Century (Kaya Şahin)....Pages 157-176 Machiavelli Enters the Sublime Porte: The Introduction of The Prince to the Eighteenth-Century Ottoman World (Nergiz Yılmaz Aydoğdu)....Pages 177-198 Translating Machiavelli in Egypt: The Prince and the Shaping of a New Political Vocabulary in the Nineteenth-Century Arab Mediterranean (Elisabetta Benigni)....Pages 199-224 Back Matter ....Pages 225-264 This Volume Provides The First Survey Of The Unexplored Connections Between Machiavelli's Work And The Islamic World, Running From The Arabic Roots Of The Prince To Its First Translations Into Ottoman Turkish And Arabic. It Investigates Comparative Descriptions Of Non-european Peoples, Renaissance Representations Of Muḥammad And The Ottoman Military Discipline, A Jesuit Treatise In Persian For A Mughal Emperor, Peculiar Readers From Brazil To India, And The Parallel Lives Of Machiavelli And The Bureaucrat Celālzāde Muṣṭafá. Ten Distinguished Scholars Analyse The Backgrounds, Circulation And Reception Of Machiavelli's Writings, Focusing On Many Aspects Of The Mutual Exchange Of Political Theories And Grammars Between East And West. A Significant Contribution To Attempts By Current Scholarship To Challenge Any Rigid Separation Within Eurasia, This Volume Restores A Sense Of The Global Spreading Of Books, Ideas And Men In The Past.-- Lucio Biasiori, Giuseppe Marcocci, Editors. A One-day Workshop Entitled 'machiavelli, Islam And The East' Was Held At The Scuola Normale Superiore In Pisa, On 6 May 2013--page V. Includes Bibliographical References (pages 225-251) And Index. "This volume provides the first survey of the unexplored connections between Machiavelli's work and the Islamic world, running from the Arabic roots of The Prince to its first translations into Ottoman Turkish and Arabic. It investigates comparative descriptions of non-European peoples, Renaissance representations of Muḥammad and the Ottoman military discipline, a Jesuit treatise in Persian for a Mughal emperor, peculiar readers from Brazil to India, and the parallel lives of Machiavelli and the bureaucrat Celālzāde Muṣṭafá. Ten distinguished scholars analyse the backgrounds, circulation and reception of Machiavelli's writings, focusing on many aspects of the mutual exchange of political theories and grammars between East and West. A significant contribution to attempts by current scholarship to challenge any rigid separation within Eurasia, this volume restores a sense of the global spreading of books, ideas and men in the past."-- Provided by publisher