Reference no: EM132873904

Question 1: One of the defining features of modern political thought is the tendency to validate and appeal to self-interest. Instead of asking readers to rise above their narrow self-interest(s) and do things for altruistic, communal, or other-directed reasons, modern political thinkers such as Machiavelli and Hobbes make arguments that build overtly on the self-interest of their readers. Discuss the role of self-interest in Machiavelli's Prince and Hobbes's Leviathan by addressing the following questions: How do these two thinkers define the self-interest of their intended audience and what role does self-interest play in their overall arguments? To whose interests do Machiavelli and Hobbes appeal (i.e., who is their intended audience?)? How does each thinker define self-interest? Does each thinker simply take self-interest as a given, or does he seek to transform the way his readers understand their own self-interest? What is the significance of self-interest in the larger argument of each thinker?