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- Title
Anti-Machiavel: Boken som ikke kunne bestemme seg.
- Authors
NORDBØ, THORBJØRN
- Abstract
This article treats the various editions of Frederick the Great's (and Voltaire's) book Anti-Machiavel in the 18th century. The text under attack, The Prince of Machiavelli, was printed in Anti-Machiavel as well, together with other paratexts that argue the case of one of the parties. Machiavelli's view is, in the majority of editions, presented in such a way that it remains unclear which of the two texts that is privileged. This article looks at the history of Anti-Machiavel, as well as book history in general, to give an answer to why the 18th century editions are printed in such a way that the book qua book (in most cases), gives no final answer to which of the authors are right. It concludes that it is precisely the tension in Anti-Machiavel - both the fact that it contains two diametrically contradictory texts, and the paratexts that contradict each other - had a commercial value for the printers, and an intellectual value for the readers in the Enlightenment. The inherent tension between the two texts seems to be the actual aim of the parallel editions.
- Subjects
HISTORY of the book; VOLTAIRE, 1694-1778; FREDERICK II, King of Prussia, 1712-1786; MACHIAVELLI, Niccolo, 1469-1527; ENLIGHTENMENT; PRINCES; EIGHTEENTH century
- Publication
Slagmark, 2022, Issue 86, p33
- ISSN
0108-8084
- Publication type
Article