Machiavellis Political Philosophy and Jamaican Politics

Author: AR Robinson
Objective: The objective of the paper is to analyze the impact that
Machiavellianism has had on Jamaican politics. Machiavellianism is the
belief that having power is the basis of legitimacy and not the morality of
the leader. This is a relevant topic as this philosophy has been expressed
throughout Jamaican history.

Content: The main philosophical argument of my work is that this

philosophy has undermined Jamaican politics because its emphasis on
power at the expense of morality has led to stagnation, corruption and neocolonialism. My sources of information are Machiavellis The Prince,
historical texts, journal articles, newspapers, and a priori reasoning.

Results: My findings are that this came to be the case as Jamaica failed to
come up with a relevant political philosophy after independence but largely
copied Britain, thus leading to the Machiavellian drive for power as being
the only real motive. It follows then that an understanding of Machiavelli is
vital to the crafting of legislation and policies to counter Machiavellian
politics. I would conclude that Jamaican politics needs to be reinvented in

order for us to experience true prosperity with the use of Machiavellian

thought.

Key terms: Machiavelli, is/ought distinction, Westminster system, moralism,

legitimacy, power, authority