Niccolo Machiavelli's highly controversial book The Prince succeeds in allowing several oppositions to emerge. Among these oppositions include fortuna and virtu. These two terms increase the ambiguity of Machiavelli's work. By citing historical cases, this paper will define these two terms, discuss the ways in which the prince must be "virtuous" in order to respond to the challenges of fortuna, and whether any prince regardless of his virtuosity can master fortune.
At a mere glance, it seems almost impossible to define fortuna and virtu. …
