In Machiavelli's The Prince, he states that it is better to be feared than loved, but that one must avoid being despised and hated. With these concepts at hand, we can compare these philosophies to one of Shakespeare's most famous plays, Macbeth. This play can be analyzed through two important characters Macbeth and Duncan. They both have their own tragic flaws and how they came to power. But Macbeth had acquired his title illegitimately. Before comparing the two characters to Machiavelli's prince, one must understand Machiavelli's views on the subject. In Chapter XVII, Machiavelli states that it is good to be both loved and feared, but that this combination is rare in a single person. Instead, he says “that every prince should desire to be considered merciful and not cruel.” However, he must be careful not to abuse this leniency. » (Machiavelli) What I believe Machiavelli was trying to say is that being both feared and loved is very rare in people. Instead, people should inspire you to be good and fair, but sometimes you have to be cruel, otherwise you won't be taken seriously. In chapter XIX, he also mentions that there is a fine line between being feared and hated. Being feared allows you to be respected by your subjects or followers. However, being too cruel to people will cause hatred to spread and do more harm than good. So by comparing Shakespeare's characters we can see that this is true. Comparing Duncan to Mercy, we can see that he was too kind to the point that he trusted everyone and developed his tragic flaw; being the inability to see beyond someone's appearance. This proves once again that Machiavelli is too nice. So when we compare Macbeth to that of Machiavelli...... middle of paper ......g fear and respect of being hated by your subjects. And when we compare his ideas to the play Macbeth, this remains true. This proves that Duncan was a merciful and kind king, but he was considered too weak and was killed by Macbeth. Macbeth was considered a respected and feared king at the time, but he had crossed the line to the point where he started killing people to get what he wanted. In return, he was eventually hated by his subjects and was eventually killed. Works Cited “Machiavelli: The Prince: Chapter XVII”. Machiavelli: The Prince: Chapter XVII. Internet. February 2, 2014. “Machiavelli: The Prince: Chapter XIX. » Machiavelli: The Prince: Chapter XIX. Np, and Web. February 2, 2014. .Shakespeare, William. The tragedy of Macbeth. New York: Washington Square, 1992. Print.