A Realist

Many of the articles we read deemed Machievelli to be an undervalued thinker during his times. Even when he started getting attention most of it was in a negative light and was associated with misuse of power to further one's own grip. It came out of a time where the Catholic Church was slowly losing hers, so at least in their eyes the ideas that possibly spurred King Henry VIII's actions were seen to be the most vile. I believe that his work still has its place in today's world when we look at all the dictatorships that exist and how they behave as well as our own politics here at home with Karl Rove posse or the NSA leaks stirring up fear about how much privacy exists anymore.  Even characters from TV shows exhibit the Machievellian qualities that make them our favorite anti-heroes so it's not all bad. Kevin Spacey in the House of Cards series is a prime example. The history behind his works and how perspectives changed to appreciate them over time makes me wonder which great thinkers are we ignoring right now?