Profiles of Power

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Profiles of Power: Philosopher-Kings, Princes, and Supermen examines the concept of "power" in the form of three iconic personifications: Plato's Philosopher-king, Machiavelli's Prince, and Nietzsche's Superman. It demonstrates how these thinkers' response to power was determined by their investigation of the fundamental nature of humankind, the limits of human understanding, and the question of whether the universe is a rationally ordered domain or an unscripted chaos. Given the widely variant settings in which these men lived, their responses are understandably diverse. But author M.A. Soupios suggests that at least one concern unites their thoughts and purposes: that dangerous times necessitate the services of rarefied human types, and that charismatic leadership is a necessary countermeasure against the dissolute tendencies of culture and community. As Soupios argues, it is specifically in these salvational terms that the celebrated power archetypes advanced by Plato, Machiavelli, and Nietzsche must be understood.