The Machiavellians cover art

The Machiavellians

Defenders of Freedom

 Preview
LIMITED TIME OFFER

3 months free
Try for £0.00
£8.99/mo thereafter. Renews automatically. Terms apply. Offer ends 31 July 2025 at 23:59 GMT.
Pick 1 audiobook a month from our unmatched collection.
Listen all you want to thousands of included audiobooks, Originals, and podcasts.
Access exclusive sales and deals.
Premium Plus auto-renews for £8.99/mo after 3 months. Cancel monthly.

The Machiavellians

By: James Burnham
Narrated by: Jeff Riggenbach
Try for £0.00

£8.99/mo after 3 months. Offer ends 31 July 2025 23:59 GMT. Cancel monthly.

Buy Now for £12.99

Buy Now for £12.99

Confirm Purchase
Pay using card ending in
Switch payment method
By completing your purchase, you agree to Audible's Conditions of Use and authorise Audible to charge your designated card or any other card on file. Please see our Privacy Notice, Cookies Notice and Interest-based Ads Notice.
Cancel

About this listen

 This classic work of political theory and practice offers an account of the modern Machiavellians, a remarkable group who have been influential in Europe and practically unknown in the United States. The book devotes a long section to Machiavelli himself as well as to such modern Machiavellians as Gaetano Mosca, Georges Sorel, Robert Michels and Vilfredo Pareto. Burnham contends that the writings of these men hold the key both to the truth about politics and to the preservation of political liberty.©1943 James Burnham (P)1998 Blackstone Audio, Inc. Logic & Language Philosophy Political Science Politics & Government Socialism Liberalism Capitalism Soviet Union Taxation Middle Ages Russia

Listeners also enjoyed...

 The White Pill cover art
Rediscovering Americanism cover art
The WEIRDest People in the World cover art
Revolt Against the Modern World cover art
Why Liberalism Failed cover art
Politics cover art
The Vision of the Anointed cover art
The Culture of Narcissism cover art
Ride the Tiger cover art
Democracy: The God That Failed cover art
The End of History and the Last Man cover art
Theory and History cover art
Values, Voice and Virtue cover art
The Creation of the American Republic, 1776-1787 cover art
Reflections on Violence cover art
On Anarchism cover art

Critic reviews

"Burnham is the greatest political analyst of our century and this is his best book." ( National Review, 100 Best Non-Fiction Books of the Century)
All stars
Most relevant  
An absolute must read for anyone trying to get a proper understanding of the fundamentals of politics. Once the truths of this book are revealed to you, you can't help but see it everywhere around you. Do yourself a favor and read this..

A must read for the politically interested

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
Great Book !
It does really put politics's and society's relationship in comprehensible perspective for a average human being.
This book should be read in high school before 18 or before someone is allowed to vote.
Thank you.

society and politics

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
I will need to return to the book again in the future as it's a lot to take in, still digesting some of the information a day on. I'm coming away from the book enlightened some what but really need to research parts myself.
Definitely worth the listen especially if you are interested in politics.

A real grind but worth it

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
A must read, of, and at, all ages, for any, and every, conscious cognoscentient human being who understands that humanity has no higher authority than humanity itself.

Read, read again, repeat.....

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
Absolutely essential reading for anyone interested in the nature of the political animal and how the world actually works.

Most important book on politics

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
Certain ideas presented in the book ring true and are worth noting. In particular: the impossibility of true Democracy, the Rulers and the Ruled. Other ideas, to me, seem unnecessarily convoluted or not especially useful.

Some ideas are valuable

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
I have heard of some of these concepts before but this book does great job of picking through the works with later real world examples.

Fascinating history.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.