Question

read the passage from chapter 17 of the prince.
therefore a prince, so long as he keeps his subjects united and loyal, ought not to mind the reproach of cruelty, because with a few examples he will be more merciful than those who, through too much mercy, allow disorders to arise, from which follow murders or robberies; for these are wont to injure the whole people, whilst those executions which originate with a prince offend the individual only.
what meaning is emphasized by the use of the words merciful and mercy in the passage?
○ machiavelli suggests that the cruel prince would like to be more merciful.
○ machiavelli forces readers to carefully consider the meanings of the words merciful and mercy.
○ machiavelli forces readers to decide whether executions and robberies are acceptable.
○ machiavelli is giving both mercy and merciful a more negative connotation.

Explanation:

The passage argues that excessive mercy from a prince leads to widespread harm (murders, robberies) that hurts the whole populace, while targeted "cruelty" (executions) only harms individuals. This frames overly merciful acts as harmful, giving the words "merciful" and "mercy" a negative connotation here. The other options are incorrect: the text does not say cruel princes want to be more merciful, nor does it focus on making readers debate word meanings or acceptability of crimes directly.

Answer:

D. Machiavelli is giving both mercy and merciful a more negative connotation.