The Dialogue in Hell between Machiavelli and Montesquieu

Book Review The Dialogue in Hell between Machiavelli and Montesquieu Maurice Joly, translated from the French and with commentary by John S. Waggoner 2002, Lexington Books $29.95, paperback Let me start by saying this work is not for the optimist, but if you are looking for an intellectually stimulating and thought provoking book, this is the ticket. The work weaves together the mindsets of Montesquieu and Machiavelli as they argue about the future of self-rule and republican government from their less than comfortable seats in Hell. As you work your way through the sheer volume of ideas contained in this work you are bound to experience a growing respect for the ideologies of Machiavelli. Not so much because you think he is right but because you will slowly began to realize the extent to which his thoughts have influenced the world today. Before I go further it is also worth noting the story behind the publication of this book in its current form. Originally published in France in 1864, as the Dialogue aux Enfers entre Montesquieu and Machiavelli (Dialogue in Hell between Montesquieu and Machiavelli) the work was written by Maurice Joly as a satire of the "Machiavellian" Regime of Napoleon III. The work was written as an imaginary dialogue between the 18th century French philosophical historian, Montesquieu who represented classical liberal ideology and the 15th/16th century Italian statesman, Machiavelli who represented cynical political expediency and sly despotism. Despite, or perhaps because of the insightfulness of the book, its publication did not sit well with Louis Napoleon and the work had to be published first in Geneva in 1864, and later in Belgium. The work was confiscated as soon as it appeared in France. Eventually Joly was arrested and served fifteen months in prison for his thinly veiled criticisms of Louis Napoleon's rein. This turn of events began a succession of failures in Joly's life that eventually led to his suicide in 1879. Ironically Joly died without knowing that his book would go on to achieve a kind of perverse immortality. After Joly' s death his original work was revived and widely read, but in a monstrous new form. Although the original (and current) work had nothing to do with race or religion, it was altered and republished so it became an instrument of prejudice and persecution. In this form the book was known as The Protocols of the Elders of Zion and it became one of the most inflammatory and diabolical forgeries in history. The work was used to propagate the belief that the Jews were plotting world domination, and thus the need to oppress them as a race. To achieve this goal, all of Joly's references to "France" were changed to "Zion" and all references to the "Emperor" became "We the Jews". As a result, Joly's original work that was intended to be a tool to oppose repressive government became an instrument of oppression itself. Given such a history it is refreshing to see the current addition of Joly's work restored to its original purpose of warning all of us about the dangers that free government faces, not from foreign governments but from within. …