Discourses on Livy · Chapter
III explained
This chapter discusses the necessity of laws to restrain human evil inclinations, using Rome's creation of the tribunes of the people as an example.
What happens
This chapter discusses the necessity of laws to restrain human evil inclinations, using Rome's creation of the tribunes of the people as an example. After the expulsion of the Tarquins, the nobles' hidden arrogance emerged, leading to conflict with the commons, which was resolved by establishing tribunes to protect the people.
Free preview opens on this chapter — companions, themes, and character notes appear beside the text.
Narrative arc
Story tension across the book — this chapter sits in Exposition.
- Setup
- Escalation
- Breaking point
- Aftermath
- Closing
The emotional and psychological peak occurs when the Claudian censor, driven by the family’s ingrained haughti…
Full beat labels and climax notes unlock in the reader.
Follow the arc while readingThemes in this chapter
- Necessity and Reason of State
The necessity of laws and institutions to compel good behavior when men are free to act on their evil inclinations.
- Class Conflict and Political Order
The conflict between the nobles and the commons after the Tarquins' expulsion, leading to the creation of tribunes.
- Historical Cyclicality and Human Nature
The assumption that all men are bad and will act on evil inclinations when unrestrained, a constant in human nature.
Characters to notice
- Tarquin
The Tarquins' presence kept the nobles in check; after their expulsion, the nobles' true nature emerged.
Key passages
“They who lay the foundations of a state and furnish it with laws must, as is shown by all who have treated of civil government, and by examples of which history is full, assume that all men are bad, and will always, when they have free field, give loose to their evil inclinations”
Founders of states and lawmakers must assume that all men are inherently bad and will act on their evil impulses when given the opportunity.
Machiavelli's foundational assumption about human nature.
“men never behave well unless compelled, and that whenever they are free to act as they please, and are under no restraint everything falls at once into confusion and disorder.”
People only behave well when forced to; without restraint, chaos ensues.
The necessity of compulsion for good behavior.
“when we do well without laws, laws are not needed; but when good customs are absent, laws are at once required.”
Laws are unnecessary when people already act well, but become essential when good customs are lacking.
The conditional need for laws based on existing customs.
