In The Prince by Niccolo Machiavelli we see that two very important criteria’s are expressed. The criteria’s that Machiavelli shows us are that a prince must always be willing to be cruel from time to time in order to be able to hold both respect and power. The second criteria is how it is much better to be feared than loved due to the fact that with fear no one dares to stand against you or your demands. Machiavelli would certainly consider Macbeth an unsuccessful prince because Macbeths need for cruelty are both self-serving and unnecessary actions taken by Macbeth himself. At this point in time in chapter 17 of The Prince Machiavelli makes a clear explanation of why a prince should be able to be cruel to his people as well as why he should…show more content… Machiavelli tells us that a prince can be cruel as long as he is able to keep his people loyal and faithful to him in order to remain with the amount of…show more content… “Therefore it is necessary for him to have a mind ready to turn itself accordingly as the winds and variations of fortune force it, yet, as I have said above, not to diverge from the good if he can avoid doing so, but if compelled, then to know how to set about it” (lines 38-42 ). Machiavelli here says that although we must keep our faith strong a prince must also learn to be lenient and change according to the situation in which he sees fit. In this scene of Macbeth we see how he has convinced two of the servants that Banquo is truly the enemy. “Rather than so, come Fate in to the list and champion me to be utterance” (3.1.70-71). Here we see that Macbeth has returned with the men who have been ordered to kill Banquo and Fleance. Although Macbeth’s faith and actions led him to become king he has reached a point where anyone who knows of his crimes will more than likely be killed and he shows that is willing to betray his own blood to achieve his