Machiavelli’s Prince writes about political philosophy as well as the ruling strategies it generates. It would be fair to say that some of his philosophy is dark and manipulative, but at the same time surprisingly “practical” or “truthful” when compared to the political reality – even though it’s six centuries later today. When he talks about how the way things ought to be is never the way things really are, and those who incline to the former would always see to his downfall, it reminds of the immoral tricks behind political campaign, with the ultimate goal of winning. When he talks about how people should either be well treated or crushed without any opportunity of revenge, the brutality within dictatorship that happened in history would come to mind. With the Republic Machiavelli painted bear in mind, it would be an alarming journey to go through the three other materials.
Schechner distinguishes make belief from make believe by pointing out the substratum that make belief can lead people into a firm prejudice that they would celebrate, advocate, or even willingly die for. These believes are not always moral and justice. On the contrary, they often are radical, contradictory and sometimes horrible. But once they align with certain mindsets, passions and demands, they become dangerously empowered, almost poisonous.
On the other hand, Kolbert’s article explains how people are bound to their own prejudice and thus overlook most evidences that suggest otherwise. It is probably the mindset passed on by evolution through a collaborative life style and has not yet been modified in time by modern social environment. This is why proper education of criticality is of great significance, which could help us tell the truth from the fake. Unfortunately, such education still might no escape the trap of “myside bias”, as human society is never about rationality and solid science. The advancement of science itself is fueled by curiosity (and probably a wish to conquer), which is, in other words, passion.
The theory and the research both help explaining how Trump emerges as a folk hero, who break the norms and moral standards but still get praised and supported. Folk hero is the natural rule breaker fighting for a greater good, where his behaviors become demonstration of might, and might becomes right, the most forceful power.