<em>The </em><em>Mandrake Root (La Mandragola) </em>was written by Niccolo Machiavelli in 1518. Machiavelli’s <em>Mandrake</em> is a comedic play about a young man, Callimaco, who is attracted to a young woman, Lucrezia, who is married to an older lawyer by the name of Nicia (Laine). <!--more-->The play takes place over a 24-hour time span (A.). In the play, Callimaco, a Florentine living in Paris, intends to never return to Florence due to the political turmoil that took over the city. But, hearing the tales of the beauty of a certain Lucrezia, he returns to see this woman and instantly falls in love.  With the help of his manservant Siro and the conman Ligurio, they devise a plan. Ligurio and Siro tell Nicia that Callimaco is a doctor who is specialized in fertility issues. Callimaco says that Lucrezia must drink a mandrake root potion to increase her libido, but the first man she sleeps with will die. He tells Nicia and Lucrezia she must go into the streets and find a random guy to sleep with the first time after the potion. Callimaco schemes to disguise himself as the random “victim” and a priest, Brother Timoteo, is paid to help in the scheme. Everything goes according to plan, except Callimaco reveals his love to Lucrezia and she falls for him and wants him as her full time lover (Invictus). Some of the themes evident in this piece are people’s ambition to get what they want, criticism of the church, fraud, trickery, deception, and unclear areas or morality (A.). Preservation is important because the messages revealed in the comedy can be applied to life, no matter the time period.
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At the time of this publication, the Renaissance was in full force in Europe. Progress was seen as a process of improving the lot of the individual was a valued belief during this time. Classical humanism continued to spread from the heart of Italy to Western Europe (Fiero B3.21). Despite the plague’s negative effects, Italy continued to prosper in the profits from the Crusades. Religion wise, anticlericalism and intellectual skeptism was on the rise (Fiero B3.22). Christianity was beginning to emerge because it seemed to fit the secular beliefs and desires of the rising merchant class. Politically, the Italian city-states were not united and were independent of each other (Fiero B3.22). There were many civil wars between the city-states due to disagreements. Because many who fought were professional soldiers, or condottieri, who could be bought for their service, the papacy made no effort to unify the rivaling Italian city-states. Popes became involved in the fight for political power, and there were often alliances within city-states (Fiero B3.22). Some leaders of the church of Rome became known for self-indulgence and greed and some had mistresses, led attacks on other states, and lived in high levels of luxury (Fiero B3.38).

The Medici, or wealthy banking Florentine family, eventually gained leadership of the state. They ruled Florence for four generations because the local economic stability they brought (Fiero B3.22).

This piece is typical of its era because it expresses opinions on the political, religious, and other beliefs of the public at the time. It is theorized that Nicia represents the ineffective ruling class of Florence (Invictus). The priest in the play who is obsessed with making a profit obviously correlates to the greed of the medieval Catholic Church and pope hood. Lucrezia may represent Florence, or an object being desired, who becomes prey but goes along with it anyway due to lack of other options. This could reveal Machiavelli’s frustration with the city at the time (Invictus).

There were not many comedies produced during the time <em>The Mandrake</em> was published, so this was a refreshing play. More serious literature was being published during this time period. A hilarious play commenting on the flaws of human nature and self-centeredness was highly innovative (Teuber). It revealed the great lengths a person would go through in order to get what is desired. The ideas seen in the play could be applied to life at the time; it was a unique way for comment on society.

The <em>Mandrake Root</em> was greatly accepted during the time it was first performed. It was a huge sensation when it was first staged and one show had to be stopped after the fourth act due to the tremendous reception at the amphitheater (Invictus). It was popular for many years in Italy after it was released (Teuber). It was a hysterical piece that all ages could enjoy, while at the same time, the play could be applauded by the intellectuals who caught on to the hidden messages.

Today, the play is still acknowledged for its allegorical meaning yet humorous plot. <em>The Mandrake</em> has even been the subject of a television movie in Romanian, Italian, and French productions (Invictus). Also, current stage versions have been performed recently (Invictus). If the play were not still popular, then it would not be as well known and reproduced as it is today. The themes of greed, desire, fraud, and trickery can be applied in life today, so although the original written script of the play may be lost, its plot and ideas live on.
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My personal reaction to the work was one of laughter, happiness, and interest. Once I began reading the play, I could not help but become infatuated with the piece and had to keep reading to see the outcome. I could relate to Callimaco and found myself cheering for his deceitful plan to succeed. I found the idea of greed in the play specifically meaningful. Callimaco is greedy and takes advantage of his friends and Nicia’s stupidity to get his desired Lucrezia. The priest is greedy and takes money to cover for Callimaco as he sleeps with Lucrezia. I took away that greed can be a selfish fuel for people with a large desire for something.

Machiavelli wrote a more serious piece of literature in 1513: <em>The Prince. </em>This piece expressed that the need for a strong state justified strong rule. The ruler must be cautious to whom to trust, be wise, ruthless, sustaining, and sacrificial, just to name a few qualities Machiavelli enforced (Fiero B3.39). In contrast with <em>The Mandrake, The Prince </em>was a political treatise and not a comedy at all. It was more serious and political views of Machiavelli were more obvious to the readers. <em>The Prince </em>was a favorite to many historical leaders, like Louis XIV, Napoleon Bonaparte, and Benito Mussolini. It is useful to all leaders because of the technical lessons taught (Laine).

Although written in different styles, both pieces expressed Machiavellian beliefs on politics and society in one way or another, and both are still well known pieces of literature. <em> </em>

The fact that this comedy has alternate messages hidden within the plot is significant for future generations to know about. By simply reading a piece of literature and not searching for deeper meanings to apply to one’s own life, potential personal growth will be lost for generations to come. <em>The Mandrake</em> shows that all types of literature can have deeper themes, whether it is a comedy, poem, or novel, etc. It is important for generations to see how ideas expressed through writing can be comments on the way of life during the published time period. <em>The Mandrake</em> allows us to see views on the corruption of the church, society’s flawed morals, and other ideas. <em>The Mandrake</em> should be preserved so the themes of the piece can live on and be applied to future generations.

Works Cited

A., Dr. Mike. "Summary of Machiavelli's La Mandragola." <em>Machiavelli</em>. Dr. Mike A., 2008. Web. 5 Apr 2011. &lt;http://www.emachiavelli.com/Mandrasum.htm&gt;. I received a summary of the play and background information on the play.

Fiero, Gloria K. <em>The Humanistic Tradition</em>. 6th. McGraw-Hill, 2011. B2.110-135. eBook. This is a humanities online textbook. I gathered information on Machiavelli, the Renaissance, and <em>The Prince</em> from this.

Invictus, Sol. "Everything2." <em>The Mandrake Root</em>. N.p., 11 Mar 2006. Web. 5 Apr 2011. &lt;http://everything2.com/title/The+Mandrake+Root&gt;. I gathered information on the themes of the play and a summary of the play.

Laine, Timo. "Machiavelli on the Net." <em>timoroso.com</em>. Timo Laine, 26 Oct 2007. Web. 5 Apr 2011. &lt;http://www.timoroso.com/philosophy/machiavelli/introduction#mandragola&gt;. I received a bit of information on the play itself and Machiavelli as an author.

Teuber, Andreas. "La Mandragola." <em>Niccolo (di Bernardo) Machiavelli</em>. N.p., 2010. Web. 5 Apr 2011. &lt;http://people.brandeis.edu/~teuber/machiavellibio.html#_lamandragola&gt;. I received information on how the play is perceived today and also information on Machiavelli.