The correct answer is D. Niccolò Machiavelli.
Niccolò Machiavelli was an Italian diplomat, politician, historian, philosopher, humanist, writer, playwright and poet of the Renaissance period. He was for many years an official in the Florentine Republic, with responsibilities in diplomatic and military affairs. He was a founder of modern political science, and more specifically political ethics. He also wrote comedies, carnival songs, and poetry. His personal correspondence is renowned by Italian scholars. He was Secretary to the Second Chancery of the Republic of Florence from 1498 to 1512, when the Medici were out of power. He wrote his masterpiece, The Prince, after the Medici had recovered power and he no longer held a position of responsibility in Florence.
The Prince is a political treatise by Niccolò Machiavelli. The work is not a systematic treatise on statecraft, but rather a collection of 18 “rules” and an introduction to the topic of how to acquire and maintain political power. The Prince was written by Machiavelli during the Italian Renaissance, and it is considered one of the most influential works of political philosophy ever written.
The Prince is divided into 26 chapters. The first 11 chapters discuss the different types of principalities and how they can be acquired. The next 15 chapters discuss how a prince can maintain his power. The final chapter discusses the role of fortune in human affairs.
The Prince has been interpreted in many different ways. Some scholars have seen it as a cynical work that advocates the use of any means necessary to achieve power. Others have seen it as a work of satire that is meant to be read ironically. Still others have seen it as a work of political realism that offers a realistic assessment of the nature of power.
Regardless of how it is interpreted, The Prince is a powerful and influential work that has had a profound impact on political thought.