Machiavelli as a dramatist the ultimate symbol of virtú in "Mandragola", as a ‘self-portrait’ of Machiavelli. Ligurio assembles the spectrum of schemes in the play, from the Mandrake potion, to Frate Timoteo's assistance, to Callimaco's disguise and capture by Nicia. Though every character in the play participates in some form of a manipulative act, Ligurio stands out because of his impressive adaptability to tribulations. Even more extraordinary is Ligurio's aptitude for judging human character. This comprehension of character is the type of awareness that is necessary for successful acts of manipulation. One of the many places we experience Ligurio's qualitative insight is in his
Niccolò Machiavelli only one month after Savonarola's execution. Major characters include Lorenzo de' Medici, his son Piero, Michelangelo, Sandro Botticelli, Pico della Mirandola, Marsilio Ficino, Pope Alexander VI (Rodrigo Borgia), Cesare Borgia (model for The Prince), Piero and Tommaso Soderini, Il Cronaca and the diarist, Luca Landucci. The American rapper Tupac Shakur studied Machiavelli while in prison and became greatly influenced by his work. Upon his release from prison, Tupac honored Machiavelli in 1996 by changing his own rap name from 2Pac to Makaveli. In the 1993 crime drama "A Bronx Tale", local mob boss Sonny tells his young protege Calogero that