Belfagor: The Devil Who Took a Wife

Written by Niccolò Machiavelli

Narrated by Deaver Brown

Belfagor is the single novella remaining of Machiavelli’s works. It was considered one of the finest of the period. Machiavelli was considered a skilled storyteller by all who knew him for, after all, stories form the basis of his most famous work, The Prince, and others: The Art of War and Discourses. His comic play The Mandrake Root was a spectacular success. Listen to and read all of these works to understand Machiavelli best.
"Belfagor" is a compact version of lessons from The Prince. In it, Pluto wants to figure out if sinners coming to him are correct in saying it was all their wives' fault. Belfagor is selected to go into the world and find out. Belfagor marries a beautiful woman who bankrupts him through extravagance and demands to fund her family. Belfagor must escape his creditors. A peasant with great cunning saves him and himself, and they avoid prison and hanging.
Professor Donald Fleming, a noted Harvard cultural historian said, "I encourage my students to read and write about five works of an author. It rounds out their thinking and avoids pigeonholing them. Once they have read Mark Twain's "Puddenhead Wilson" or Fitzgerald's Tender is the Night or Willa Cather's Alexander's Bridge, they know far more about the author. But after the third, fourth, and fifth books, they really know." So Simply has recorded five by Machiavelli: the witty Belfagor, the comic Mandrake Root, the shrewd Discourses, the wise Art of War, and his masterpiece, The Prince.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Simply Magazine Inc.
• Release date: Apr 4, 2011
• ISBN: 9781614960225

Niccolò Machiavelli

Niccolò Machiavelli (1469-1527) was an Italian diplomat, philosopher and writer during the Renaissance era. Machiavelli led a politically charged life, often depicting his political endorsements in his writing. He led his own militia, and believed that violence made a leader more effective. Though he held surprising endorsements, Machiavelli is considered to be the father of political philosophy and political science, studying governments in an unprecedented manner that has forever shaped the field.

Reviews for Belfagor

[stephanie pankiewicz · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

short and funny. worth the 30 minutes.

[vikx02 · Rating: 1 out of 5 stars]

As with most of Deaver Brown's renditions, this one is really bad.

[Andrea Barberis · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I loved the intro push to get to know the authors more through 5 books.
Although the narrator could work on his pronounciation of names etc, the book was well paced and and easy listen.