PLEASE help me, The Prince and Orwell's essay? Urgent.?

Question

There is a journal question I need to respond to, and it is "What is your reaction to Machiavelli's argument?"

I have no idea what to go on. I have no reaction, do I respond with how I agree/disagree with it and why? Or is it supposed to be a more personalized answer than that?

Also, I need to respond to questions from Orwell's essay "Politics and the English Language" (the essay is ALL over the internet, and sort of short, so if anyone could take a glance at it to help me out, I'll give you best answer and the 10 pts in a heart beat).

But I basically want to know what this question is asking of me, to. Please and thank you.

"Apply Orwell's rule iv, "Never use the passive where you can use the active" (paragraph 19), to paragraph 14 of his essay. What happens when you change his passive constructions to active? Has Orwell forgotten rule iv or is he covered by rule vi, "Break any of these rules sooner than say anything outright barbarous?" "

Answer 1

So Orwell is criticizing political writing/language because it consists largely of "euphemism, question-begging and sheer cloudy vagueness." The passive voice in paragraph 14 acts as a parody of the way in which politicians passively speak and write of extremely horrifying acts such as mass murders. Orwell argues that politicians speak with way in order to defend horrific acts, which would otherwise be indefensible if told in stark terms. Thus, his rule vi. is actually the only rule that politicians follow, because they don't want to scare their constituents.