NICCOLÒ MACHIAVELLI IN THE GENERATION OF IDEAS ON PERSONALITY SELF-PRESENTATION

Abstract

The article notes that under conditions of information-communicative transformations, philosophers are increasingly focused on the thorough study of models for managing social relations and organizing human interactions – from everyday life to the digital sphere – by examining those cultural and civilizational coordinates that rely not on coercion but on persuasion, symbolic communication, and socio-psychological mechanisms. It is shown that among such practices a special place is occupied by the phenomenon of personal representation, not only in terms of an external “wrapper,” but in terms of creating a complex semiotic system through which institutions, collectives, and individuals – as visual agents and actors – interact with one another, generating trust, strong reliability, and a sense of security in response to their activity. In contemporary discursive practices, this refers to image. It is noted that today image is increasingly regarded as symbolic personal capital: a resource that provides opportunities for advancement, access to social prestige, and effectiveness of activity in the political, economic, and scientific spheres. In this sense, image ceases to be a secondary episode of PR practices and becomes an element of professional competence: the ability to communicate and maintain a reputation becomes a component of the qualification of managers, politicians, and specialists in various fields, where the presentation of a socially active individual occupies a defining place. In the article, it is demonstrated that the ideas of the outstanding Renaissance thinker Niccolò Machiavelli gain renewed relevance, alongside the interpretation of his thoughts within the new realities of the digitalization of social space. Additionally, it is emphasized that the analysis of image in the context of contemporary transformations goes beyond purely communicative studies and becomes part of a broader humanitarian problematics, related to personal self-identification, mechanisms of social recognition, and ways in which individuals interact with visually saturated environments. It is also argued that image, as an element of social presence, shapes a particular type of cultural sensitivity, in which rational strategies of impression management are combined with the emotional responses of audiences. In this context, it is also important to consider the dynamics of institutional roles, which influence the formation of social expectations and interaction practices. This combination facilitates a rethinking of Machiavelli’s classical political concepts, opening the possibility for their adaptation to the mediatized culture of the 21st century and new forms of digital communication.