Question

What reasoning does Machiavelli use in this passage?

Machiavelli uses deductive reasoning by first introducing the conclusion that new rulers must be cruel and then supporting it with evidence.
Machiavelli uses deductive reasoning by starting with statistical evidence and then concluding that rulers must be cruel.
Machiavelli uses inductive reasoning by first presenting an observed pattern of details and then concluding that new rulers must be cruel.
Machiavelli uses inductive reasoning by starting with the conclusion that new rulers must be cruel and then supporting it with short narratives.

Answer 1

The third option.

Machiavelli gathers specific historical examples and patterns (short narratives of rulers’ actions) and from those particulars generalizes that new rulers must be cruel when necessary—that is inductive reasoning.