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A review by leelulah
The Book of the Courtier by Baldassare Castiglione
2.0
It's useful but it's way too archaic to keep the reader engaged. The structure of dialogues is reminisccent of The Decameron. But the conversation goes on forever and ever. Instead of being a monologue of Castiglione making explicit the things he expects of courtiers, of ladies of the court, and of the role of courtiers before princes, he makes his characters go on and on forever about it.
Since the Duke is ill, they propose a game, which the Duchess will command, and in a number of nights they'll discuss these qualities required. The book is full of typical Renaissance topics: casual anti-clericalism, humanist hope in the knowledge of man, appreciation for stoic philosophy, trivial observations about women, disscussions about the nature of women (whether they're bad or good), a justification of adultery in cases of unfair marriage (only for women).
Humanists saw God and nature as two separate concepts, but nature being a servant of God, and how important is for the courtier to be a knowledgeable man who avoids every form of affectation, educates himself in the use of the word, letters and the use of arms, while having hobbies typical of royalty such as hunting, and the study of classics. The known issue in Don Quixote, is a central part here, but of course, the Knight's discourse is much more elaborated and convincent. So, thanks for the nice influence in Cervantes, but I really can't say this is as much of a masterpiece as it is made out to be. Sometimes, like this book mantains, disciples are even better than the master because their influences come more from their own good intellect and judgement.
Since the Duke is ill, they propose a game, which the Duchess will command, and in a number of nights they'll discuss these qualities required. The book is full of typical Renaissance topics: casual anti-clericalism, humanist hope in the knowledge of man, appreciation for stoic philosophy, trivial observations about women, disscussions about the nature of women (whether they're bad or good), a justification of adultery in cases of unfair marriage (only for women).
Humanists saw God and nature as two separate concepts, but nature being a servant of God, and how important is for the courtier to be a knowledgeable man who avoids every form of affectation, educates himself in the use of the word, letters and the use of arms, while having hobbies typical of royalty such as hunting, and the study of classics. The known issue in Don Quixote, is a central part here, but of course, the Knight's discourse is much more elaborated and convincent. So, thanks for the nice influence in Cervantes, but I really can't say this is as much of a masterpiece as it is made out to be. Sometimes, like this book mantains, disciples are even better than the master because their influences come more from their own good intellect and judgement.