Monday, March 3, 2008

The first few pages of King's third chapter introduce us to some of the important components of humanist studies. Here are some people and things to remember:

Turning now to Bartlett, we begin with more Petrarch. Here we're getting a treatise called "On His Own Ignorance" with a subtitle, "And that of many Others." He was, of course, being ironic, but the treatise is about the controversy between Scholasticism and Petrarch's humanistic studies. The frame for this piece is a dinner Petrarch hosted for four younger men, all friends of his, at which the older man talked freely and openly, without self-censorship. Afterwards he found out that these "friends" had remarked that while Petrarch was a good man, he was ignorant. His ignorance, according to them, lay in his failure to study Aristotle, the philosopher so much revered by scholastic theologians.

I have discussed scholasticism a bit; I'd like to provide for you a link to some scholastic language taken from the work of Duns Scotus, nicknamed the "Subtle Doctor" for reasons I'm sure you'll understand. The main objective of scholasticim at its height was to reconcile human reason with the revelation of scripture. According to 13th century theologians, logic, and in particular the logical works of the ancient Greek philosopher Aristotle, was an extremely powerful tool for delving into the fine points of Christian doctrine. By Petrarch's time, however, confidence in such a reconciliation had given way to scepticism.

Petrarch is enraged at Aritotelians who worship Aristotle as a God, and consider Petrarch's own study of Cicero to be a waste of time. In fact, one man even disparages Augustine! What we're looking at are two different approaches to education, not just different curricula. Petrarch gives the appearance in this piece of trying to be charitable toward his so-called friends, but what he really thinks of them is quite clear.

Next we get Leonardo Bruni's letter to a female humanist. Bruni himself was the most important Florentine humanist of his generation, and the woman in question, Battista Malatesta, had written him for advice concerning what to study. Take a careful look at the program he maps out for her, taking her gender into account.

By the time we get to Battista Guarino, we find that the study of the Greek language and literature has become a sine qua non for an educated person. Petrarch did not know Greek, although he kept a copy of Homer in his library, and turned the pages with great reverence. By the mid 15th century, Greek was all the rage. Guarino dwells in great detail on the study of grammar. When I was a child, elementary school was referred to as "grammar school," so some of the legacy of the humanist curriculum remained in a small way. Grammar at this time was considered to be the first step toward achieving mastery in any field at all.

Homework:

  1. Why does Petrarch think his "friends" were so intent on tearing him down? What does he say about the value of worldly fame?
  2. According to Bruni, on what sorts of subjects should a learned woman focus? What should she avoid, and why? What do you think his reasons are for his recommendations?
  3. In the Guarino reading, take a good look at all the things an educated person of the 15th century should study, even if such a person is female. Compare this list with your plan of education.

Laurel Carrington carringt@stolaf.edu
Most recent update: March 3, 2008

Disclaimer