Humanities & Classics 1002
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Renaissance Forum
Humanities & Classics 1002 |
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In Reply to: PLEASE POST YOUR SECOND REQUIRED POSTING AS FOLLOWUPS TO THIS POST posted by Tom Bacig on January 13, 1999 at 21:59:54:
The perfect man. Is there such a thing? How could one define a being of perfection? During Renaissance times, three men- Leon Alberti, Baldassare Castiglione, and Niccolo Machiavelli- attempted defining the perfect human being. They all had a vision of the perfect man, a man of the Renaissance. Though these three men had exceptionally different views, the basis of their definition of the perfect character was one who was able bodied and had the power of knowledge. He would be skilled in the arts, and have a love of life. The goal was to attempt many a feat, and to succeed in life, and ultimately contribute to a better society.
Leon Battista Alberti, born in 1404, was a very knowledgable and well-rounded man. He was a mathematician, architect, engineer, musician, and playwright. He was an exceptional example of a Renaissance man. He believed that the perfect man would realize the importance of stucture, funtion, and responsibilities involved in a family. He also believed that in order to achieve worldly success, he must recieve a classical education and be willing to work at his goals. The perfect Renaissance man, in his view, would cultivate virtu, the Italian word that summed up the qualities that Alberti held in high regard- self-confidence, talent, fortitude, ingenuity, and the ability to determine one's destiny.He believed that "[man] comes into this world in order to enjoy all things, to be virtuous, and make himself happy." Alberti loathed laziness. He wrote in his treatise,'On the Family', "Idleness which is the cause of so many evils must be hated by all good men". He also believed that one's mind should be cherished and not led to waste. He compared the mind to a bottle- once bad wine has been poured into a bottle, the taste remains, such as a mind being tainted with the "crude and inelegant writers", one should not waste time with mediocre things.
Italian diplomat Baldassare Castiglione had the most "provocative analysis of Renaissance individualism" displayed in his work, 'The Book of the Courtier'. In his writings, he shows his concern with the qualities that the perfect Rennaisance man and woman would posess. In Castiglione's mind, the Renaissance man would be well-rounded, skilled in the art of war, and be a superior athlete. He must be multi-lingual-skilled in Greek and latin besides his native tongue, and be refined by a humanistic education. It was also perferable that he was familiar with poetry, art, and was able to play a musical instrument, and "everything that he may do or say should be stamped with grace". With all of these fine talents, Castiglione realized that one may become too sure of himself, which is why he added the quality of sprezzatura to his list, the italian word meaning nonchalance. Castiglione also believed that women had a right to a proper humanistic education, but that they should not violate the "soft and delicate tenderness that is their defining quality", as he says in 'Courtier'. He thought that women should also be able to entertain the males of the court. These traits disscussed in the 'Courtier" were fine exampls of the changes that were taking place in society during the great reform of the Renaissance, and the realization of the connection between mind and body.
Florentine diplomat Niccolo Machiavelli also had ideas of the perfect individual. Being a prince, he focused on the demands of ruling the populace, and tactics that would benefit one in his high status. His book 'The Prince' was seen as a book of "guidlines for aspiring rulers". He wrote of the importance of being skilled in war and artillery, and to be familiar with historical events. He was a ruthless man that trusted nobody, and believed that "it [was] safer to be feared than loved". He believed that one should do anything to gain and maintain power. In 'The prince', he said that " a prince must lay solid foundations since otherwise he will inevitably be destroyed".
The book 'The Humanistic Tradition' sums it up perfectly when it says that these "writings are viewed as evidence of Renaissance effort to apply classical precepts to matters of education, diplomacy, politics and social life". These men set examples for society on how to act and think, and what they should value. It was a time of great change, and these writings proved to be a milestone in the social reform of the Renaissance.