_(14782268725).jpg) Cover of a 1728 French edition, L'Éloge de la Folie | |
| Author | Desiderius Erasmus |
|---|---|
| Original title | Moriae encomium |
| Translator | Thomas Chaloner White Kennett James Copner John Wilson Harry Carter Betty Radice |
| Language | Latin |
| Genre | essay, theology |
| Publisher | Gilles de Gourmont |
Publication date | 1511, revised many times up to 1532 |
| Publication place | France |
Published in English | 1549 |
| Media type | Print: hardback |
| 873.04 | |
| LC Class | PA8514 .E5 |
| Preceded by | Handbook of a Christian Knight |
| Followed by | Copia: Foundations of the Abundant Style |
Original text | Moriae encomium at Latin Wikisource |
| Translation | In Praise of Folly at Wikisource |
In Praise of Folly, also translated as The Praise of Folly (Latin: Stultitiae Laus or Moriae Encomium), is an essay written in Latin in 1509 by Desiderius Erasmus of Rotterdam and first printed in June 1511. Inspired by previous works of the Italian humanist Faustino Perisauli De Triumpho Stultitiae, it is a spiralling satirical attack on all aspects of human life, not ignoring superstitions and religious corruption, but with a pivot into an orthodox religious purpose.[1]
Erasmus revised and extended his work, which was originally written in the span of a week while sojourning with Sir Thomas More at More's house in Bucklersbury in the City of London.[2] The title Moriae Encomium had a punning second meaning as In Praise of More (in Greek moría translates into "folly").[3] In Praise of Folly is considered one of the most notable works of the Renaissance and played an important role in the beginnings of the Protestant Reformation.[4]
- ^ Zweig, Stefan (1934). Erasmus And The Right To Heresy. pp. 51–52. Retrieved November 22, 2020.
- ^ Bucklersbury was "A short street leading from the junction of Cheapside and Poultry to Walbrook. It barely exists today." source with map.
- ^ Müller, Christian (2006). Hans Holbein the Younger: The Basel Years, 1515-1532. Prestel. p. 146. ISBN 978-3-7913-3580-3.
- ^ Janin, Hunt (2008). The University in Medieval Life, 1179–1499. McFarland. p. 160. ISBN 9780786452019. "Although Erasmus himself would have denied it vehemently, later reformers found that In Praise of Folly had helped prepare the way for the Protestant Reformation."