The Book of the Courtier
Publisher : Penguin UK
Release Date : 2004-04-29
ISBN : 0141916516
Pages : 368 pages
Rating Book: 4.4/5 (141 users)
Download or read book The Book of the Courtier written by Baldesar Castiglione and published by Penguin UK. This book was released on 2004-04-29 with total page 368 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In The Book of the Courtier (1528), Baldesar Castiglione, a diplomat and Papal Nuncio to Rome, sets out to define the essential virtues for those at Court. In a lively series of imaginary conversations between the real-life courtiers to the Duke of Urbino, his speakers discuss qualities of noble behaviour - chiefly discretion, decorum, nonchalance and gracefulness - as well as wider questions such as the duties of a good government and the true nature of love. Castiglione's narrative power and psychological perception make this guide both an entertaining comedy of manners and a revealing window onto the ideals and preoccupations of the Italian Renaissance at the moment of its greatest splendour.