The Florentines: From Dante to Galileo: The Transformation of Western Civilization

The Florentines: From Dante to Galileo: The Transformation of Western Civilization by Paul Strathern

Florence played a key role in the Renaissance. It was democratic. The Medici's were able to find religious loopholes to lead a banking empire. Artists, scientists and inventors were present. The book catalogs all in a time series, but is little too long and rambly.

Leonardo da Vinci

I had always thought of da Vinci as a scientist who occasionally dabbled in artwork. In Isaacson's biography, however, he is presented primarily as an artist. (I guess that goes better with his Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle companions. In the book he is portrayed as a gay eccentric who has sufficient gifts to allow him to run in elite social circles and get away with eccentric behavior. He loved to tinker and dream. However, he often did not finish his work. (That may be how he gets his reputation. In retrospect, it looks like his ideas were the base of modern inventions. However, that assumes he would have continued down what we now see as the obvious path, which was not so obvious back then.

Praise of Folly

In Praise of Folly uses humor to present a scathing critique of 16th century society. Erasmus personifies "folly" and notes how well she is respected by people. Folly does not need a whole lot of additional praise because people give her so much respect. Erasmus is at his best when he carries things to their absurdity. (We all must be fools, because we were the offspring of people that were foolish enough to get married.)

The first part is the best. Closer to the end he starts to get more critical of the church and society. However, even in his "serious" sections, some of the dark humor remains.

Utopia

The meaning of the word "utopia" in the English language is a testament to the endurance of Thomas More's work. In this work, a traveler who has spent five years living in Utopia is having a political discussion with some stately figures. Initially, he provides some general criticism of the English penal system. (For example, the death penalty for stealing is seen as unjust and having no biblical base. Furthermore, it encourages people to murder their robbery victims as the penalty for murder is the same, and a death decreases the odds of them being caught.)

He then goes on to detail to the politics and life in Utopia. The country is now an island nation founded by the benevolent king Utopos. While once a peninsula, the Utopians later dug a trench to separate it from the world. The natural barriers make it difficult for others to attack. The society has no internal need for money and no leisure class. Everybody works. Gold is used as chains for slave. (Slaves are primarily made up of prisoners and volunteers from neighboring countries - all have the opportunity for freedom.) Only in times of war is the gold used as 'currency' - in this case to buy mercenary armies. The state has a complete freedom of religion - though many have adopted Christianity once introduced. Everyone works for 6 hours per day. There is no personal property or housing, with everything held in common. (This facilities a regular migration of people from town to countryside.)

Utopia is not without strife. However, it does have mechanisms in place for dealing with crimes. Slavery is often the punishment of choice, as it provides a reminder to others of the pitfalls of a life of crime. Adultery similarly leads to punishment. However, a fully forgiving spouse can help lead to a redemption from the punishment. The legal system is, however, very simple. It can be understood by all men and requires no lawyers.

The society he paints is very Utopian. The society is held together by a strong belief in the institutions as well as a shared religious heritage (even though it is expressed by adherence to various religions.) Part of the endurance of the society is a general de-conditioning of the value of "wealth". Gold is associated with slavery. Diamonds and gems are only children's toys. (When a pompous delegation visits, the Utopians mistake the elaborately decorated ambassadors as the slaves.) With this conditioning, they see little value in the accumulation of external wealth, and thus have a strong inkling to continue their society. This is also maintained by restrictions on travel (official approval and a passport are required.) Under these bounds, the survival of the society for 100s of years seems plausible, if not very likely. However Utopia does provide many ideas for improving society.