Erasmus: In Praise of Folly

Erasmus of Rotterdam was a Dutch Humanist and Christian theologian and regarded as a true “Renaissance Man.”  Humanism was a movement that focused on the agency of individuals, which humanists considered the starting point for the study of morals. Erasmus’s work In Praise of Folly is one of the most famous books from the Renaissance. The title (Stultitiae Laus or Moriae Encomium) is a pun. It can also be read as “In Praise of More.”  Erasmus was a close friend of Thomas More, author of Utopia and subject of the play A Man for All Seasons.  More is now a saint in the Roman Catholic Church and even venerated by the Anglian Communion.

In Praise of Folly was written in Latin in 1509 and first published in 1511.  The work begins with an encomium in which Folly praises herself, in a style influenced by the ancient Greek satirist Lucian, whose work Erasmus and More had recently translated into Latin.  Folly attacks people from all walks of life, even churchmen.  (Erasmus remained a faithful Catholic.)

In Praise of Folly (Erasmus reading)

The Praise of Folly by Desiderius Erasmus | Project Gutenberg

Why “In Praise of Folly” Still Matters: Erasmus’ Masterpiece Explained

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