Folly on Folly: The Praise of Folly, a 1509 Latin Prose Work, in Rhymed English Verse

By Charles Packard

Not for scholars, but for a new generation of readers unaware of Erasmuss unique genius. An innovative, ingenious update. Kirkus Reviews.

Packards verse translation does what it sets out to do: enlivens what otherwise can be heavy going. Puckerbrush Review

Astoundingly clever. The Classical Outlook

By his own account, Desiderius Erasmus, a Dutch monk and scholar, wrote his 1509 Latin prose masterpiece, The Praise of Folly, in seven days, more or less while a guest at the London home of his friend and fellow humanist Sir Thomas More. Friends with whom Erasmus shared his manuscript arranged its publication in Paris in 1511 in an unauthorized edition. Erasmus, surprised but pleased by the immediate popularity of the work, revised it seven times, with thirty-six editions appearing during his lifetime.

Folly on Folly presents this classic transcript of the goddess Follys lecture delivered in a university hall to an audience of scholars. A persona invented by Erasmus, the goddess Folly has chosen herself as her subject. Her incongruous costumea scholars robe with the belled hat of a jestersuggests (correctly) that her words will be a mix of the serious with the hilarious. Throughout the lecture, she makes her case that foolishness, not rational thought, benefits humankind morewith most of the human foibles she cites, whether secular or spiritual, remaining with us today.

This version of The Praise of Folly, the first in verse, was written to commemorate the 500th anniversary of this enduring works creation.

• Language: English
• Publisher: iUniverse
• Release date: Jan 7, 2016
• ISBN: 9781491785560

Charles Packard

CHARLES PACKARD studied Latin at Bowdoin College and Harvard University, and his translations of Caesar, Horace, and Erasmus have appeared in The Classical Journal and The Classical Outlook. He is also the author of several English textbooks, grades 3–12, centered on academic writing. Stephen Costanza designed the front cover and artwork.

Book preview

FOLLY ON FOLLY

The Praise of Folly, a 1509 Latin prose Work, in rhymed English verse

CHARLES PACKARD

The complete 1509 Latin Prose Satire,

Stultitiae Laus, or The Praise of Folly,

by DESIDERIUS ERASMUS,

rendered in rhymed English verse

with headings, sub-headings, and whimsical

in-verse explanatory notes not found in the original work

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FOLLY ON FOLLY

THE PRAISE OF FOLLY, A 1509 LATIN PROSE WORK,

IN RHYMED ENGLISH VERSE

Copyright © 2016 Charles Packard.

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced by any means, graphic, electronic, or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, taping or by any information storage retrieval system without the written permission of the author except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.

This is a work of fiction. All of the characters, names, incidents,

organizations, and dialogue in this work are either the products

of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously.

Front Cover Design And Art By Stephen Costanza

iUniverse

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Because of the dynamic nature of the Internet, any web addresses or links contained in this book may have changed since publication and may no longer be valid. The views expressed in this work are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher, and the publisher hereby disclaims any responsibility for them.

Any people depicted in stock imagery provided by Thinkstock are models, and such images are being used for illustrative purposes only.

Certain stock imagery © Thinkstock.

ISBN: 978-1-4917-8557-7 (sc)

ISBN: 978-1-4917-8558-4 (hc)

ISBN: 978-1-4917-8556-0 (e)

Library of Congress Control Number: 2015920846

iUniverse rev. date: 12/31/2015

Outline of Folly’s Speech

Part One

I deserve first ranking among deities, because I alone make the lives of mortals (and gods) tolerable.

1. Introductory Remarks

I’m a Hit Even Before I Say a Word

Let Me Explain Why I’m Here Tonight

There’s Nothing Wrong with Promoting Myself

This Will Be an Informal Speech

What You See Is What You Get

By the Way, I’m Bilingual, Just Like Other Speakers

2. My Credentials Are Impressive

My Parents Are an Extraordinary Couple

My Father

My Mother

I Was Born in a Pleasant Place

My Nursemaids

I Have Assembled a First-Rate Group of Associates

3. My Divine Power Is Far-Reaching

You Can Thank Me for Life Itself

Here’s a Lesson in Procreation

Without Me, No One Would Be Born

I Provide Pleasure at all Stages of Life

Never Mind What the Stoics Say About Pleasure

Infancy and Childhood

Adolescence

Adulthood

Old Age and Second Childhood

Old Age Is a Carefree Time

Specific Ways in Which Young and Old Are Alike

I Bring About Welcome Changes

Folly Keeps Men Youthful and Happy

I Have Power Over the Other Gods

Bacchus Is a Case in Point

Some Other Deities in My Debt

Even the Dull Deities Are Full of Folly

The Gods Have no Gadfly Nowadays

When Gods Hold a Party, I’m There

4. Humans Look to Me for Their Happiness

Passion Outweighs Reason in Human Makeup

Women Are Disciples of Folly

Women’s Folly Works to Their Advantage

I’m Needed Even at Stag Parties

Folly Forms and Sustains all Kinds of Friendships

Without Me, the Wise Would Have no Friendship

That Special Friendship, Love, also Relies on Folly

Marriage Depends Entirely Upon Folly

I Think I’ve Proved My Point, but There’s More

5. My Chief Associate, Vanity, Helps Me Bring Happiness

Happiness Eludes Those Who Dislike Themselves

Nature Made Mortals Envious

Vanity Helps Mortals Reach Their Potential

Low Self-Esteem Invites Low Opinions

Thanks to Vanity, Mortals Are Content with Their Lot

6. Philosophic Wisdom Is Essentially Useless

Scholars Make Poor Soldiers

Scholars Are Unsuited for all Important Affairs

Socrates Is Perhaps the Best Example of This

Plato, and Others, Were Scared Stiff in Public

Plato’s Philosopher-King Theory Is Nonsense

Scholars Are Unsuited Even for Everyday Affairs

Foolishness Is Universal—Don’t Fight It

7. Foolishness, not Philosophy, Keeps Societies Civil

Fables Are More Useful than Philosophies

A Thirst for Glory Has Inspired Many Great Deeds

Fools Looking for Glory Founded the Arts and Sciences

8. True Prudence Is a Function of Folly

Prudence in Action Comes from Rashness, not from Reasoning

The Wise Man Lives in Books

The Fool Lives in the Real World

Prudence in Judgment Is not Necessarily a Good Thing

Things Are not What They Seem to Be

A King’s Trappings Might Mean Nothing

Actors on Stage Are not the Characters They Portray

Life Is a Play and Men Merely Actors in It

It Is Imprudent to Strip Men of Their Disguises

It Is Prudent to Go Along with the Play

9. Wisdom Itself Is Achieved Through Folly

The Stoics’ Ideal Wise Man Is a Frightening Figure

Seneca’s Ideal Wise Man

Let Me List a Typical Stoic’s Traits

In the Everyday World, the Stoic Is a Misfit

Wisdom Without Folly Would Lead to Suicide

Man’s Life, as the Gods See It, Is Wretched

The Wise Are Especially Prone to Suicide

Without Folly, Old Age Would Be Unbearable

Old Men Heed My Call

Old Women Are also Full of Folly

10. There’s no Support for the Notion that Fools Are Unhappy

Fools Feel no Disgrace

Man Is by Nature Foolish, so Is Just Following Form

Formal Knowledge Adds Nothing to Man’s Happiness

The Arts and Sciences Have Had a Bad Effect

People of the Golden Age Got Along Fine Without the Arts and Sciences

But the Simple Life Gradually Disappeared

The Most Foolish Disciplines Are the Most Accepted

The Happiest Animals Are Those Farthest from Formal Learning

Bees Are Happy and Admirable

Horses Associate with Humans, so Are Miserable

Birds (and Flies) Are Happy Until Trapped and Trained

Lucian’s Rooster Says It All

Gryllus Found Happiness as a Pig

Homer Seems to Agree with the Rooster and Gryllus

Let Me Sum It Up for You

11. Of all Men, True Fools Are the Happiest

True Fools Are Entirely Free of Fears and Obligations

True Fools Enjoy the Affections of Everyone

Kings Are Particularly Fond of True Fools

True Fools Always Speak the Truth

Folly Makes Them Truthful

The Wise Talk with Two Tongues

True Fools Give no Offense When They Tell the Truth

Women Are Well Aware that No One Believes a True Fool

True Fools Continue to Amuse After Death

True Fools Are Far Happier than Scholars

12. Madness Is not Always a Bad Thing

To Begin With, There Are Two Kinds of Madness

The Ancients Often Praised Madness

True, One Kind of Madness Is Malevolent

But the Other Kind of Madness (My Kind) Is Beneficent

Beneficent Madness Is Common in Secular Life

Before I Go On, Let Me Sharpen My Definition of Madness

It All Boils Down to This

The Hypnotic Attraction of Hunting

The Urge to Build Things

The Manic Enthusiasm for Alchemy

The Compulsion to Gamble

Beneficent Madness Is also Common in Religious Life

The Craze for Tall Tales and Strange Wonders

The Infatuation with Superstitions

The Fascination with Pardons and Magic Charms

The Obsession with Saying Psalms Daily

The Mania for Specialized Saints (Part One)

The Mania for Specialized Saints (Part Two)

Such Delusions Make Christians Happy, so Priests Encourage Them

Vanity Is a Form of Harmless Self-Delusion

Planning One’s Own Funeral Service

Excessive Glory in One’s (Alleged) Ancestry

Imagining Oneself to Have the Physical Traits or Talents of Others

Vanity Is the Hallmark of Experts in the Arts

The Vanity of Cities and Nations

Flattery Is also a Beneficent Form of Delusion

Vanity and Flattery Are Related

It Is Wrong to Equate Flattery with Treachery

My Flattery Is Always a Charitable Act

Orators, Physicians, and Poets Find Flattery Essential

In Fact, Flattery Enriches all Human Relationships

Happiness, not Misery, Comes to Those Who Are Deluded

Man’s Mind Absorbs Sham More Readily than It Does Reality

Delusion Is a Pleasure Readily Available and Easily Acquired

Fools Have Plenty of Company, But Sages Are Lonely

13. In Sum: The Other Gods Are Good, but I’m Better

The Benefits I Provide Are Long-Lasting

I Don’t Play Favorites

I’m Not the Slightest Bit Temperamental

I Don’t Need the Formal Trappings of Deity

I Need no Sacrificial Offerings

I Have My Own Unique Temple and Statues

I’m Worshipped Everywhere

Intermission

Part Two

All people, no matter what their class or profession, secular or religious, are my devoted followers.

14. I’ll Now Be Getting Down to Specifics

But First, Let Me Remind You How Foolish the Common People Are

We Gods Split Our Sides Watching the Common People On Stage

Yes, the Common People Provide Quite a Spectacle

Okay, I’m Ready Now to Talk About Men Who Seem Wise (but Are Foolish)

15. Grammarians Seem Wise (but Are Foolish)

Teaching Is a Grubby Profession

Even so, Teachers Love the Power They Wield

What Makes Them Happiest? Their Delusion that They Are Scholars

They Thrive on Trivia

Case in Point: A Grammar Fanatic

They Fancy Themselves Poets

Credit Their Happiness to Me

16. Poets Seem Wise (but Are Foolish)

17. Rhetoricians Seem Wise (but Are Foolish)

18. Academic Authors Seem Wise (but Are Foolish)

Some Writers Write for a Few Fellow Scholars

Now Compare My Kind of Writer, Mentioned in Passing Earlier

Some Writers Borrow Freely from Others

Popular Authors Wallow in Folly

These Writers Mutually Admire Each Other

Sometimes, Though, They Court Controversy

19. Lawyers Seem Wise (but Are Foolish)

20. Practicing Philosophers Seem Wise (but Are Foolish)

21. Scientists Seem Wise (but Are Foolish)

Part Three

Theologians and monks are especially well-served by me.

22. Theologians Thrive on Foolishness

I Mention Them with Some Hesitation

They Are in My Debt but Would Never Admit It

They Forestall, or Ward Off, Dissent with Verbal Trickery

They Provide Stock Answers to Stock Questions

But They Much Prefer Questions That Showcase Their Brilliance

Their Foggy Logic Makes Even the Stoics Sound Sensible

The Schools They Have Formed Seem Endless in Number

The Apostles Were Satisfied to See Sacred Events Simply

The Apostles Lived Lives of Grace and Charity, Even Though They Probably Could Not Have Defined Either Virtue

Nor, Unless Tutored by Scotists, Could the Apostles Have Defined Sin

Paul (Maybe) Missed Out on a Lot

The Tact Attempted by Theologians When Discussing the Apostles Is Absent in Their Treatments of Other Saints

The Simple, Exemplary Lives of the Saints Were Sufficient to Convert Heathens

Theologians, Though, Think Contention Is the Key to Conversion

Not Even the Militant Muslims Would Be Able to Defend Themselves from the Bombastic Barrages of Theologians

Most Theologians Think That, Were It Not for Them, There Would Be No Church

They Determine Who Is a Christian and Who Is Not

Let’s (Not) Express to Them Our Thanks

Apparently They Have Recently Toured Both Hell and Heaven

Thinking Must Be a Painful Process for Them

Their Muddy Manner of Speaking Amuses Me

They Insist on Being Addressed Correctly

23. Monks, Too, Exude Foolishness

Their Daily Doings Don’t Jibe with Their Name(s)

Monks Are Almost as Happily Foolish as Theologians, Again Thanks to Me

They’re Sticklers for Rules and Regulations

Even So, Each Order Delights in Differing from All the Others

Their Behavior and Boasts about It Won’t Impress Christ a Bit

No Mortal Man Dares Mess with Monks

The Sermons of Monks Are Downright Silly

Two (Mildly Digressive) Anecdotes

Sermonizing Monks Blindly Follow Rhetors’ Rules of Delivery

Their Sermons Target Two Classes Especially

So Much for Monks

Part Four

Princes, Kings, and Courtiers rely on me.

24. If Princes and Kings Were Not Foolish, They’d Be Miserable

Wisdom Would Make a Prince a Nervous Wreck

When a Prince Becomes a King, I Follow Along

Introspection Would Embarrass an Amoral Prince Turned King

25. Courtiers, with Me to Thank, Love Their Lives at Court

What Courtiers Do When Not at Court

Truth Be Told, Their Behavior Embarrasses Even Me

Part Five

Bishops, Cardinals, and Popes Are Disciplesof Mine (Priests, too).

26. The Behaviors of Bishops, Cardinals, and Popes Imitate the Practices of Royal Personages

A Bishop Has an Easy Life (Thanks to Me)

A Cardinal Has No Sense of Tradition (Thanks to Me)

No Pope Would Have Taken the Job (Were It Not for Me)

But, Lacking Sense (Me Again), He Lives a Carefree Life

So, What Does a Pope Do All Day?

Popes Go to War at the Drop of a Zucchetto (Skullcap)

Let Me Describe the Prototypical Warrior Pope

Warrior Popes Are Egged on by Learned Flatterers

An Aside

27. Priests Take Their Cues from Popes

They (along with Popes, Bishops, Et Al) Are Buck-Passers

A Disclaimer (Sort Of)

Part Six

Nemesis (Correction: I Mean Fortune) Admires Folly, as Do Writers, Lay and Sacred

28. Fools Are Fortune’s Favorites

Wisdom Isn’t Widely Welcomed

29. Praise for Folly Is Widespread

Proverbs Promote Folly

Secular Writers Take Notice of Folly

Sacred Writers Endorse Folly

30. Various Interpreters Try, but Fail, to Find Different Meanings in the Folly-Praising Words of Sacred Writers

Digression 1: Some Biblical Scholars Are Simply Wrong

Digression 2A: Other Biblical Scholars Are Downright Ridiculous

[Shh! Friar de Lyra Is Back Again]

Digression 2B: Still More Wrong-Headed Interpreters Come to Mind (If Not Always to Mention)

To Help Me Wrap up These Remarks, Here’s Paul

Part Seven

Fools are acceptable both to God and to Christ.

31. Let’s See Why and How Both God and Christ Value Fools and Foolishness

Christ First: He Admits to His Own Foolishness

Now God: Let’s Hear His Views on Foolishness

Now Back to Christ’s Viewpoint

What Does All of This Mean?

32. The Scriptures Show that Foolishness Is an Acceptable Excuse for Errors

Example 1: Aaron

Example 2: Saul

Example 3: David

Example 4: Christ

Example 5: Paul

Example 6: A Mystical Psalm Writer

33. So Much for Anecdotal Examples. What Do They All Add Up To?

Proof A: Take Note of Those Most Drawn to Formal Religious Doings

Proof B. Take Note of the Mind-Set of the Founders of Religion

Proof C: Take Note of the Behavior of Religious Zealots

Part Eight

Christians who find happiness in their faith have mostly me to thank.

34: In Real Terms, What Is Christian Happiness Anyway?

Our Minds, in Plato’s View, Are Restrained

The Mind, If Freed, Is Seen as Insane

35. Contrasting the Masses and the Pious

They Differ Broadly

And They Differ in Detail

The Real-Life Consequences of Their Differences

The Spiritual Consequences of Their Differences

The End Result? Each Group Thinks the Other Is Mad

36. Heaven and the Pious

Plato Comes to Mind (Again)

I’ll Now Build on Plato’s Point

Now to Get to My Own Point

37. I’m Front and Center When the Pious Foretaste the Transformation of Life

Their Aftertaste Features Memory Loss

But All Is Not Lost by Any Means

Peroration

Give Me One More Minute and I’ll Let You Go

For Dan, Amy, Jeb, and Marc Smereck,

and in memory of my much-missed

Floppy Editor, Midnight,

whose snoozing whiskered head on the corner

of my computer keyboard made

each Shift-and-Caps (Cat’s?) Lock

an affectionate adventure

CHARLES PACKARD studied classical languages at Bowdoin and at Harvard. He then taught Latin at two New England boarding schools, Middlesex School and Phillips Academy (Andover). During his teaching tenure at both schools, he twice won the annual essay contest of the National Association of Independent Schools, first for The Marriage of Latin and English: Modern Myth, and then for Latin Methodology: The Confessions of an Anti-Pedant. During those years, he also published English rhymed-verse versions of Caesar, Horace, and Erasmus in The Classical Journal and The Classical Outlook. He left teaching to accept a position as an English Editor at Random House, where he was also a member of an informal advisory committee to the editors of Random House’s new English dictionary then in progress. His consumable dictionary activity text, Look Up and Learn, accompanied the elementary school version of that dictionary. Two years later, he moved to McGraw-Hill as Chief Editor, Secondary English. While there, and for several years afterward as a free-lance author, he wrote or co-authored more than thirty English textbooks, grades 3-12, on topics ranging from figurative language to functional writing and taught demonstration classes in their use across the country. In retirement, he taught Latin, English, and the History of Language in grades 7- 8 at the Ashwood Waldorf School in Rockport, Maine, before returning to secondary-school teaching at the independent Watershed School, then in Rockland, Maine, now in Camden, where he taught Latin and Academic Writing in grades 9-12. His satirical columns on modern-day follies appear in local and regional Maine newspapers from time to time. His Writing Makes Reading, an academic writing text for grades 7-8, is a work in progress.

Preface

Desiderius Erasmus (1460-1536), a Dutch monk and scholar, the leading humanist of the Northern Renaissance, wrote The Praise of Folly in England in 1509 while recuperating from a kidney ailment at the home of his good friend, Sir Thomas More, who would publish his own masterpiece, Utopia, a few years later. We are told by Erasmus that he took seven days, more or less, to compose The Praise of Folly (or Stultitiae Laus), a Latin prose work, with about eighty scattered instances of Greek, running to some 16,000 words. Latin was then, as it is now,