What if the fool in the pulpit sees more clearly than the scholars, priests and kings she mocks?

In Desiderius Erasmus’s short satire In Praise of Folly, a goddess steps before a crowd to celebrate herself. Folly is boastful, funny and sharp. People may curse her, she says, but their faces brighten when she appears. Her claim is bold: without her, human life would hardly be worth living.

Her speech moves from the foolishness of childhood to the self-love and flattery that hold society together. Then her gaze sharpens. Scholars quarrel over tiny points of Latin. Monks prize rules and robes while forgetting charity. Through Folly’s praise of herself, Erasmus invites you to question what passes for wisdom.

이 책에서 발견할 것들

• A speaker without shame Meet a goddess who praises herself because she trusts nobody else to do it properly.
• The uses of self-love Follow Folly’s argument that liking ourselves helps us please others and act well.
• Learning under a sharp gaze Watch proud grammarians turn small disputes over Latin into reasons to feel like kings.
• Pride beneath the robes Encounter a pointed critique of religious rules and ritual that leave charity behind.
• Laughter with a serious edge Look beneath the jokes to explore human vanity and the uneasy boundary between wisdom and foolishness.

이런 분들이 좋아할 거예요

풍자와 날카로운 유머, 재치 있는 목소리를 좋아하는 독자를 위한 책이에요. 르네상스와 옛 교회가 궁금하거나, 농담이 어떻게 진지한 뜻을 전하는지 알고 싶은 분에게도 좋아요.