In Praise of Folly

First issued in 1511, this satirical oration is spoken by Folly herself, who claims credit for most of what keeps human life going. She praises self-love, flattery, and pleasant illusion, then turns to mock grammarians, lawyers, philosophers, courtiers, and, at length, monks, theologians, and princes of the Church who mistake ceremony for piety. Classical quotation and medieval school learning are used against themselves. The piece was written for Thomas More's circle and stays in the form of a paradoxical encomium. It is a Renaissance satire of learning and power, not a treatise that states Erasmus's theology in his own voice.

Bound in brown paper, cover printed with a black, blue and white design by Matthew Richardson. Blue slipcase.