Augustine, Boethius and the Fortune Verses of Thomas More

William J. Bouwsma influentially argued, in 1975, that "[t]he two ideological poles between which Renaissance humanism oscillated may be roughly labelled 'Stoicism' and 'Augustinianism.'" He suggested that white individual humanists might, at different times, favour som...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Moreana (Angers) 2002-03, Vol.39 (Number 149) (1), p.17-40
Main Author: Cousins, A.D
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
16th century
Augustine (354-430)
Boethius, Anicius Manlius Severinus (480?-524)
Historical studies (History of philosophy. History of ideas)
Humanism
Ideology
More, Thomas (1478-1535)
Philosophy
Rhetoric
Studies
Values
Wealth
Citations: Items that cite this one
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Summary:William J. Bouwsma influentially argued, in 1975, that "[t]he two ideological poles between which Renaissance humanism oscillated may be roughly labelled 'Stoicism' and 'Augustinianism.'" He suggested that white individual humanists might, at different times, favour some version of one over some version of the other, their intellectual allegiances were nonetheless fundamentally divided between the two. An unacknowledged possibility in Bouwsma's essay is that humanist texts might interplay the two-knowingly or unselfconsciously. Stoical elements and Augustinianism can be seen to co-exist in Boethius' The Consolation of Philosophy , a notable precedent, perhaps. Further, they can be seen to co-exist in More's Fortune Verses, which are at once a sophisticated contribution to the literature of Fortune and an example (most likely a self-conscious one) of Stoicism's literary cohabitation with Augustinianism.
ISSN:0047-8105
2398-4961
DOI:10.3366/more.2002.39.1.4