The famed Medici family of Florence produced 4 Popes, 3 queen regents of France, and engaged in countless acts of assassination and subterfuge. This was representative of the Italian society where Baldassare Castiglione wrote his masterwork, The Book of the Courtier. Italian politics and culture was shaped by the fact that Italy consisted of many autonomous city states that each had their own royal courts, standing armies, cultures, and rulers. This divisiveness in politics helped to foster an extremely stratified society in regards to class and gender. This social stratification causes Castiglione’s definition of the perfect courtier to differ immensely from his definition of the perfect Court woman, and it causes the characteristics of his…
A Courtier could distinguish himself from others if he showed exemplary qualities. The issue, however, was that due to social stratification, only men of gentle birth could ever attain renown in the court of a prince. In today’s current society, it is completely possible to rise well above the station of one’s birth due to a society less separated by social class. For someone to rise to success today they do not need the multitude of skills that a perfect courtier must possess, they need only be extraordinary at the skill that is vital within their chosen field. This was not the case in the Renaissance Italian Courts where a trusted advisor was one that could advise a prince on all matters and sometimes defy the prince’s wish. This is due to the nature of who you serve. The courtier must have an assortment of skills in order to gain the respect and favor of the prince, so that he can better advice the prince. The Prince, being an autocratic ruler, has no reason to heed the advice of someone he does not respect. Thus, the Courtier’s niceties better allow him to advise the prince. In today’s society, advisors are appointed to advise their superiors. This allows them to gain favor through the dispensing of sound advice, not on how well they may sing. Many of the qualities of the Courtier are superfluous for success in this day and age.
The characters partaking in the discussion…
