'
The Treatise, and History in Latin
From the oratory and the epistolary writings of the humanists, we shall
here pass on to their other creations, which were all, to a greater or
less extent, reproductions of antiquity.
Among these must be placed the treatise, which often took the shape of
a dialogue. In this case it was borrowed directly from Cicero. In order
to do anything like justice to this class of literature--in order not
to throw it aside at first sight as a bore two things must be taken
into consideration. The century which escaped from the influence of the
Middle Ages felt the need of something to mediate between itself and
antiquity in many questions of morals and philosophy; and this need was
met by the writer of treatises and dialogues. Much which appears to us
as mere commonplace in their writings, was for them and their
contemporaries a new and hard-won view of things upon which mankind had
been silent since the days of antiquity. The language too, in this form
of writing, whether Italian or Latin, moved more freely and flexibly
than in historical narrative, in letters, or in oratory, and thus
became in itself the source of a special pleasure. Several Italian
compositions of this kind still hold their place as patterns of style.
Many of these works have been, or will be mentioned on account of their
contents; we here refer to them as a class.
Pages:
260
261
262
263
264
265
266
267
268
269
270
271
272
273
274
275
276
277
278
279
280
281
282
283
284