Leonardo Bruni’s Dialogi ad Petrum Paulum Histrum has long been studied as a manifesto of the humanist divergence from medieval culture. This article reconsiders the role of Bruni’s Dialogi in the development of Italian humanism and especially in the development of the humanists’ awareness of their cultural identity as a group. The essay argues that Bruni’s principal aim was not to distance himself from previous traditions, but rather to mark a distinction between two concurrent conceptions of humanism that prevailed in his own time. Through the Dialogi, Bruni criticizes Niccolò Niccoli’s cultural extremism and advances a moderate ideal of humanism that seeks to revise and incorporate nonhumanist traditions instead of rejecting them outright. In doing so, Bruni also intends to shield his ideal of humanism from the attack of the traditionalist sector of Renaissance culture.

Competing Humanisms: Debating Cultural Identity in Leonardo Bruni’s "Dialogi ad Petrum Paulum Histrum" / G. Mori. - In: JOURNAL OF MEDIEVAL AND EARLY MODERN STUDIES. - ISSN 1082-9636. - 50:2(2020), pp. 323-347. [10.1215/10829636-8219578]

Competing Humanisms: Debating Cultural Identity in Leonardo Bruni’s "Dialogi ad Petrum Paulum Histrum"

G. Mori
2020

Abstract

Leonardo Bruni’s Dialogi ad Petrum Paulum Histrum has long been studied as a manifesto of the humanist divergence from medieval culture. This article reconsiders the role of Bruni’s Dialogi in the development of Italian humanism and especially in the development of the humanists’ awareness of their cultural identity as a group. The essay argues that Bruni’s principal aim was not to distance himself from previous traditions, but rather to mark a distinction between two concurrent conceptions of humanism that prevailed in his own time. Through the Dialogi, Bruni criticizes Niccolò Niccoli’s cultural extremism and advances a moderate ideal of humanism that seeks to revise and incorporate nonhumanist traditions instead of rejecting them outright. In doing so, Bruni also intends to shield his ideal of humanism from the attack of the traditionalist sector of Renaissance culture.
Leonardo Bruni; Dialogi ad Petrum Paulum Histrum; Italian humanism; moderate ideal of humanism; humanist cultural identity
Settore M-FIL/06 - Storia della Filosofia
Settore L-FIL-LET/08 - Letteratura Latina Medievale e Umanistica
   Dipartimenti di Eccellenza 2018-2022 - Dipartimento di FILOSOFIA
   MINISTERO DELL'ISTRUZIONE E DEL MERITO
2020
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Utilizza questo identificativo per citare o creare un link a questo documento: https://hdl.handle.net/2434/733684
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