Abstracts
Abstract
This article is a close reading of Leonardo Bruni’s panegyric for the city of Florence (1404). It expands the discussion of the Laudatio Florentinae Urbis beyond the political context in which it has mostly, through the influence of Hans Baron’s pioneering work, been considered. It reads the text as a powerful assertion of Renaissance Humanism in its most secular, world-affirming mode. In exploring the value structure of the text, it finds the distinctly Aristotelian virtues ofmegaloprépeia (magnificence) and megalopsychia (great-souledness) structuring the text along with the Ciceronian and Aristidean virtue of humanitas. The article sees the appreciation of beauty as permeating the text, from its treatment of architecture, landscape, and city life to its treatment of the Florentine political institutions.
Keywords:
- Magnificence,
- Beauty,
- Rhetoric,
- magnitudo animi,
- humanitas,
- Aristotle,
- Aristides,
- Cicero
Résumé
Cet article propose une lecture attentive du panégyrique de Leonardo Bruni pour la ville de Florence (1404). Il élargit la discussion sur la Laudatio Florentinae Urbis au-delà du contexte politique dans lequel elle a été principalement examinée, sous l’influence des travaux pionniers de Hans Baron. Nous voyons dans ce texte une formidable affirmation de l’humanisme de la Renaissance dans sa forme la plus laïque et la plus ouverte au monde. Explorant les valeurs structurant le texte, cet article montre que les vertus aristotéliciennes demegaloprepeia (magnificence) et de megalopsychia (grandeur d’âme), ainsi que la vertu cicéronienne et aristidienne d’humanitas, charpentent le texte. L’article constate en outre que l’appréciation de la beauté imprègne le texte, depuis son traitement de l’architecture, du paysage et de la vie urbaine jusqu’à son traitement des institutions politiques florentines.
Appendices
Bibliography
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