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Galateo: A Renaissance Treatise on Manners, by Giovanni Della Casa

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Galateo: A Renaissance Treatise on Manners, by Giovanni Della CasaOverview Courtesy books have a special relationship to the age that produces them. By attempting to codify manners, styles, ideals and values of a society, they reveal the principles and presuppositions that shape and animate their world. Galateo does this brilliantly. It reflects the personal experience, wisdom, disappointments, and ambitions of its clerical but worldly wise author, as well as the fundamental values of his age. And, given that his

Overview

Courtesy books have a special relationship to the age that produces them. By attempting to codify manners, styles, ideals and values of a society, they reveal the principles and presuppositions that shape and animate their world. Galateo does this brilliantly. It reflects the personal experience, wisdom, disappointments, and ambitions of its clerical but worldly-wise author, as well as the fundamental values of his age. And, given that his age was that of the transformation from the High Renaissance in Italy to the world of the Counter-Reformation, and that Della Casa was an important actor in the events of his time, the lessons are particularly valuable and worth considering.

Archbishop Giovanni Della Casa (1503-1556) was an influential Vatican diplomat, papal nuncio to Venice, and instrumental in the establishment of the Venetian Inquisition and in its 1549 Index of Prohibited Books. He was also an accomplished poet, an arbiter of taste, and the most influential writer on social practice of his time. His book, Galateo, has in fact provided the modern Italian term for good manners: “not to know the galateo” is to have no manners at all!

3rd Revised Edition. 

Kenneth R. Bartlett is Professor of History and Renaissance Studies at Victoria College in the University of Toronto.

Konrad Eisenbichler is Professor of Italian and Renaissance Studies at Victoria College in the University of Toronto.

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100 pp.
ISBN: 978-0-9697512-2-9 softcover
Published: 2009

Contents

Introduction

Galateo

Chapter 1. Preamble. The matter to be treated is presented; a comparison of good manners with other more remarkable virtues; the usefulness of this doctrine and the ease with which it may be put into practice
Chapter 2. What constitutes bad manners; what acts are displeasing to those with whom one deals. These are divided according to the senses which they offend
Chapter 3. We begin with those things which disturb the senses and, through them, the mind, and of some things which disturb our desires
Chapter 4. In order to make known how the small things which have been discussed ought not to be neglected, the author tells what Messer Galateo did to Count Ricciardo by order of the Bishop of Verona
Chapter 5. We return to dealing with the bad habits which displease the senses
Chapter 6. In order to proceed with a discussion of what men dislike, the author first explains what men desire in their dealings with others, and what is to be avoided because it implies a low opinion of that company
Chapter 7. How one should dress in order not to show disrespect to others
Chapter 8. On people who upset everybody; on conrrary and eccentric people. How hateful arrogance is, and how one should avoid anything which may be attributed to arrogance
Chapter 9. How always being contrary alienates other people; one should show affection for others and hold dear their love
Chapter 10. Of things which are contrary to human desires; the pleasure and amusements which people seek in conversation; but first, of sensitive and affected persons
Chapter 11. What topics should be avoided in conversation so as not to offend
Chapter 12. The habit of telling one's dreams in a conversation is especially to be condemned
Chapter 13. How much lies, boasting, and false modesty displease and should be avoided
Chapter 14. What ceremonies are, why they are called so, and how they should be observed
Chapter 15. Ceremonies are divided into three types. Those that are done for our own good are unbefitting to a well-mannered man
Chapter 16. One should never forego those ceremonies which are observed out of duty. The authority and strength of their usage. What to be wary of in observing them. To exceed in ceremonies is adulation unworthy of a gentleman. This is the third kind of ceremony, those observed out of vanity. How bothersome and unpleasant adulation is
Chapter 17. About other empty and superfluous ceremonies: they are an indication of little talent and an uncouth personality
Chapter 18. About slander, contradiction, giving advice, reprimanding and correcting other peoples' defects. Each of these things is bothersome
Chapter 19. Under no account should one mock someone else; what differentiates mocking from joking; one should generally avoid even the latter; when they are used, what care must be taken; two kinds of witticism; one must never use a biting wit
Chapter 20. Witty remarks are discussed in detail; they must be graceful and subtle; they are characteristic of sharp minds; they should not be used by those who do not have a natural disposition towards them; how anyone can determine whether or not he has any ability to be witty in a pleasant manner
Chapter 21. About long, continuous narrations. Rules are given on how to tell a story to the amusement and pleasure of the listeners
Chapter 22. In every kind of speech the words must be clear and appropriate to the subject; it is better for everyone to speak in his own rather than in another language; one should avoid vulgar words, as well as coarse words; everyone should accustom himself to modest and sweet speech, avoiding harsh and rough manners
Chapter 23. Other observations on speech. One should not speak before having carefully determined the subject matter of one's discourse. How one should regulate one's voice. Words must be well ordered. One should not use pompous, base or plebeian expressions. The enunciation should be suitably pleasant
Chapter 24. About talkative people; those who like to be the only ones to speak; those who interrupt others who are speaking; and the different kinds of faults that are committed in this. Why talkative persons are not liked; persons unduly taciturn are also disagreeable, and the reasons for this
Chapter 25. The author tells a story about a sculptor and apologizes for not practising what he preaches. He then seizes the opportunity to advise his listener to become accustomed to good manners in his youth. He explains the excellence of reason and its power against natural inclinations, and he sums up briefly what he has said up to now
Chapter 26. Wanting to explain what things are to be avoided because they are displeasing to the intellect, he first says that man desires beauty and proportion. He describes what beauty is and how it is found not only in the body but also in words and deeds
Chapter 27. Why things that are unpleasant to the senses and to human desires are also displeasing to the intellect, even though each has been discussed separately
Chapter 28. In all his actions a well-mannered man must seek grace and decorum. Vices are the worst of all base things, and therefore they are to be avoided. Many actions which must be carried out with proper manners are examined in detail, and clothes are specifically discussed
Chapter 29. Particular instances of bad table manners; and the opportunity is seized to say something against excessive drinking
Chapter 30. Many other foul and unsuitable manners to be avoided are mentioned, and with this the treatise is brought to an end

Praise

“This translation, in a contemporary English that avoids excessive colloquialisms, makes readily accessible to everyone interested in Renaissance culture a text that is not only a major book of etiquette but an illuminating study of the ideals of sixteenth century Italian Society. Through the text and its notes […] Eisenbichler and Bartlett anticipate the needs of readers for historical and mythological information.  Eisenbichler and Bartlett have rendered an invaluable service to all students of the Italian Renaissance.”
Douglas Radcliff-Umstead, Renaissance and Reformation/Renaissance et Reformé 26/3 (2002), pp. 241-242.

Reviews

CHOICE: Current Reviews for Academic Libraries, 24 (December 1986), p. 630.

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Kelvin
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Reviewed in the United States on May 11, 2026
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Reviewed in the United States on February 9, 2026
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Greg Taylor
Carnegie, US
★★★★★ 5
Why aren't people reading this and discussing it?
Format: Paperback
This book should be read by everybody on any side of the current debate as to what are future Iraq (Iran?, N. Korea?- w/ the current set of maroons you never know) policy should be. Ikle was Undersecretary of Defense for the Reagan administration. He is one of the original neocons. This book had an enormous influence on how Bush I and Powell decided to end our first Gulf War. He revised this book in 1991 and revised it again and wrote a new intro in 2005. My point is that this man is no cut and run liberal (and I should admit that, right now, I am leaning toward just that position). However, what makes Ikle stand out from his demented neocon brethren is that he is willing to face up to ALL of the possibilities, the difficulties and the ambiguities that are inherent in any foreign policy, let alone a war. He mentions many of the wars and theatres of those wars in the twentiety century and points out how many times politicians and generals went wrong because they would not 1. clearly set out the goals they were trying to accomplish in a war and 2. constantly reevaluate those goals in light of the developing situation. Ikle outlines a few of the difficulties that are obstacles to such a course. Rather prophetically, he talks about how difficult it is to get good intelligence to base your policies on. Sources from within the country of your opponent may mislead you for their own purposes. Agencies within your own government are posturing with the intelligence to protect their influence. Does any of this sound familiar? In one of my favorite chapters of this book, Ikle talks about a tendency that occurs when things start to get difficult in a war. Those who are supporters of the war will start posturing as patriots and referring to the opponents of the war as traitors (or, in the parlance of the editorial page of the Wall Street Journal, as "surrender monkeys"). Again does this sound at all familiar? Here is another one for ya. Ilke argues that it is essential to know why exactly you are fighting. Otherwise, you will never really know when you have won. It is very clear that the whole WMD was just what Rumsfeld or Cheney (I have forgotten which- neither one of them has said anything about the war that is worth remembering in a positive sense) said it was-the one justification they "could all agree on." The role of America as the Great Democratizer has faded into memory. Now we are left with The MisDecider telling us that it is all about leaving Iraq with "a viable government" What does that mean? How is that different from what they had under Sadam? Here is my main point. Here is what makes me so angry. Powell, Rumsfeld, and Cheney all read this book back before the first Gulf War. Nothing has changed in the world to make the recommendations of this book any less vital. These men and women were supposed to be the most experienced foreign and military people the Republicans had produced (which should blow all claims to the Republicans being the party of security out of the water). They ignored these lessons because they choose to and went ahead and made what may be the most serious strategic error since Hitler invaded the Soviet Union. I am hopeful that the Dems now have more power but only slightly so. We need to have a serious discussion now. Not posturing. It may be that we should simply leave at this point because the decline of Iraq into chaos is inevitable. But as someone who is an internationalist, I think we need to look long and hard at the results of doing that before we simply do so. We owe it to the people of Iraq and the surrounding area to do whatever we can to minimize their suffering, to restore a working infrastructure and government to their country and to restore peace to their daily lives. Facing up and discussing the issues as suggested by Ilke is our duty as a democratic polity. There are no easy answers here except for the obvious fact that we cannot rely on Bush and his minions to do what needs to be done. Give this book a read. It is not gracefully written but it is short and direct. You may find it one of the strangest ironies of our time that one of the most telling critiques of the administration comes from someone who is their ally. The main difference between Ikle and people like Bush is that Ikle takes the world more seriously than his ideology.
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Reviewed in the United States on February 4, 2007
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James 634685
Phoenix, US
★★★★★ 5
Good book. Insightful but an easy read
Format: Paperback
Good material in international relations.
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Reviewed in the United States on June 4, 2024
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Amazon Customer
Port Orchard, US
★★★★★ 4
This book is great to share with friends and an excellent conversation starter ...
Format: Paperback
A quick but thoughtful read. This book is great to share with friends and an excellent conversation starter without being exactly political, in the negative sense of the word. Inspires constructive conversation regardless of your background.
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Reviewed in the United States on February 18, 2017

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