Erasmus’s "De conscribendis epistolis" and Ancient Epistolary Theory

Abstract

In this article, Erasmus’s De conscribendis epistolis is discussed in the light of the ancient epistolary theory. Desiderius Erasmus Roterodamus (1466–1536), a Dutch Christian scholar, philosopher and philologist, wrote the treatise on the art of letter writing, whose authorized edition was published in 1522. The humanists inherited two different theories of epistolography: the ancient, which conceived the letter as a conversation with friends and family members, and the medieval theory, known as ars dictaminis, which described the letter as an official document. In the treatise De conscribendis epistolis, Erasmus reconciles the humanistic imitation of the then newly discovered ancient letters, especially those of Cicero, with the rhetorical tradition of letter writing that humanists had inherited from medieval ars dictaminis. It is shown that this treatise of Erasmus complies with the precepts given by ancient theorists, in accordance with humanistic attitudes and ideals. Erasmus recalls the ancient conception of the letter as a conversation between absent friends, which is mentioned in Greek treatise Ἐπιστολιμαῖοι Χαρακτῆρες, and he also demands an end to medieval flattery and ‘barbaric’ Latinity in the style of letters. On the subject of style, Erasmus emphasizes that the epistolary style should be flexible, and that it depends upon its purpose and the relationship between the correspondents. We find a similar observation in the treatise Ars rhetorica written by Iulius Victor, a Roman rhetorician (4th century). In accordance with the humanistic views, Erasmus takes over the ancient precepts and adjust them to his pedagogical methods and goals.