From bestiaries to the Iconology of Cesare Ripa: the construction of political and religious representations at the dawn of the Modern Age
Maria Leonor García da CRUZ
Original title: Dos bestiários à Iconologia de César Ripa: a construção de representações políticas e religiosas nos alvores da Época Moderna
Published in Ramon Llull. Seventh centenary
Keywords: Bestiary, Fox, Iconology, Machiavelli, Reform, Wolf.
Wolves and foxes, traditionally chosen as representatives of the threat to the sheep that were led by the Pope, Pastor of souls, were animals used both positively and negatively in religious and profane literature, in bestiaries, emblem books and in the “Iconology” of Cesare Ripa in the late 16th century. Putting special emphasis on the latter and comparing political thought and 16th-entury movements of spirituality, I shall attempt to explain meanings in the textual and pictorial representations of the time, in an approach that is part of the “Imagery Studies” of Lisbon University’s History Centre.
The art of deceiving: the Mandrake, as Machiavelli’s political lesson
Nilo Henrique Neves dos REIS
Original title: El Arte de engañar: la Mandrágora como lección política de Maquiavelo
Published in The Medieval Aesthetics
Keywords: Fraud, Machiavelli, Political thinking, The Mandrake.
The comedy The Mandrake is inserted in the role of the political writings of Niccolò Machiavelli in that it also maintains a relationship with the concepts of the corpus maquiavellicus, mainly approaching The Prince. This interlacing allows us to understand how fraud becomes an expedient in the actions of the characters for the achievement of their private projects. However, it is imperative that they construct virtuous discourses that legitimize their actions, for, insofar as their goals can sometimes be considered ignominious by tradition, such actions must be enveloped in illusions that must replace reality by staging for an actor, who seeks to gain collective acquiescence to legitimize the pursuit of his glory. The piece shows how fraud is used to achieve an end and, at the same time, without hurting dominant values. The plot arises under the pretext of causing the comical, but showing the tragedy of politics, and being perhaps an instrument of reflection to understand how well-hidden private interests can be pursued without offending collective interests. Thus, in this way, this writing intends to demonstrate that reading The Mandrake is another way of getting to know Florentino’s political thinking.
