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Get every literary device explanation for The Praise of Folly
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Allusion
Explanation and Analysis—A Man of My Own Name:
While advancing her argument that deception is essential to human happiness, Folly makes a cryptic reference to Thomas More, an English statesman and close friend of Erasmus, alongside several other allusions to painters from Ancient Greece and Rome. Presenting a number of hypothetical scenarios, Folly states:
If one was to behold a canvas [...] under the persuasion that it was a picture by Apelles or Zeuxis, would he not be happier than another who buys the work of such masters at a high price, but feels less of pleasure, perhaps, in viewing it? I know a man of my name who gave his young wife some imitation jewels as a present, persuading her—for he is a plausible joker—that they were not only genuine and natural but also of unique and inestimable value. Pray tell me, what difference did it make to the girl, so long as she joyously delighted her eyes and heart with glass [...] ?
First, Folly wagers that an individual who is under the false impression that they have purchased a painting by “Apelles or Zeuxis” at a low price would “be happier” than an individual who purchased a real painting at a high price. Here, Folly alludes to two of the most famed painters from Ancient Greece. For Folly, the actual truth of a painting’s origins is less important than how the owner feels about the painting.
Similarly, Folly notes that a man with her own name once presented his “young wife with some imitation jewels” as a gift, convincing her that “they were genuine and natural” as well as very expensive. Here, Folly alludes to Thomas More, whose name, More, is rendered in Greek as “Moría,” which is very similar to the word “Moriae,” which translates to “Folly.” Erasmus, then, presumably repeats a humorous anecdote told by his close friend, to whom the essay is also dedicated. Folly concludes that, even if the jewels in the anecdote were fake, the joy felt by More’s wife was real.
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