This collection of essays by Paul F. Grendler has many merits as well as uses for scholars seeking to understand late Renaissance humanism, universities, and Jesuit education. Twenty chapters in this large volume were produced between 2006 and 2019 by one of the most accomplished scholars in the field of Renaissance history. Their erudition, precision, and balanced interpretive analysis, which never stray from the foundations of meticulous archival and historiographical research, make this a treasure trove for scholars who wish to get to know its subjects, revise their knowledge of them, or—if starting out in this field—meet Grendler's work for the first time. Whatever the reader's perspective, there is much to gain from this volume.
In part 1, Grendler introduces Renaissance humanism in the context of the education system of the Venetian Republic, another case study explores biblical humanism and the papacy, and two further analyses consider later scholarship of humanism through founding figures in the field, Georg Voigt and Paul Oskar Kristeller. Historiography connected to humanism and universities is continued in part 2, which focuses on Italian universities in the Renaissance. Part 3 deals with Jesuit education, especially the history, policies, and protagonists in the foundation of this key role of the Society of Jesus in the early modern world.
One of this book's values lies in the careful editing and preparation of the volume, both by the author—some sections were rewritten for the purposes of presenting these studies in a single, cohesive volume—and by the series editors. The volume's essays underline the timelessness of the empirical data that inform the studies, and are extremely helpful for established scholars and students alike. At the same time, the interpretive work offered here remains a beacon for scholars wishing to navigate the many strands that congregate, converge, and then propel outward from the volume's core focus on the intellectual, cultural, and religious life of Renaissance Italy.
Many themes can be discovered here. For example, the relationship between the University of Padua and the ruling elites of Venice helps explain a key sociocultural arrangement that was distinct in Italy: the universities of Italy were mostly concerned with secular subjects for professional and ruling classes, including medicine, law, and philosophy—but not theology, which remained the preserve of the religious orders. Italy's relatively minor challenge to the church's theological teachings provided the conditions for a freer exchange of theological and philosophical ideas than was possible in regions further from the papal states and with different academic structures. Even though religious freedom is not always associated with mid-sixteenth-century Italy, Grendler reminds us that this is precisely what it enjoyed, on some level. Nevertheless, he notes that self-censorship was an important mechanism by which the Italian intellectual environment managed to defend itself and maintain its activities.
While the role of Italian universities in humanism and the Renaissance forms the focal point of parts 1 and 2, part 3 focuses on perhaps the most important protagonists of early modern education, the Jesuits. Grendler sets the record straight about the fundamental role of Diego Laínez in establishing the Jesuit ministry of education. He explores the intellectual, theological, and social thrust of the Jesuit educational program, through analysis of curriculum as well as of the students and families that the Jesuits served. In this way, we have access to important intersections between theory and practice, between the ideals of education and its realities.
These intersecting elements provide a sociological snapshot of the early modern period, and what mattered to the people who lived in it, through the educational choices they made. We learn that one motive for sending sons to Jesuit universities was fear that the intellectual freedom of Italian universities might instill unorthodoxy or even heresy. This finding somewhat disrupts the confessionalization thesis, by showing that religious orthodoxy was not just sought and imposed in a top-down manner from ecclesiastical authorities.
Above all, this book is a reminder that the hard work of excavating raw data, interpreting it, and publishing it remains at the heart of a historian's service to their fellow scholars and students. Grendler's work is a fine example of how much fellow researchers can gain from such painstaking work in the field of late Renaissance Italy.
