The Books on the Family

Leon Battista Alberti - The Books on the Family

Page 8

...that Alberti is completing the thought from the previous page: that virtue/knowledge is a possession that cannot be taken away., which cannot be forbidden to mortals in such a way that they cannot, by their own choice and will, learn it and make it their own—once brought into the possession of men, can it be taken away from diligent and vigilant owners, or snatched from manly and strong defenders, without the greatest difficulty? Therefore, we shall always be of this opinion—in which I believe you also share, for you are all prudent and wise—that in civil matters and in the lives of men, we shall certainly value reason more than fortune, and prudence more than any chance occurrence. Nor would anyone who placed less hope in virtue Original: virtú. In the Renaissance, this meant more than just moral goodness; it referred to a man's ability, skill, and power to shape his own destiny. than in fortuitous things ever seem to me wise or prudent.

And whoever recognizes that industry Original: industria. Refers to diligent work, resourcefulness, and productive activity., good arts Skills, disciplines, or branches of knowledge., constant works, mature counsel, honest practices, just wills, and reasonable expectations extend and enlarge, adorn, maintain, and defend republics and princes—and that with these, every empire rises glorious, and without them, remains deprived of all its majesty and honor; and whoever notes that sloth, inertia, lewdness, perfidy, greed, iniquity, lust, and cruelty of spirit, along with the unrestrained passions of men, contaminate, ruin, and sink even the loftiest, firmest, and best-established thing—such a person, I believe, will judge that this applies to families just as it does to principalities, and will confess that families very rarely fall into unhappiness for any reason other than their own lack of prudence and diligence.

Therefore, because I know this to be so—either through not knowing how to restrain and contain oneself in prosperous times, or through not yet being prudent and strong enough to sustain and govern oneself in adverse storms—fortune Original: fortuna. Humanists viewed Fortune as a fickle goddess or a chaotic force that tests human character., with its immense waves, breaks and submerges families wherever they abandon themselves. And because I do not doubt that good governance, solicitous and diligent fathers of families, good observances, the most honorable customs, humanity, approachability, and civility make families most great and most happy, it therefore seemed to me necessary to investigate with every study and diligence which...