A letter by Niccolò Perotti

This paper is dedicated to a letter that Niccolò Perotti wrote to a friend. It is divided into two parts. The first part is an introduction to the letter. It presents an autobiography of the Renaissance humanist with special emphasis placed on his translations of ancient Greek texts into Latin. Jean-Louis Charlet, the leading researcher on the Italian’s works, highlights the importance of this particular letter for establishing the chronology of translations and Perotti’s other works, as well as his date of birth and other major events in his life. The introduction also discusses the epistolary art, which Perotti practiced and whose grammatical rules he wrote down so he could study them.
Next, the author considers the subject matter of the letter, which oscillates between the notions of vera nobilitas and homo novus. Perotti decides to give himself over to literary activities and he substantiates his choice in a form of examination of conscience. For him as a humanist, who often avails himself of quotes from Pliny the Younger, true nobility arises out of the virtues of reason and is not based on material goods. In his deliberations, Perotti follows such remarkable minds as Petrarch, Poggio Bracciolini and Buonaccorso da Montemagno. He quotes Petrarch on the magnitude of human thought, Bracciolini on the threats arising from the desire for wealth, and Montemagno on the true source of nobility lying in virtue and a person’s work, but not in the right of inheritance. Finally, these thoughts are collated with the Stoic philosophy of Epictetus. Having translated Encheiridion, Perotti filled his epistolary confessions with an echo of the Stoic’s teachings. These mostly concern taking care of one’s soul and not becoming attached to material goods, obtained by twist of fate.
In the second part, the author presents a collective translation of the discussed letter, preserved in manuscript in the Vatican Library (Vat. lat. 3027, f.115r–f.118r). It is a very important autobiographical document that allows the reader to look upon Perotti’s work in the context of the popularization of ancient Greek thought, as well as to his motivations and the internal dilemmas that were entailed in this undertaking.
 

This paper is dedicated to a letter that Niccolò Perotti wrote to a friend. It is divided into two parts. The first part is an introduction to the letter. It presents an autobiography of the Renaissance humanist with special emphasis placed on his translations of ancient Greek texts into Latin. Jean-Louis Charlet, the leading researcher on the Italian’s works, highlights the importance of this particular letter for establishing the chronology of translations and Perotti’s other works, as well as his date of birth and other major events in his life. The introduction also discusses the epistolary art, which Perotti practiced and whose grammatical rules he wrote down so he could study them.
Next, the author considers the subject matter of the letter, which oscillates between the notions of vera nobilitas and homo novus. Perotti decides to give himself over to literary activities and he substantiates his choice in a form of examination of conscience. For him as a humanist, who often avails himself of quotes from Pliny the Younger, true nobility arises out of the virtues of reason and is not based on material goods. In his deliberations, Perotti follows such remarkable minds as Petrarch, Poggio Bracciolini and Buonaccorso da Montemagno. He quotes Petrarch on the magnitude of human thought, Bracciolini on the threats arising from the desire for wealth, and Montemagno on the true source of nobility lying in virtue and a person’s work, but not in the right of inheritance. Finally, these thoughts are collated with the Stoic philosophy of Epictetus. Having translated Encheiridion, Perotti filled his epistolary confessions with an echo of the Stoic’s teachings. These mostly concern taking care of one’s soul and not becoming attached to material goods, obtained by twist of fate.
In the second part, the author presents a collective translation of the discussed letter, preserved in manuscript in the Vatican Library (Vat. lat. 3027, f.115r–f.118r). It is a very important autobiographical document that allows the reader to look upon Perotti’s work in the context of the popularization of ancient Greek thought, as well as to his motivations and the internal dilemmas that were entailed in this undertaking.