Our discussion of "The Swerve..."

Our July selection seemed to be two books in one. The story of Poggio Bracciolini, a scholar who held various offices in the Papal courts and had a mighty thirst for books. Searching the monasteries of Europe for forgotten ancient texts gave him great satisfaction. That he could rescue one fantastic poem from obscurity, copy it and preserve it for the future, was an outstanding accomplishment. That the text had even survived up to that point is even more fantastic. But was the "freeing" of this poem the one event...the "swerve" that made our modern world? Did it lift Europe out of the Dark Ages, and enlighten its citizens? Or was it just a beautiful poem, which struck a chord with like-minded readers? Many of its main tenants clearly went against religious teachings, and encouraged man to think for himself, and shape his own destiny. The other book tells the story of how western culture freed itself from the Church and its hold on the minds of citizens.

It was a risky undertaking in Poggio's day to espouse pagan philosophy, but it did have its adherents. I'm paraphrasing here, but I remember one section in the book where the author tells of some faithful scholars who travel to a seat of great learning to study. They observe their scholars drinking, dancing and having a good time. The faithful scholars decide to leave, because they believed it was better to scorn knowledge than associate with those who sided with Epicurus. Better to be ignorant than knowledgeable in the delights of pleasurable pursuits. As minds opened, helped in part by the invention of movable type, scholars and laymen alike began to grasp other ideas and discuss them. I think that the discovery of "On the Nature of Things (De rerum natura)" may not have been THE swerve that changed the course of thinking and philosophy, but it did present an alternative view that was seen by some as acceptable.

It was a discussion that did not lead to a definitive proclamation...a poem made the world swerve toward modernity. It was a discussion that lead, in my opinion to the conclusion that yes, the world needed to meet Lucretius and read his work.