Headstrom, Birger R.

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RABELAIS AND THE EARLIER RENAISSANCEBY BIKGER R. HEADSTROMIT was during hi- long sojourn atthe cloister that Rabelais becameacquainted with the instincts, the hopes, and the ideas of theRenaissance in the form which it pursued in France, in England andin Germany,- a form, not merely humanist, hut rich in aspirationstor social and political improvement. And to Rabelais who was.above all. desirous of a non-monastic life-desirous rather of a joy-ous and free life, free from all restraint and obedience to the harshand severe laws of monastic existence—its nobleness of purpose in-spired him to give expression to its real significance as translatedin the spirit and temper of his time.That Rabelais has appealed to the imagination of men in manyways is attested by the various conceptions which have been formedof him. Some have viewed him as a sober reformer, of a rationalif not dogmatic religion, who clothed his morals in a farcical en-velope for the double purpose of enabling the vulgar to appreciatethem and to protect himself from the consequences of his reformingzeal : to others he is not religous. and his book is more or less aprotest against any attempt to explain supernaturally the riddle ofthe earth : while to many he is the incarnation of the "esprit Gaul-ois," preferring to accept life as he found it, and if not blind to it-graver features at lea-t disregardful of them.These various views, conflicting as they are. indicate if nothingmore than no one view can satisfactorily explain him ; and it is justtins that commands our attention. He is a mystery which fascinatesus: who has given us a riddle which we find great delight in tryingto solve: and though many attempts t<> adjust an interpretation ofhis work to him have been made, we are still far from understand-ing the real Rabelais, for to identify Rabelais with Pantagruel, as638 THE OPEN COURTmany have done, fails to account for the vast amount of laughterand foolery which veils a little sense and reason ; while to connecthim with Panurge fails equally as well to explain the educationscheme, the solemn apparition of Gargantua among the farcical andfantastic variations on Panurge's wedding, and many other passages.Yet after all, any one reading Rabelais who is possessed of a goodknowledge of the history and literature of his time, and the timeswhich preceded him, can not fail to appreciate the intrinsic value ofhis book.Rabelais had no definite purpose, or fixed intention, when hebegan to write, but the immense popularity and success of his livelysatire gradually suggested to him that in the satirical criticism of thelife he saw around him he could give definition to those sentimentswhich study and meditation had invoked within him. Still, it is inthe very absence of any definite purpose that the value and meritof his work lies. Though he certainly detested the monkish system,as well as the brutish ignorance of the earlier systems of education,he was essentially a satirist rather than a reformer. By merelygiving expression to his thoughts and views on the life around him,rather than trying to enforce some system of thought or opinion,he serves as a spotless mirror to the temper of the earlier Renais-sance. He had no universal medicine of his own to offer, nor didhe attack anyone else's ; he was content to observe life in its complexmanifestations and to note its serious affairs in a lighter vein thanpossibly the tempo of the times warranted. In the Oracle of theBottle, there is a certain "echo," as it has been called, "of the con-clusion of the preacher," a certain acknowledgement of the vanityof things. It is this theme that rather characterizes his entire work,and is, in some respects, a reflection of the spirit of his age. Fromhis close association with the affairs of the world, and the reactionof his own peculiar nature to the various social, political and re-ligious matters, there was derived his doctrine of Pantagruelism, asort of philosophy hard to define and almost equally as difficult tounderstand. Meaning in itself humour, it seems illogical to considerRabelais as a mere humourist, for his wealth of learning enabledhim to penetrate deep into the more serious affairs of life and togive definition to the thoughts which this study awoke within him.Humour, though not easily defined, when associated wtih Rabelaisseems to assume a deeper meaning, a meaning in harmony withK MU I \l> \M> lilt I \ K I ii K RENAISSANC1 '';''In- character, character complex and mysterious; and thus itcan be -.nil t hat Pantagruelism, in .1 sense, consists in the extensionof .1 wide sympath) to all human affairs with a comprehension <>itheir vanity, Yet, in this attitude we find an almost complete lackof reverence, and what seems more strange a failure tn appreciatepassion and poetry. In Pantagruel, there are touches of the latter.a- in the portrait of Quintessence, l>ut passion i> conspicuous by itsabsence,—an absence for which the plan <>f the l><">k. and its comicstructure, do not admit of an adequate explanation.To understand Rabelais is to compare him with Lucian andSwift, although he is much less a mere mocker than Lucian andentirely destitute of Swift's ferocity, even when attacking the abusesand faults of the monkish and educational systems. It i- probabhLucian whom it 1- most necessarj to know to fully appreciateRabelais.No one in reading Rabelais can fail to remark on the strangemixture of obsolete words and phrases and the wealth of allegoricalallusions which he employed in his writings. No doubt his freedomand coarseness of language and imagery, characteristic of bothGargantua and Pantagruel, has been responsible for much of theconfusion existing in respect to him. His obscenity, in particular.has come in for a great deal of criticism; and though the anti-Rahelaisians held the view that he "liked tilth and wallowed in itfrom choice" there i- nevertheless an excellent explanation for hislicence. For it must he remembered that his book was, above all.popular, and written for the popular classes: and that the popularFrench literature of the middle ages, as distinguished from thecourtly and literary literature which was singularly pure, can hardlybe exceeded in coarseness. In fact, the fabliaux, the early burlesqueromances of the Audiger class, and the farces of the 15th century,are no Ie>- obscene than the worst passages of Pantagruel.To quote from a writer who seems to have expressed within afew lines a fairly true estimate of Rabelais: "His great work,"-peaking of Pantagruel. "has been taken for an exercise on trans-cendental philosophy, for a concealed theological polemic, for anallegorical history of this and that personage of his time, for amerely literary utterance, for an attempt to tickle the popular earand taste." It is all of these and it is more, all of them in parts,none of them in deliberate and exclusive intention. It may perhaps640 THE OPEN COURTbe called the exposition and commentary of all the thoughts, feel-ings, aspirations and knowledge of a particular time and nation putforth in attractive literary form by a man who for once combinedthe practical and literary spirit, the power of knowledge and thepower of expression. The work of Rabelais is the mirror of the16th century in France, reflecting at once its comeliness and itsuncomeliness, its high aspirations, its voluptuous tastes, its politicaland religious dissensions, its keen criticism, its eager appetite andhasty digestion of learning, its gleams of poetry, and its ferocity ofmanners. In Rabelais, we can divine the "Pleiade" and Marat, theCymbalum mundi and Montaigne, Amyot and the Amadis, evenCalvin and Duperron."THE PHILOSOPHICAL REVIEWEdited byWILLIAM A. HAMMOND AND FRANK THILLYOf the Sage School of Philosophy, Cornell UniversitySeptember, 1928Garke's Ethical Philosophy (II) Ernest AlbceObjective Uncertainty and Human Faith David F. SwensonPeirce's Place in American Philosophy J. H. MuirheadThe Philosophy of Plotinus John WatsonReview of BooksRalph Barton Perry, General Theory of Value : byAlbert L. Hammond—Joseph Alexander Leighton, TheIndividual and the Social Order: by William ErnestHocking—Herbert Wildon Carr, Changing Backgroundsin Religion and Ethics: by Edgar Sheffield Brightman—Carl F. Taeusch, Professional and Business Ethics : byby Philip G. Fox.NotesJohn Dewey. E. B. McGilvary. Union AcademiqueInternationale. D. Luther Evans.Published Bi-MonthlyLONGMANS, GREEN & CO.Lancaster, Pa.55 Fifth Avenue, New YorkSingle Numbers $1.00 (5s.) Per Annum $5.00 (25s.)Publishers: DAVID NUTT, London—G. E. STECHERT CO., New York—FELIX ALCAN,Paris—Akad, Verlagsgesellschaft. Leipzig—NICOLA ZANICHELL1. Bologna—RUIZ HERMANOS, Madrid—RENASCENCA PORTUGUESA,Porto—THE MARUZEN COMPANY, Tokyo."SCIENTIA"INTERNATIONAL REVIEW OF SCIENTIFIC SYNTHESISPublished every month (each number containini loo to no pates)Editor) EUGENIO RIGNANOIS THE ONLY REVIEW the contributors to which are really international.IS THE ONLY REVIEW that has a really world-wide circulation.IS THE ONLY REVIEW of scientific synthesis and unification that deals with the fundamentalquestions of all sciences: the history of the sciences, mathematics, astronomy, geology, physics,chemistry, biology, psychology and sociology.IS THE ONLY REVIEW that by means of enquiries among the most eminent scientists andauthors of all countries (On the philosophical principles of the various sciences; On the most funda-mental astronomical and physical questions of current interest, and in particular on relativity: Onthe contribution that the different countries have given to the development of various branches ofknowledge; On the more important biological questions, and in particular on vitalism; On the socialquestion; On the great international questions raised by the World War), studies all the main prob-lems discussed in intellectual circles all over the world, and represents at the same time the firstattempt at an international organization of philosophical and scientific progress.IS THE ONLY REVIEW that among its contributors can boast of the most illustrious men ofscience in the whole world. A list of more than 350 of these is given in each number.The articles are published in the language of their authors, and every number has a supplement con-taining the French translation of all the articles that are not French. The review is thus com-pletely accessible to those who know only French. (Write for a free copy to the General Secretaryof "Scientia," Milan, sending 12 cents in stamps of your country, merely to cover packing andpostage.)SUBSCRIPTION: 910.00. Post free Office: Via A. De Togrnl 12, Hllnn (110)General Secretary: Dn. Paolo Bonitti.SCIENCE PROGRESSA QUARTERLY REVIEW OF SCIENTIFICTHOUGHT, WORK, AND AFFAIRSEdited by Lieut.-Col. Sir RONALD ROSSK.C.B., K.C.M.G., F.R.S., N.L., D.Sc., LL.D., M.D., F.R.C.S.Published at the beginning of JANUARY, APRIL, JULY, OCTOBEREach number consists of about 192 pages, contributed by authorities in their respectivesubjects. Illustrated. 6s net. Annual Subscription, including postage, 25s, 6d.SCIENCE PROGRESS owes its origin to an endeavor to found a scientific journalcontaining original papers and summaries of the present state of knowledge in allbranches of science. The necessity for such a journal is to be found in the fact thatwith the specialization which necessarily accompanies the modern development ofscientific thought and work, it is increasingly difficult for even the professional manof science to keep in touch with the trend of thought and the progress achieved insubjects other than those in which his immediate interests lie. This difficulty is felt byteachers and students in colleges and schools, and by the general educated public inter-ested in scientific questions. SCIENCE PROGRESS claims to have filled this want.JOHN MURRAYAlbemarle Street London, W-l

Rabelais and the Earlier Renaissance.

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Rabelais and the Earlier Renaissance.

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