“In the secret chambre of the mynde, in the preuy closet of the sowle”

Already present in certain biographical details, Thomas More's programmatic efforts to create new patterns of mixed living are most innovatively employed in the Life of Pico. In creating a vernacular translation of Gianfrancesco's Vita Ioannis Pici Mirandulae, More executes substantial changes that draw attention to Pico's strong desire to transpose rituals and rhythms of monastic devotion, which encourage a highly cultivated interior and private spiritual life, onto the day-to-day life of a layperson. As spiritual guide, More's Life of Pico aims to produce a reflective, capable reader while at once setting the limits of his or her intellectual endeavor within narrowly fixed orthodox parameters

Aesthetics · Art · Closet · Layperson · Literature · Political science · Private life · Sociology · Vernacular · History · Law · Medieval Literature and History