Facezie

by Poggio Bracciolini, Stefano Pittaluga (Editor)

Questo volume raccoglie brevi, talora brevissimi, testi che si presentano di volta in volta sotto forma di aneddoti, motti di spirito, barzellette, narrazioni erotiche, apparentati dal comune denominatore della comicità. Gli esiti di tale comicità sono quanto mai veri: arguzia e humour "fiorentini" non mancano, ma cedono volentieri il passo a freddure estemporanee, a un riso incolto e popolare, a un umorismo surreale e, molto spesso, al divertimento grossolano e greve. L'introduzione, a cura di Stefano Pittaluga, ricostruisce le vicende biografiche e gli itinerari culturali del celebre umanista, fornendo un aggiornato panorama critico e bibliografico della sua produzione.

Genres: Renaissance, Humor

322 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1452

About the author

Giovanni Francesco Poggio Bracciolini

"Pogius, rabula adeo indoctus ut etiam si vacaret obscoenitate, tamen indignus esset qui legeretur, adeo autem obscoenus ut etiam si doctissimus fuisset, tam esset a bonis viris reiiciendus." Erasmus, Opus Epistolarum, ed. Allen, Oxford 1906, I, p. 409 (letter to Christopher Fisher, 1505).

Reviews

[Théo d'Or]

Anyone can have a sense of humor ? Let's see...

I can talk, in the case of humor, about a positive émission state, triggered by the fact of recognizing a discrepancy, an incongruity between what we expected to happen and what actually happened . It is essential, however - that this incongruity be surprising, otherwise, the characteristic of the notion loses its meaning itself.
Making a summary, I could say there are many categories of humor. One of them would be the so-called " affiliation humor " - which makes everyone laugh, the effect being one of affiliation.
Another one - would be the so-called " self -enhancing humor " - the idea being here that in certain negative situations, we try to put things into a comic equation, for to be able to face them. An example :

An American comes to Paris, and is driven by a taxi driver to the center of Paris. On the way, they pass by the government building, and the American asks the taxi driver : " How long was this palace built ? "
" I think in 8-10 years " - answers the driver.

" We would have built it in only 2 years " - replied the American.

Further on, they arrive in front of the City-Hall, and the American put the same question to the driver, who , in turn - in order to leave a better impression - says
" I think in 2 years ".
The American reply " Meh...we would have built it in only 3-4 months ".

Finally, they pass by the Louvre museum, and the American put again the same question :
" How long was this built ? "
The taxi driver, took a breath, and with a " surprised" look, say " I don't know, last night wasn't here . "

This is an example of humor to deal with a disadvantageous situation that you cannot overcome with the means you have at hand.
In conclusion, humor may seem ineffable, but - just as we have clear physical laws around the sunrise and sunset, we also have clear psychological mechanisms in the case of humor.
Thus, humor can be trained, and, in the end , anyone can have humor. Less Bracciolini.

[Han_na · Rating 2 out of 5]

Nimensä mukaisesti kaskuja, välillä aika hävyttömiäkin juttuja 1400-luvun Italiasta.
Avasi kivasti ikkunan keskiajan Italiaan ja mitä moninaisimpiin aviorikollisiin lemmenseikkailuihin, joista selvitäkseen erityisesti naiset käyttivät kaiken nokkeluutensa miehiään juksatakseen. Pisteitä avoimesta suhtautumisesta seksiin sekä naisten ruumiillisuuteen. Tällaiset tarinat värittävät kivasti historiaa. Dantea koskevat kaskut olivat myös ihan kiinnostavia. Aviorikos ei onneksi ollut myöskään kaskujen ainoa teema, vaan välillä satuiltiin muistakin jutuista.

Lukukokemuksena aikamoinen Valittujen palojen setämiesvitsien kokoontumisajot.
Naurahtelin parille tarinalle laiskasti, joissain oli ihan potkuakin. Monissa tarinoissa seikkailee irstas ja häpeilemätön pappi tai munkki, mikä tuo tarinoihin toki kerroksia. Kääntäjälle (tai alkuperäiselle kirjoittajalle) pisteitä siitä, että osa raiskauksista sanallistettiin raiskauksiksi. Yllättävää oli, että jo 400 vuotta ennen Sigmund Freudia kaikenlaisten naisia vaivaavien tautien uskottiin hoituvan sillä, että mies harrastaa naisen kanssa seksiä.

"Rakkaat veljet, tahtoisin teidän vapauttavan minut suuresta piinasta. Tämän viimeisimmän paaston aikana olen kuunnellut vaimojenne ripittäytymisiä, eikä joukossa ollut yhtäkään, joka ei olisi ilmoittanut pysyneensä uskollisena miehelleen. Te taas lähes kaikki olette tunnustaneet maanneenne muiden vaimojen kanssa. En halua enää olla epätietoisuuden vallassa, vaan haluan teidän kertovan, ketkä tai missä nämä naiset oikein ovat."
- CXXIII Papin epähieno kysymys

Henkilökohtainen vuosisatalukuhaaste: 1400-luku.

[Einzige · Rating 5 out of 5]

A quick and entertaining way to humanise the people of the middle ages, who were neither inhumanely stupid and unaware of the world around them nor pure and perfect Christians.
Some fun examples with a modern feel -

Furbabies and clerical corruption
There was once in Tuscany a country curate who was very rich, and when a little dog of his died, of which he was very fond, he buried it in the cemetery. The fact came to the ears of the bishop, who, being anxious to get hold of the curate's money, had him brought up before him as guilty of a grave offence. The priest, knowing the character of the bishop, went to see him with fifty ducats in his pocket. The bishop, seeing the curate before him, reproved him severely for giving burial to a dog in sacred ground, and ordered that he be sent to prison.
" My lord ", said the crafty priest, " had you known the intelligence of that little dog, you would not have marvelled at his being given burial along with men, because both alive and dead he had as much intelligence as any man."
" What does this mean? " said the bishop.
" The little dog ", replied the curate, " left a will, and, knowing your Lordship's Poverty, he left you fifty ducats, which I have brought with me."
The bishop then approved of both the will and the burial; took the money and acquitted the priest.

A 500 year old response to a redpill talking point
A woman who was often asked by her husband why, if the pleasure of love was equal for men and women, it was the men who solicited and importuned the women, rather than vice-versa. The woman replied: "It is a certain thing that it is not we women who seek the men. It is proved that we women are ready for the matter: not so you men. And we should therefore ask the men in vain, if they were not ready and willing."

Cultural relativism being taken too far
A beaker of wine was once brought to an Englishman at a banquet, and all present took their wine from it. And while the Englishman was putting it to his lips, he saw a dead fly in it, which he took out. Then, after having taken his drink, he replaced the dead fly in the wine.
Asked why he did this, he replied: "I, personally, do not like flies in my wine, but how am I to know if some of you do not like them?"And he handed on the beaker.

[Beluosus · Rating 3 out of 5]

Poggius Bracciolinus magnus erat eruditus et humanista nota, cui reinventum multorum operum classicorum amissorum (De rerum natura Lucretii et Ciceronis nonnulla opera, inter alia) debemus. Sed et narratiunculas de petis amabat, ut nobis hunc thesaurum fabellarum non solum de petis, sed etiam de stupris, de sceleribus, de stultitia, de merda, &c &c traderet. Hucusque bonum.

Stilum, quippe classicum (non raro Ciceronem aemulabat), satis laudo, etsi pronominibus sicut in linguis vulgaribus usus est. Repetitionis thematum me paulo taedebat. Pessimum autem stili vitium est explicatio. Sententia paenultima est acumen ioci, post quam commentariolum ponit, vel ioci enodationem, ut ioco noceret. Nescio an hoc sit mos aeatis eius, nihilominus me piget.

Credo me celerius legisse. Si librum per hebdomades, fere per menses interdum suscepissem et seposuissem, magis placuisset. Series iocorum mihi iniucundorum (quippe nimis misogyniae vel Rabelais-itatis inest) me conterabat. Convivium commonefecit, quo amici iocos turpes inter se agitarent. Omnis quisque unum vel duo recitat, ut risum aliorum provocaret, non obstante turpidudine, aut propter turpitudinem ipsam. At est semper unus qui sex septem octo iocos iniucundos agit, ut alii vererentur ne is vere sit gentium aliorum osor, misogynes, anti-semiticus, vel sim.

[Juanma Durán · Rating 4 out of 5]

Muy bueno para el estudio de la historia de las mentalidades. Escatológico, muy guarrón. El autor era secretario papal a mediados del siglo XV y recoge aquí las anecdotas y ocurrencias que se contaban en los ratos muertos. No creo que sirva para pasar el rato, mejor leerlo con cierta intención.

[Lucas Cadenas · Rating 3 out of 5]

caca culo pedo pis en latín del quattrocento

[Lulu]

1470