Anja Božič PRAISING SAINT JEROME OR PRAISING ELOQUENCE: PIER PAOLO VERGERIO’S SERMONES PRO SANCTO HIERONYMO AND HIS LETTERS MA Thesis in Late Antique, Medieval and Early Modern Studies Central European University Budapest June 2020 CEU eTD Collection PRAISING SAINT JEROME OR PRAISING ELOQUENCE: PIER PAOLO VERGERIO’S SERMONES PRO SANCTO HIERONYMO AND HIS LETTERS by Anja Božič (Slovenia) Thesis submitted to the Department of Medieval Studies, Central European University, Budapest, in partial fulfillment of the requirements of the Master of Arts degree in Late Antique, Medieval and Early Modern Studies. Accepted in conformance with the standards of the CEU. ____________________________________________ Chair, Examination Committee ____________________________________________ Thesis Supervisor ____________________________________________ Examiner ____________________________________________ Examiner CEU eTD Collection Budapest June 2020 PRAISING SAINT JEROME OR PRAISING ELOQUENCE: PIER PAOLO VERGERIO’S SERMONES PRO SANCTO HIERONYMO AND HIS LETTERS by Anja Božič (Slovenia) Thesis submitted to the Department of Medieval Studies, Central European University, Budapest, in partial fulfillment of the requirements of the Master of Arts degree in Late Antique, Medieval and Early Modern Studies. Accepted in conformance with the standards of the CEU. ____________________________________________ External Reader Budapest CEU eTD Collection June 2020 PRAISING SAINT JEROME OR PRAISING ELOQUENCE: PIER PAOLO VERGERIO’S SERMONES PRO SANCTO HIERONYMO AND HIS LETTERS by Anja Božič (Slovenia) Thesis submitted to the Department of Medieval Studies, Central European University, Budapest, in partial fulfillment of the requirements of the Master of Arts degree in Late Antique, Medieval and Early Modern Studies. Accepted in conformance with the standards of the CEU. ____________________________________________ External Supervisor Budapest June 2020 CEU eTD Collection I, the undersigned, Anja Božič, candidate for the MA degree in Late Antique, Medieval and Early Modern Studies, declare herewith that the present thesis is exclusively my own work, based on my research and only such external information as properly credited in notes and bibliography. I declare that no unidentified and illegitimate use was made of the work of others, and no part of the thesis infringes on any person’s or institution’s copyright. I also declare that no part of the thesis has been submitted in this form to any other institution of higher education for an academic degree. Budapest, 2 June 2020 Anja Božič Signature CEU eTD Collection Abstract Pier Paolo Vergerio’s orations, Sermones pro Sancto Hieronymo (1392–1408), are considered to be the earliest examples of the classicizing orations (panegyrics) in praise of a Christian saint. In contrast to the thematic sermons of the scholastic writers, these orations omit the biblical quotation at the beginning and adapt the classical epideictic genre. The secondary literature has chiefly focused either on the stylistic features of the orations or their function within the humanist cult of Saint Jerome. In contrast, this thesis connects both aspects and interprets Vergerio’s work as an outcome of their harmonious alignment. Counter to the seminal studies it treats the orations separately as a series of independent pieces. It features a catalog of the orations’ structured outlines and pinpoints the standard patterns of praising oratory. The analysis looks for similarities in the material from which Vergerio takes to develop these praising patterns. It illustrates the strands of resemblances in their contents according to the specificities of the context in which the orations were delivered. Moreover, the examination involves Vergerio’s letters in praise of St. Jerome and places them in parallel with the orations. The correspondences found in the examples of the two different literary formats highlight Vergerio’s singular approach to the formation of the epideictic patterns. Finally, the thesis studies Vergerio’s utilization of the humility tropes and his omissions of miracles. Based on textual analysis, it points out his pioneering adaptations of the material provided from the contemporary devotional practice to the classical epideictic genre. CEU eTD Collection i Table of contents Introduction .......................................................................................................................... 1 1. Breaking with tradition: Vergerio’s orations as the first examples of humanist panegyrics to saints ................................................................................................................................... 10 1. 1. The revival of antique oratory ................................................................................... 11 1. 2. From the thematic form to the epideictic genre in the sacred oratory ........................ 13 1. 3. Problems of categorization and methodological approach ......................................... 17 2. Framing the orations........................................................................................................ 20 2. 1. Methodology ............................................................................................................ 21 2. 2. Context and order of orations ................................................................................... 23 2. 3. Recurring events from Jerome’s life and their order ................................................. 24 2. 4. Outlines of the orations ............................................................................................ 29 3. Analysis of the orations ................................................................................................... 39 3. 1. The orations addressed to monks (Sermons 1, 5, 10) .................................................. 40 3. 2. The orations delivered in Istria (3, 6) ........................................................................ 45 3. 3. The orations in front of the papal court (8, 9) ........................................................... 47 3. 4. The orations with unknown settings (2, 4, 7) ............................................................ 53 3. 5. General observations ................................................................................................ 57 3. 6. Vergerio’s letters ..................................................................................................... 61 4. Matching praise with eloquence ...................................................................................... 67 Conclusion .......................................................................................................................... 75 CEU eTD Collection Bibliography ....................................................................................................................... 82 Appendices ......................................................................................................................... 87 ii Introduction During the years 1390–1408, one of the leading humanists of his generation, Pier Paolo Vergerio, delivered at least ten public orations in honor of Saint Jerome. His orations, Sermones pro Sancto Hieronymo, are considered to be the earliest examples of the classicizing orations (panegyrics) in the context of sacred praise.1 In them, Vergerio actively contributes to the shaping of the humanist cult of St. Jerome, while also creating a new and influential model for the humanists’ epideictic oratory.2 Following the classical precepts, rather than the traditional thematic form of medieval speeches, these orations illustrate one of the most discernible aspects of the humanists’ alignment of classicization with contemporaneity.3 Accordingly, the topics of their content shifts from the saints’ miraculous performances to topics that are in conformity with contemporary humanist preferences. As an active scholar of numerous fields, from the theory of education, canon law, and medicine to logic and rhetoric, Vergerio portrays a similarly active figure of Jerome and calls to the imitation of his countless virtues. Jerome’s erudition and his piety are indeed emphasized, yet Vergerio applies another innovation. Omitting the biblical quotation, which otherwise guided the course of thematic speeches, Vergerio employs all of Jerome’s typical attributes and develops them according to the specific context of the oration in question. The 1 John W. O’Malley, Praise and Blame in Renaissance Rome: Rhetoric, Doctrine, and Reform in the Sacred Orators of the Papal Court, C. 1450–1521, Duke Monographs in Medieval and Renaissance Studies (Durham, N.C.: Duke University Press, 1979), 86. I refer to Vergerio’s orations by the title most frequently adopted by the relevant secondary literature. CEU eTD Collection 2 According to classical rhetoric theory, the epideictic genre was one of the main three genres of oratory, which was used to convey praise or blame during ceremonies. Theodore Chalon Burgess, Epideictic Literature, Studies in Classical Philology (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1902). 3 The thematic form appeared in the late twelfth century and coincides with the birth of Scholasticism. The central study of the theme remains Harry Caplan, Of Eloquence: Studies in Ancient and Mediaeval Rhetoric (Ithaca [N.Y.]: Cornell University Press, 1970). For Latin medieval preaching see Nicole Bériou, “Les Sermons Latins Après 1200,” in The Sermon, ed. Beverly Mayne Kinzle (Turnhout: Brepols,