Praise of Folly

A satire on the intrinsic vanity of the social order and an exhortation towards a humanistic Christianity, Erasmus' "Praise of Folly" - written in 1509 and put on the Index of forbidden books by the Council of Trent in 1559 after becoming the greatest literary success of the "Humanistic Age" - is the towering achievement of one of the most brilliant minds of all time, and one of the most influential books ever written. Published here in a new translation by Roger Clarke which brings out the underlying humour of the original, Erasmus' masterpiece is presented in this volume with one of his lesser-known satirical dialogues, Pope Julius Barred from Heaven, and with a selection from his other great work, the "Adagia".