Encomium moriae, i.e. Stultitiae laus = Praise of folly

In the margin of this text, a reader has drawn a man with a strange hat. Erasmus’s Praise of Folly is a bold satire that pokes fun at the foolishness of human society. Erasmus was writing in response to his personal observations of Pope Julius II’s (1443–1513) court. Erasmus was an outspoken opponent of Pope Julius (nicknamed the Warrior Pope or Fearsome Pope), also writing a dialogue called Julius Excluded from Heaven. Themes, stories, and commentary all gesture to the behaviors of the ridiculous and obscene. 

More than any of the other marginal drawings in this exhibition, this reader ties his drawing directly to the text. At this point in the text, Erasmus is writing about how while people are duplicitous and try to hide their unwise beliefs or actions, they nevertheless shine through in their faces or expressions. Similarly, though this person in the margins is in a costume/ disguise (be it dunce, devil, or some kind of alien creature) his true nature shines through. This picture renders into visual form the printed notation that summarizes Erasmus’ text, a translation of which is “Folly shines outward in the expression [looks/face].”* It illuminates the various ways that doodling helps people think about or react to a text. In this way, marginal illustrations function to elucidate and enliven a dense, scholarly work.

*Translation thanks to Ariana Sider.