The Swerve: How the World Became Modern (2011) By Stephen Greenblatt

This marvelous little work of nonfiction has everything: philosophy, theology, history, atomism, mystery and a large dose of irony.  Among other topics, the reader will discover a several page discussion on bookworms (the insects, not the geeks), a short history on the demise of the Great Library of Alexandria, a discourse on the literary circles of William Shakespeare, an overview of monastic life in the upper Germanic provinces of the Holy Roman Empire, and a short history on the creation of Times New Roman typeface – none of which is the main plot of the book.

The main plot is the story of how Poggio Bracciolini, a Vatican scribe and off-hours scholar, brings back from near extinction the tenets of Epicurean (Humanist) Greek philosophy, by rediscovering Lucretius’ poem On The Nature of Things: and how this book hunter’s find in 1417 helped shape the course of -- the swerve of (atoms) -- the Renaissance.   Author Stephen Greenblatt’s book, carries the subtitle of How the World Became Modern, but I’d like to suggest another:  The Crucifixion, Resurrection and Spread of Humanism.  Amen.

Poggio was a major official in the Vatican bureaucracy, serving five Popes during the 15^th century, two of whom were bounced from office for corruption (or more accurately, for having the wrong set of corrupt allies).  That this man would rediscover and reproduce this then controversial masterpiece debunking the core tenets of western theology is the ultimate irony.  That he did this at a time that the Vatican was routinely burning people at the stake for heresy, adds to the story.

Many of the works of the ancient Greek philosophers were lost during the Middle Ages.   Some works were suppressed as Roman culture asserted its control by purposely abandoning what came before; others because Christianity sought to destroy all history of polytheistic thought; and many others succumbed to natural causes, such as bookworms and fire.   Poggio’s intellectual hobby was to find as many lost classics as possible and translate them to Latin, making them accessible once more.   That many of those finds were at remote monastic libraries, adds to the irony.

This book, while short at 263 pages, is not an easy read.  It also contains 263 Notes (the last of which pertains to Thomas Jefferson’s personal library, which included a copy of Poggio’s Latin translation of On The Nature of Things), and a 27 page bibliography.