The opening of the De magnanimitate by Giovanni Pontano between Aristotelian thought and aemulatio

Abstract

The present study examines the opening of the De magnanimitate by Giovanni Pontano, an ethical-political treatise dedicated to Andrea Matteo Acquaviva of Aragon. It demonstrates, firstly, the necessity to redefine the relationships between the surviving witnesses of the work; secondly, it provides insights into the chronology of the composition of the treatise, a question that remains unresolved. The focus of the study, however, is the analysis of the first three chapters of the treatise, which are particularly illustrative of the challenges the work poses to its readers. In these chapters, indeed, Pontano establishes a close dialogue with the Nicomachean Ethics and describes the magnanimitas by considering the vices opposed to it. In the background of the philosophical speculation, as typical of Pontano's ethical-philosophical prose, there is particular attention to contemporary history and the autobiographical dimension.