Project Gutenberg 2009-01-20 Public domain in the USA. 1290 Erasmus, Desiderius 1469 1536 Erasmus, of Rotterdam Holbein, Hans 1497 1543 Holbein, Hans, the Younger Holbein, Hans, der Jüngere Holbein, John Kan, J. B. Moriae encomium. Dutch De Lof der Zotheid Wikipedia page about this book: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/In_Praise_of_Folly Wikipedia page about this book: https://nl.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lof_der_zotheid Produced by Jeroen Hellingman and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at https://www.pgdp.net/ "De Lof der Zotheid" by Desiderius Erasmus is a satirical essay written in the early 16th century. The work is a critique of societal norms, religious practices, and the folly of human behavior, narrated from the perspective of the personification of Foolishness, who humorously celebrates her own attributes. Erasmus uses wit and irony to challenge the status quo and provoke reflection on the nature of wisdom and folly. The opening of the work introduces the theme of Foolishness addressing an audience, declaring her role in alleviating the burdens of life through her divine powers. She claims credit for the joy and youthful spirit that accompany human existence, suggesting that life without folly would be excessively serious and dull. The narrator, as Foolishness, speaks highly of herself, criticizing those who engage in wisdom and seriousness, and sets the stage for a broader examination of how folly underpins various aspects of society, including friendships, love, and even governance. This playful tone establishes the character and intention of the essay as a thoughtful and entertaining critique of humanity. (This is an automatically generated summary.) Reading ease score: 63.8 (8th & 9th grade). Neither easy nor difficult to read. nl Folly -- Early works to 1800 PA Text Banned Books from Anne Haight's list Category: Essays, Letters & Speeches Category: Classics of Literature Category: Philosophy & Ethics 488324 2025-08-11T11:32:55.935083 text/html 466987 2021-01-04T16:41:03 text/html 1730197 2025-08-11T11:33:09.411134 application/epub+zip 1734248 2025-08-11T11:33:00.179063 application/epub+zip 207195 2025-08-11T11:32:57.250129 application/epub+zip 3721232 2025-08-11T11:33:15.738006 application/x-mobipocket-ebook 3605558 2025-08-11T11:33:06.441044 application/x-mobipocket-ebook 301755 2022-09-13T05:11:35.220663 application/x-mobipocket-ebook 336115 2025-08-11T11:32:54.250097 text/plain; charset=us-ascii 335703 2021-01-04T16:41:03 text/plain; charset=us-ascii 2944 2008-06-18T17:35:00 application/octet-stream 27661 2008-06-18T17:35:00 application/octet-stream 30707 2008-06-18T17:35:00 application/octet-stream 47910 2008-06-18T17:35:00 application/octet-stream 52651 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