The seal of truth

What may be the final aim or highest achievement for the courtier is declared by Castiglione in the fourth book of The Cortegiano: “Il fine, adunque, del perfetto cortigiano, del quale insino a qui non si è parlato, estimo io che sia il guadagnarsi, per mezzo delle condizioni attribuitegli da questi signori, talmente la benevolenza e l’animo di quel principe a cui serve, che possa dirgli, e sempre gli dica, la verità di ogni cosa che a esso convenga sapere, senza pericolo o timore di dispiacergli” (The aim, therefore, of the perfect courtier, that we have not spoken about so far, I think is to earn himself, by means of the methods attributed to him by these gentlemen, the benevolence and heart of the prince he serves to such a degree that he can tell him, and will always be able to tell him, the truth about any matter he needs to know about, without any fear of danger or of displeasing him) (B. Castiglione, Il Cortigiano, edited by A. Quondam, Milan 2002, I, 320). A gentleman has a precise political and civic duty: he must establish with the prince a talking relationship based on frankness, even risking contrasts and disagreements; it is up to him, therefore, to counsel the prince and guide him towards forms of behaviour that are just and magnanimous. All the qualities listed in the first and second book of the work, which are inherent to interpersonal relationships, here find their raison d’être.

The courtier, in particular, must not give in to the temptation of adulation: not telling the prince the truth, but what he wants to hear, flattering and exalting him, trying to obtain benefits from him. The practice of adulation is, according to Castiglione, the worst degradation of the profession of gentleman. The latter must never fear a confrontation with the prince, always aiming to transmit information that is clear and precise, interpreting even the most complex situations without blurring the contours of reality

At the end of this work, the transformation of the gentleman at arms into a diplomat, started in the first book, is complete, and therefore his identification with the philosopher, who in classical tradition always stood by the prince, is put forward. Plato and Aristotle, according to what has been sent down to us by the ancients (and in particular by Plutarch), had been the advisors of Diogenes of Syracuse and Alexander: the courtier is called on to perform exactly the same duty for his prince.