A selection from the works of the Catalan Franciscan, Francesc
Eiximenis.
Francesc Eiximenis is an outstanding figure in the ranks of the
mendicant orders who, in the late Middle Ages, strove to educate the
lower echelons of society. Born in Gerona, around 1330, probably to a
comfortable middle-class family, Eiximenis entered the Franciscan order
at a very early age, studied in Oxford, and probably also in Paris, and
obtained the degree of master of theology in Toulouse. Later he combined
teaching with the composing of his works. Among these stands out the
monumental and widely known Lo Crestià (The Christian), in which
Eiximenis aimed to include all contemporary university knowledge,
adapted for a lay public whose basic level of instruction was far below
that of clerics. The same didactic purpose is seen in the Libro de los
ángeles (Book of the Angels), the Libro de las mujeres (Book of the
Women) and the Vita Christi. Eiximenis, by then bishop of Elna, died in
1409.
Among the many themes that recur in his extensive literary production,
this anthology concentrates on his ideas on the transmission of
knowledge, on education and on culture. The introduction and selection
of texts is by David Guixeras and Xavier Renedo.
ROBERT D. HUGHES is a translator and researcher with particular
expertise in the fields of fine art, the history of ideas and Catalan
culture.
Published in association with Editorial Barcino
