Body Politics In The Book Of "The Body Politic", Christine De Pizan
Rachel Molloy In ‘The Book of the Body Politic’, Christine de Pizan discusses the Body politic and the three different estates it encompasses. The three estates, being the princes as the head, the nobles and knights as the arms and legs, and finally the common people as the belly, legs, and feet, connect the whole body. However, in part three of her book, she focuses on just the common people. This third estate is comprised of three groups: the clerics, the burghers and merchants, and the artisans and labor workers.
Pizan further expands on the obligations of the people and in the manner in which they should be treated. She states that the clergy must strive to acquire more and more wisdom, the burghers and merchants ought to be honorable and wise, and finally the artisans and labor workers must avoid living voluptuous lives. To maintain a well functioning ‘body politic’ it is crucial for the clerics to be diligent in obtaining more knowledge but not too much diligence. Although hard work is important, leisure and rest are equally as important. If they don’t give themselves any time off from obtaining knowledge, they will over work their minds and their thirst for knowledge will diminish due to lack of interest. It is important to find a balance between work and pleasure and to “vary your work with diversions”.
Secondly, it’s important for the burghers and merchants “to be honorable, wise, and of good appearance, dressed in honest clothing without disguise or affectation”. They care for the city and make sure it is well governed. They must also take care of the common people since so that they will not turn again the prince. If they allow the commoners to turn against the prince, not only will they hurt the prince, but in the long term they will also hurt themselves. To take care of the commoners, they must also Rachel Molloycounsel and advise them in keeping quiet on the affairs they know little about and make sure they don’t “complain about great rulers nor curse the princes of the people”.
Finally, the ‘body politic’ requires for common people to avoid lechery and gluttony “for it would be pleasing to God if their lives were more sober and less licentious as is appropriate to their estate”. It is also necessary to further educate themselves in the teaching of Holy Scripture as they are rather ignorant in that subject. By following all of this, it will help them to lead healthy lives. This was proved when Pythagoras taught the citizens of Methaponthus to be “sober in their food and drink” and the “doctrine of honesty and chastity” and in result he created so much good for them that they erected a temple in his honor.
In conclusion, for the ‘body politic’ to function properly, Christine de Pizan finds it imperative for the three estates to work coherently. The upper estates must treat the lower estate properly and care for their needs while the lower estates have certain obligations. If the clergy aren’t diligent in acquiring wisdom, the burghers and merchants are not honorable and wise, or the artisans and labor workers indulge in gluttony and lechery, the body as a whole will not function. Therefore it is imperative for the common people to fulfill their obligations.
