ABSTRACT
One aspect of medicine which does feature prominently in The Book of the Courtier is the ancient analogy between medicine and statecraft. During the first three evenings of the Courtier discussions, the speakers have concentrated on the attributes of the perfect courtier and the best way of exercising them, as well as the attributes and activities of the perfect court lady. The salutary deception recommended here by Ottaviano is sometimes treated as if it were incompatible with the 'truth-telling mission' which he has just assigned to the perfect courtier. In one form of salutary deception, the courtier's talents are used to retain the prince's favor so that the courtier will have the opportunity to impart moral lessons along with entertainment. Castiglione was neither a physician nor from a family of physicians, but we should not assume that he was uninformed about medicine, or at least about classical medical doctrines, which in his day were part of the common humanist culture.
