iancaldwell&dustinthomason.theruleoffour-第53部分

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　Paul　invokes　my　father's　name；　and　Richard　Curry's；　as　if　they　are　a　pair　of　saints；　two　martyrs　from　the　paintings　in　Taft's　lecture。　For　a　moment　I　feel　like　Sancho　Panza；　listening　to　Don　Quixote。　The　giants　he　sees　are　nothing　but　windmills；　I　know；　and　yet　he's　the　one　who　sees　clearly　in　the　dark；　and　I'm　the　one　doubting　my　eyes。　Maybe　that's　been　the　rub　all　along；　I　think：　we　are　animals　of　imagination。　Only　a　man　who　sees　giants　can　ever　stand　upon　their　shoulders。
　〃But　Bill　was　right　about　one　thing；〃　Paul　says。　〃The　results　will　cast　a　shadow　over　everything　else　in　historical　studies。　For　a　long　time。〃
　He　takes　the　stack　of　books　from　my　hands；　and　suddenly　I　feel　weightless。　The　corridor　behind　us　extends　toward　a　light　in　the　distance；　open　aisles　verging　off　into　space　on　each　side。　Even　in　the　darkness；　I　can　see　the　way　Paul　smiles。
　
　Chapter　22
　
　We　begin　making　trips　back　and　forth　from　the　carrel；　replacing　dozens　of　books；　most　of　them　on　shelves　where　they　don't　belong。　Paul　only　seems　to　care　that　they're　out　of　sight。
　〃Do　you　remember　what　was　going　on　in　Italy　just　before　the　Hypnerotomachia　was　published？〃　he　asks。
　〃Just　what　was　in　the　Vatican　tour　book。〃
　Paul　lifts　another　pile　of　books　into　my　arms　as　we　walk　back　into　the　darkness。
　〃The　intellectual　life　of　Italy　during　Francesco's　day　revolves　around　a　single　city；〃　he　says。
　〃Rome。〃
　But　Paul　shakes　his　head。　〃Smaller　than　that。　The　size　of　Princeton…the　campus；　not　the　town。〃
　I　see　how　enchanted　he　is　by　what　he's　found；　how　real　it's　bee　for　him　already。
　〃In　that　town；〃　he　says；　〃you've　got　more　intellectuals　than　anyone　knows　what　to　do　with。　Geniuses。　Polymaths。　Thinkers　who　are　gunning　for　the　big　answers　to　the　big　questions。　Autodidacts　who　have　taught　themselves　ancient　languages　no　one　else　knows。　Philosophers　who　are　bining　religious　points　from　the　Bible　with　ideas　from　Greek　and　Roman　texts；　Egyptian　mysticism；　Persian　manuscripts　so　old　nobody　knows　how　to　date　them。　The　absolute　cutting　edge　of　humanism。　Think　of　the　riddles。　University　professors　playing　Rithmomachia。　Translators　interpreting　Horapollo。　Anatomists　revising　Galen。〃
　In　my　mind's　eye　the　dome　of　Santa　Maria　del　Fiore　es　into　focus。　My　father　liked　to　call　it　the　mother　city　of　modern　scholarship。　〃Florence；〃　I　say。
　〃Right。　But　that's　only　the　beginning。　In　every　other　discipline；　you've　got　the　biggest　names　in　Europe。　In　architecture　you've　got　Brunelleschi；　who　engineered　the　largest　cathedral　dome　in　a　thousand　years。　In　sculpture　you've　got　Ghiberti；　who　created　a　set　of　reliefs　so　beautiful　that　they're　known　as　the　doors　of　paradise。　And　you've　got　Ghiberti's　assistant；　who　grows　up　to　bee　the　father　of　modern　sculpture…Donatello。〃
　〃The　painters　weren't　bad　either；〃　I　remind　him。
　Paul　smiles。　〃The　single　greatest　concentration　of　genius　in　the　history　of　Western　art；　all　in　this　little　town。　Applying　new　techniques；　inventing　new　theories　of　perspective；　transforming　painting　from　a　craft　into　a　science　and　an　art。　There　must've　been　three　dozen　of　them；　like　Alberti；　who　would've　been　considered　first…class　anywhere　else　in　the　world。　But　in　this　town；　they're　second…rate。　That's　because　they're　peting　with　the　giants。　Masaccio。　Botticelli。　Michelangelo。〃
　As　the　momentum　of　his　ideas　increases；　his　feet　move　faster　down　the　dark　hallways。
　〃You　want　scientists？〃　he　says。　〃How　about　Leonardo　da　Vinci。　You　want　politicians？　Machiavelli。　Poets？　Boccaccio　and　Dante。　And　a　lot　of　these　guys　were　contemporaries。　On　top　of　it　all；　you　have　the　Medici；　a　family　so　rich　it　could　afford　to　patronize　as　many　artists　and　intellectuals　as　the　town　could　produce。
　〃All　of　them；　together；　in　the　same　small　city；　at　basically　the　same　time。　The　greatest　cultural　heroes　in　all　of　Western　history；　crossing　each　other　in　the　streets；　knowing　each　other　on　a　first…name　basis；　talking　to　each　other；　working　together；　peting；　influencing　and　pushing　each　other　to　go　further　than　they　could've　gone　alone。　All　in　a　place　where　beauty　and　truth　are　king；　where　leading　families　fight　over　who　can　mission　the　greatest　art；　who　can　subsidize　the　most　brilliant　thinkers；　who　can　own　the　biggest　library。　Imagine　that。　All　of　that。　It's　like　a　dream。　An　impossibility。〃
　We　return　to　his　carrel　and　he　finally　takes　a　seat。
　〃Then；　in　the　last　few　years　of　the　fifteenth　century；　just　before　the　Hypnerotomachia　is　written；　something　even　more　amazing　happens。　Something　that　every　Renaissance　scholar　knows　about；　but　that　no　one　has　ever　connected　with　the　book。　Francesco's　riddle　kept　talking　about　a　powerful　preacher　in　the　land　of　his　brethren。　I　just　couldn't　figure　out　what　the　connection　could　be。〃
　〃I　thought　Luther　wasn't　until　1517。　Colonna　was　writing　in　the　1490s。〃
　〃Not　Luther；〃　he　says。　〃In　the　late　1400s；　a　Dominican　monk　was　sent　to　Florence　to　join　a　monastery　called　San　Marco。〃
　Suddenly　it　dawns　on　me。　〃Savonarola。〃
　The　great　evangelical　preacher；　who　galvanized　Florence　at　the　turn　of　the　century；　trying　to　restore　the　city's　faith　at　any　cost。
　〃Exactly；〃　Paul　says。　〃Savonarola's　a　straight　arrow…the　straightest　you'd　ever　meet。　And　when　he　gets　to　Florence；　he　begins　to　preach。　He　tells　people　that　their　behavior　is　wicked；　their　culture　and　art　are　profane；　their　government　is　unjust。　He　says　God　looks　unkindly　on　them。　He　tells　them　to　repent。〃
　I　shake　my　head。
　〃I　know　how　it　sounds；〃　Paul　goes　on；　〃but　he's　right。　In　a　way；　the　Renaissance　is　a　godless　time。　The　Church　is　corrupt。　The　pope's　a　political　appointee。　Prospero　Colonna；　Francesco's　uncle；　allegedly　dies　of　gout；　and　some　people　think　Pope　Alexander　poisoned　him　because　he　came　from　a　rival　family。　That's　the　kind　of　world　it　is；　where　people　suspect　the　pope　of　murder。　And　that　was　only　the　beginning…they　suspected　him　of　sadism；　incest；　you　name　it。
　〃Meanwhile；　for　all　of　its　cutting…edge　art　and　scholarship；　Florence　is　in　constant　upheaval。　Factions　fight　each　other　in　the　streets；　prominent　families　plot　against　each　other　to　gain　power；　and　even　though　the　city　is　supposedly　a　republic；　the　Medici　control　everything。　Death　is　mon；　extortion　and　coercion　are　even　more　mon；　injustice　and　inequality　are　a　rule　of　life。　It's　a　pretty　disturbing　place；　considering　all　the　beautiful　things　that　e　out　of　it。
　〃So　Savonarola　arrives　in　Florence　and　sees　evil　wherever　he　looks。　He　urges　the　citizens　to　clean　up　their　lives；　to　stop　gambling；　to　start　reading　the　Bible；　to　help　the　poor　and　feed　the　hungry。　At　San　Marco　he　begins　to　gain　a　following。　Even　some　of　the　leading　humanists　admire　him。　They　realize　he's　well　read　and　conversant　about　philosophy。　Little　by　little；　Savonarola's　on　the　rise。〃
　I　stop　him。　〃I　thought　this　was　still　while　the　Medici　controlled　the　city。〃
　Paul　shakes　his　head。　〃Unfortunately　for　them；　their　newest　heir；　Piero；　was　a　fool。　He　couldn't　run　the　city。　The　people　began　to　clamor　for　liberty；　a　hallowed　cry　in　Florence；　and　finally　the　Medici　were　expelled。　Remember　the　forty…eighth　woodcut？　The　child　in　the　chariot；　butchering　the　two　women？〃
　〃The　one　Taft　showed　in　his　lecture。〃
　〃Right。　That's　how　Vincent　always　interpreted　it。　The　punishment　was　supposed　to　be　for　treason。　Did　he　say　what　he　thought　it　meant？〃
　〃No。　He　wanted　the　audience　to　solve　it。〃
　〃But　he　asked　about　the　child　in　it。　Why　does　he　have　a　sword…something　like　that？〃
　I　can　picture　Taft　standing　beneath　the　image；　his　shadow　cast　onto　the　screen。　〃Why　does　he　make　the　women　pull　his　chariot　through　the　forest；　then　kill　them　that　way？〃　I　say。
　〃Vincent's　theory　was　that　the　Cupid　figure　was　supposed　to　be　Piero；　the　new　Medici　heir。　Piero　behaved　like　a　child；　so　that's　how　the　artist　represented　him。　Because　of　him；　the　Medici　lost　their　hold　on　Florence　and　were　thrown　out。　So　the　woodcuts　show　him　retreating　through　the　woods。〃
　〃So　who　are　the　women？〃
　〃Florence　and　Italy；　Vincent　says。　By　acting　like　a　child；　Piero　destroyed　them　both。〃
　〃Seems　possible。〃
　〃It's　a　decent　interpretation；〃　Paul　agrees；　patting　his　hand　on　the　underside　of　his　desk；　searching　for　something。　〃Just　not　the　right　one。　Vincent　refused　to　accept　that　the　acrostic　rule　was　the　key。　He　would　never　believe　that　the　first　of　those　images　was　the　important　one。　He　could　only　see　things　his　way。
　〃The　point　is；　when　the　Medici　were　expelled；　the　other　leading　families　met　to　discuss　a　new　government　in　Florence。　The　only　problem　was；　no　one　trusted　anyone　else。　In　the　end　they　agreed　to　let　Savonarola　take　a　place　of　authority。　He　was　the　one　man　everyone　knew　was　incorruptible。
　〃So　Savonarola's　popularity　grows　even　more。　People　begin　to　take　his　sermons　to　heart。　Shopkeepers　start　reading　the　Bible　in　their　spare　time。　Gamblers　aren't　as　open　about　their　card　games。　Drinking　and　disorder　seem　to　be　on　the　decline。　But　Savonarola　sees　that　the　evils　persist。　So　he　steps　up　his　program　for　civic　and　spiritual　improvement。〃
　Paul　reaches　even　farther　beneath　his　desk。　With　the　sound　of　tape　peeling；　he　produces　a　single　manila　envelope。　Inside　is　a　calendar　he　has　drawn　up　in　his　own　hand。　When　he　flips　through　the　pages；　I　can　se