Proper Etiquette for the Male Courtier
During the height of the Renaissance the idea of perfection for both men and women were being implemented. These ideas of perfection were personified in elite individuals called courtiers. Courtiers, especially males, had to present themselves as exceptionally learned, steadfast, impervious and valiant and yet have vivacious personalities. One such source that provided the proper rules of etiquette for courtiers was Baldassare Castiglione discourse, The Book of the Courtier. In the Book of the Courtier standards for males and females were different from one another. Both standards were stringent but for the male courtiers, we see that scholarly matters were of the utmost importance. For a male courtier perfection was indeed his primary goal in life. Although, being a courtier was a profession it was actually more of a lifestyle. The male courtier, especially those born into the lifestyle, had to be the epitome of perfection. Not only was their main goal to be soldier, their life goal was to be an intellectual learned in the classics. The reason for the male courtier to be intellectually superior was the fact they would need to spark and understand topics that were conversed among elites.
