The Ascent of Mont Ventoux
by Petrarch · Familiares IV, 1
Assigned by 1 of the 9 reading lists, catalogue entry only
- Written
- dated 1336, probably written c. 1350
- Era
- Medieval
- Language
- Latin
- Length
- Short · 10 ppunder 120 pages
- Difficulty
- Moderate2 of 5 for a first-year reader
We recommendThe Renaissance Philosophy of Man, translated by Hans NachodUniversity of Chicago Press, 1948Prints the letter together with On His Own Ignorance, the pairing Notre Dame assigns.
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A Latin letter to Petrarch's confessor Dionigi da Borgo San Sepolcro describing a climb of Mont Ventoux in Provence with his brother Gherardo on 26 April 1336. The brother takes the direct steep route while Petrarch keeps seeking easier paths and finds himself lower than before, which he reads as a figure for his own moral life. At the summit, overwhelmed by the view, he opens the copy of Augustine's Confessions he carries and lands on the passage rebuking men who admire mountains and neglect themselves. It is often called the first modern account of climbing for its own sake.
No reading guide yet
The catalogue entry above is complete: the dates, the form, the themes and every program that assigns The Ascent of Mont Ventoux are verified against each program's published list.
What is missing is the part that takes real work: the summary, the key passages, and a recommended translation. The edition named below is the one most programs assign, so the buy links are useful already.
