The Education of a Christian Prince
Erasmus preferred for the prince to be loved, and strongly suggested a well-rounded education in order to govern justly and benevolently and avoid becoming a source of oppression.
In 1523, Queen Catherine of Aragon commissioned Juan Luis Vives to write an equivalent book for the female side, The Education of a Christian Woman, for her daughter Mary I. Christian Prince serves as a guide for the teacher and the prince as well as all court personnel who might have any reason to speak to or with him and espouses Erasmus' rhetorical approach to Christocentric political theories and pedagogical praxes which he refers to as the "philosophia Christi."
He is considered a key contributor to the rhetorical tradition because of his humanist approach to pedagogy, literary criticism, his own works (including letters), and oratory.
The Education of a Christian Prince highlights rhetoric designed to furnish the best practices for a young man in a critical religious and political position.
Erasmus's ethos within The Education of a Christian Prince (Institutio principis christiani), in the Isocratean manner of setting himself apart from potentially incompetent teachers, shows disdain against sophists.
"[3] Erasmus' use of logos and pathos immediately follow when he completes the eschewing of Isocrates: "I am a theologian addressing a renowned and upright prince, Christians both of us.
"[18] And while Cicero was considered the "patron saint of the Renaissance era" – a title that would become fundamentally problematic for a number of Christians because of his pagan beliefs – Erasmus came to be known as the "prince of humanists" esteemed by many of his contemporaries as a "man born to bring back literature.
"[21][22] The Christian Prince is an example of Erasmus' rhetorically stylistic mastery that serves as a testament to his ability to imbue the teachings of Christ while embodying Cicero's concept of "imitator".
"[26] Although offering an Augustinian-type approach by emphasizing the Christian prince's ability to interpret pagan texts, Erasmus would continue to have strained relations with some Church Fathers regarding his rhetorical methodologies toward Truth.
Despite this, the Christian Prince "saw ten editions during Erasmus' lifetime and was translated into a number of vernacular languages, which testifies to a general interest in the work.
