Person
Baltasar Gracián
Writing & Narrative
Philosophy & EthicsWho is Baltasar Gracián in the Agency editorial?
Baltasar Gracián was a Spanish Jesuit writer of the 17th century, author of The Art of Worldly Wisdom, a collection of maxims. Writing.1 quotes him once, in a quotation box under the heading "1.9.2 In the mind of Gracian", with a passage about valuing quality over quantity.
In short
Baltasar Gracián was a Spanish Jesuit writer of the 17th century, author of The Art of Worldly Wisdom. In the Agency editorial he appears only in Writing.1, in the closing section 1.9, Pandora's Box. Under the heading "1.9.2 In the mind of Gracian" the edition prints a quotation box credited to The Art of Worldly Wisdom, How to reach excellence, Proverb 8. The passage begins "Value quality over quantity" and says: "Perfection does not reside in quantity but in quality." The edition prints the passage without comment. The wiki has a separate entry for the idea, Gracián's Principle of Brevity.
Key facts
- Who was Baltasar Gracián?
- A Spanish Jesuit writer who lived from 1601 to 1658, author of The Art of Worldly Wisdom, a collection of maxims published in 1647.
- Where does the Agency editorial name Gracián?
- Only in Writing.1, in a heading and in the credit of a quotation box at the end of the edition, in the section called Pandora's Box.
- What does Writing.1 quote from him?
- A passage on quality over quantity, which includes the sentence "Instead of being giant and hollow, it is worth more to be small and solid."
Who was Baltasar Gracián?
Baltasar Gracián was a Spanish Jesuit priest and writer who lived from 1601 to 1658. He is known for The Art of Worldly Wisdom, a collection of three hundred maxims published in 1647, and for the novel El Criticón. These facts come from outside the edition and are marked for verification.
How does Gracián appear in Writing.1?
Writing.1 ends with a section called Pandora's Box, which the edition describes as a digest of the author's latest discoveries. Its second part has the heading "1.9.2 In the mind of Gracian" and consists of one quotation box, credited to Baltasar Gracián, The Art of Worldly Wisdom, How to reach excellence, Proverb 8.
The passage begins "Value quality over quantity" and continues: "Perfection does not reside in quantity but in quality. Everything that is good is little or rare." It says that some esteem books for their size, "as if they were written to exercise the arm when their true purpose is to strengthen intelligence". The edition adds no comment of its own after the box. The wiki treats the idea in the concept Gracián's Principle of Brevity.
Source editions
Where this entry comes from in the Agency editorial.