Abstract

This study contends that the works of Juan Luis Vives can be systematically understood within the topic of the development of prudence. In particular, the last two works published during his lifetime, the De Tradendis Disciplinis and the De Anima et Vita evidence Vives' prudential understanding of the education of judgement in order to control the passions. This understanding and systematic key to Vives' writings appears as early as 1520 in his In Pseudo Dialecticos, and develops throughout Vives' lifetime in combination with his humanist and classical interests in ancient literature. Significant to Vives' understanding of the inner life is his conviction that the "usus", or experience of others as gained from the study of history, can contribute to the development of prudence in the individual student. Drawing upon ancient authorities such as Plato, Aristotle, Macrobius, and Augustine, Vives' makes use of their writings to derive key ideas reflected in his own work, such as the analogy of the inner and outer republics, a teleological test for human endeavors and learning, and the distinction between "use" and "enjoyment" . In his description and dissection of the emotions in the De Anima et Vita, Vives seeks to classify and understand the complexity of the human experience in order to habituate the inner life toward virtuous and true judgement