"Saint Francis of Assisi" Author: Jacques Le Goff Publisher: Commercial Press Original title: Saint François d'Assise

“In him, one can see both poetry and truth.”

The "anti-biography" masterpiece by Jacques Le Goff, a giant of the Annales School

Simplified Chinese first translation

Recommended by well-known scholars Peng Xiaoyu, Zhou Mang, and Li Wendan

“I hope that people today will hear in this book the echoes of the words and actions of Francis and his brothers as we ask ourselves the questions of the new era.” —Jacques Le Goff

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Francis (Francesco d'Assisi, 1181/1182-1226) was a key figure in the historical period from the 12th century to the 13th century. He promoted the development of religion, civilization and society at that time, and promoted the birth of a modern and vibrant Middle Ages. Francis combined simplicity with prestige, humility with positivity, ordinary body with extraordinary influence, and met the expectations of most of his contemporaries. He worked in the city and brought peace to the city instead of internal disputes. He insisted on "poverty as happiness" and advocated the use of finance and markets for charity. He also called for equality and gave women and children their due status. Francis has inspired historians' desire to study more than anyone else, and has made him regarded as a model figure in the past and present.

"Saint Francis of Assisi" is a masterpiece about Francis by the famous French historian Jacques Le Goff. Although the title only involves Francis, this book discusses not only Francis, but also a microcosm of the entire Middle Ages from the 12th to the 13th century. This book is not a traditional biography full of anecdotes. Le Goff strives to innovate in research methods and understanding perspectives - treating Francis as a research object of overall history.

This book can be considered a monograph on history or a popular book, somewhere in between. Le Goff's guided writing style helps readers truly gain knowledge about medieval history after reading this book. As Le Goff said, poverty is a problem that human society will always face, and Francis' spirit, words and deeds may still inspire us.

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Expert Recommendation:

Peng Xiaoyu (Professor of History Department, Peking University)

"Money is of less use than dust." This is Francis' famous motto about money. But he and the Franciscans do not reject the market economy. He only criticizes the materialistic and greedy society by his own poor life and that of a few elites. Francis and the Franciscans emphasize the positive social role of money and the market, and focus on using finance and the market to do charity.

As Le Goff emphasized, this is not only a medieval tradition, but also a value concept needed by modern Western society after the Industrial Revolution. In Le Goff's view, hostility and inequality between people are all caused by greed for money and power, especially in capitalist society. Therefore, today's world needs to cherish the example and values ​​provided by Francis' thoughts and deeds.

Zhou Mang (Associate Professor of French Department, School of Foreign Languages, Peking University)

"Saint Francis of Assisi" and "Saint Louis" are challenging works. Since everyone says that the long period of the Annales School is far away from events, it is not good at writing biographies for individuals. Le Goff wants to give it a try to prove that there is no limitation. "Saint Francis of Assisi" is a very strange book. It is a combination of several papers and materials. It seems to be a flaw, but it actually has a deep meaning. Its meaning is poverty, not wealth. Paupertas cum laetitia, taking poverty as happiness, is the slogan of the Franciscans. The more biographical materials, the better. Francis is a familiar subject, with many written and oral legends. The saint himself is the object of secular faith, but where is the history of him? It is even more challenging to consider innovation, remove those exciting legends, and try to restore Francis himself. Francis was born in the middle class, and his actions were also in the secular world. He tried to solve the problems of money and poverty, space and time, beauty and love in the new middle class society, and focused on solving the problem of establishing a community of believers from the emotional point of view. As the book says at the end, poverty is always a problem that mankind has to face, and the humble and poor mendicant movement may still be an inspiration to us.

Li Wendan (Assistant Professor, Department of History, Peking University)

By any standard, Francis is a fascinating and important historical figure in medieval Europe. He called himself a poor man and a little brother, and gave up all his possessions. He preached to sultans and to birds. He is hailed as the founder of the Renaissance and the modern spirit.

Jacques Le Goff, a giant of the Annales School, has made light of a heavy task and has a bird's-eye view. He has sketched the flesh, blood, soul and influence of St. Francis from four aspects: historical background, personal life, class discourse and cultural model. This book is a collection of essays. It is not a comprehensive book, but it is the author's academic thinking and life experience over more than 30 years. It reflects Le Goff's method of studying "holistic history" through biography, shows how the history of mendicant orders is incorporated into the new problem domain of urban history and social history, and also condenses the author's consistent social concern.

The translator, Luan Yingxin, is an outstanding new researcher in medieval history and received systematic academic training in France. The preface and postscript of the Chinese translation provide an excellent introduction to this book.