Analysis Of Laudatio Of The City Of Florence By Leonardo Bruni

Leonardo Bruni represents the earliest signs of humanism in Italian political society. His value of structure and liberty mimics much of the early Greek political systems. This system of civic humanism being applied to a republic provided the checks and balances of a democracy while retaining societal status. In this system the role of the church is increasingly separated from the role of the state as individuals are chosen based on the concepts of equal representation to avoid tyranny and not divine clerical control of masses.
The Laudatio of the City of Florence by Bruni is emulating the orations of ancient Greek society as it is written in the form of a panegyric. This variety of speech was primarily used for national gatherings or festivals of significance in Athens to positively rally a crowd and provide a good example of important ancestral virtues. Bruni uses this form to positively discuss the liberties and political values he deems essential to the success of Florence through a speech. He only focuses on the benefits that using a representative electorate has brought the city through curtailing corruption and tyranny on the common man and allowing its citizens to flourish under this freedom.

Ancient Athens used a series of magistracies both civil and military to control the populace and provide citizens of nobility more notable rank. The decisions in Athens must go through a council of representatives called the Proedrol which was selected through the nine tribes of the governing bodies in each region of the city. This is nearly identical to the Brunis praising of the representative system of the standard bearers and the good men for decision making. The majority of the political systems which he glaringly orates are updated versions of the classical age structure of Athenian