Life of Desiderius Erasmus Roterodamus - Essay Example

To meet his financial obligation Erasmus started working as a tutor and later in 1499 he went on a tour to Europe where he made friends who were with him throughout his life. Later he went to Italy where he obtained his doctorate in the subject of theology. After Italy, he returned to England where he was appointed as Price Charles’ adviser and started living an independent life (Nauert 1). From here on his life experienced immense controversies as he created a revised version of the New Testament and his work recognized as the Discourse of Free Will was even welcomed with heavy criticism. After his death, all his works were stored in an area that was not allowed to be accessed by others.

Major Contribution

Throughout his life, he developed various pieces of literature and these pieces of literature were based on different subjects including the philosophy of education, politics, language, and cynicism. The most important works of Erasmus include the literature pieces of The Method Of Study, The Education of Children as well as the Method of True Theology (Rummel 24). These pieces of literature exhibited his philosophy regarding education. His literature recognized as The Education of A Christian Price is work that has been dedicated to his thoughts regarding politics (Erasmus(a) VIII). Another piece of his work called On The Abundance Of Style is a pure depiction of his thoughts regarding language (Rhetoric.byu.edu 1).

Educational Philosophy And Aims
Erasmus’ educational philosophy contradicted the educational philosophy that was been followed during his era. He believed that more focus needed to be provided to subjects including history language as well as the philosophy of morals and at that time the focus was more on logic. He believed that education should not simply focus on helping students develop certain necessary skills and intellectual abilities (Erasmus.vic.edu.au 1). He believed that education should even promote civility and morals.

He believed that education is a way through which human beings can develop as well as enhance their self and he even claimed that a human being can only transform into a man with the assistance of education. He promoted the idea that education is not about learning and imitating what others have said and done. He believed that education is more about analyzing and judging what is being taught and then coming up with creative ideas (Erasmus(b) 9). He even provided clear roles that two entities including teachers and students have to play in education and he even believed that education helped a human being in becoming a pious person and a better Christian. Read More