As a lawyer and Catholic convert, Thomas More is my patron saint and one of my heroes. As anyone who has read or seen "A Man for All Seasons" knows, More was martyred by Henry VIII for refusing to support the English Reformation. More's critics delight in the supposed irony that More was executed for his beliefs in the same way as certain Protestants were executed on More's orders when he was Chancellor of England. In the modern age, when toleration is regarded as the chief virtue, More's stance is easy to dismiss as illiberal and medieval. Yet, to his credit, in this important biography of More, Peter Ackroyd does not fall into the modernist trap. Historical figures must be judged by reference to the standards of their day and the "permanent things," but not by modern sensibilities. Ackroyd therefore presents More as a man of his times. It was a complex time amd More was a complex man.
I honestly wish I liked this biography better. I find Ackroyd's prose to be dense and heavy going. Especially annoying is his frequent use of quotations that he fails to render in modern English. Fifteenth century English is almost a different language than 21st century English and many of the quotations arealmost unintelligible. Granted, a scholarly work of history should not take liberties with translation. But this is a narrative history for a generalist audience, which appropriately has laxer standards.
I honestly wish I liked this biography better. I find Ackroyd's prose to be dense and heavy going. Especially annoying is his frequent use of quotations that he fails to render in modern English. Fifteenth century English is almost a different language than 21st century English and many of the quotations arealmost unintelligible. Granted, a scholarly work of history should not take liberties with translation. But this is a narrative history for a generalist audience, which appropriately has laxer standards.
