of Hero (1575). He also wrote an original treatise on the
center of gravity of solid bodies (1565). At his death Com-
mandino was working on an Italian translation of Euclid’s
Elements.
Commedia, Divina See DIVINE COMEDY
commedia dell’arte (Italian, “comedy of the craft”) The
improvisational comedy that takes its name from the
actor’s craft, in the sense of both his technique and the
guild of actors. Created by Italian theatrical troups, it
flourished from the mid-16th to the end of the 18th cen-
turies. A number of stereotyped characters were played by
actors who specialized in particular roles and performed
extempore from a three-act scenario that provided a mere
outline of the proceedings. The emphasis was on broad
comic action with all manner of theatrical business, in-
cluding acrobatics, and a traditional stock of verbal and vi-
sual jests (lazzi). The characters were readily identifiable:
Pantalone, the grasping Venetian merchant; Graziano, the
pedantic Bolognese lawyer; the miles gloriosus, or braggart
soldier, often a Spaniard (Captain Matamoros); lovers
whose language was Petrarchan and Tuscan; comically
coarse female servants (Franceschina); and a number of
zanni (zanies, buffoons). The Bergamask Arlecchino and
Neapolitan Pulcinella survive as Harlequin and Punch.
The masked actors drew on a variety of sources and tradi-
tions and developed an enormous repertoire of dialogue
and gesture. Since actors also performed in the COMMEDIA
ERUDITA, literary theater was both enriched by and was a
source for the commedia dell’arte. Guilds—for example,
the Gelosi, Desiosi, Confidenti, Uniti, Accesi—were
formed in the mid-16th century (the first recorded in
1545) and they spread the influence of the commedia
dell’arte throughout Europe. Distinguished, highly re-
spected, and academically honored actors and families of
actors—for example, Francesco and Isabella Andreini and
the nobleman Flaminio Scala—directed some of the com-
media dell’arte companies.
Further reading:Robert Henke, Performance and Lit-
erature in the Commedia dell’Arte(Cambridge, U.K.: Cam-
bridge University Press, 2003).
commedia erudita (Italian, “erudite comedy”) Italian
vernacular comedy of the 16th century that imitated the
Latin comedies of Plautus and Terence. While the action,
construction, and certain stock characters were derived
from the Roman models, and the unities of time (a single
day) and place were observed, the settings were contem-
porary Italian urban ones; the actions involved more than
one plot and these drew on a wealth of postclassical sto-
ries and novellas as well as on the Latin sources. Typically
the problems faced by lovers are finally resolved in mar-
riage after much intrigue and trickery involving mistaken
identities and disguises, conniving servants and other
clever, shady, or gullible comic types. Major examples of
the commedia erudita are La cassaria (The Coffer; 1508) by
ARIOSTO, La calandria (The Follies of Calandro; 1513) by
BIBBIENA, and La mandragola (The Mandrake Root; 1518)
by MACHIAVELLI. La calandria and Plautus’s Menaechmi re-
spectively provided inspiration for FIRENZUOLA’s La triu-
nizia and I lucidi (both 1549). Later examples tend to have
more intricate plots, to develop moral and romantic el-
ements, and to show the increasing influence of the COM-
MEDIA DELL’ARTE. Among the many writers of the type are
Francesco d’Ambra (1499–1558), who wrote the prose
play Il Furto (acted 1544) and I Bernardi and La cofanaria
(acted 1547/65) in verse, Anton Francesco GRAZZINI, Gio-
vanni Maria Cecchi (1518–87), Pietro ARETINO, Annibale
CARO, and Giambattista DELLA PORTA.Common Life, Brothers and Sisters of the The name
adopted by the followers of Gerard (Geert) Groote
(1340–84) of Deventer, a widely traveled Carthusian
monk and mystic based in Holland. The Brethren of the
Common Life were a quasi monastic association of laity
and secular clergy dedicated to the cultivation of inner
spirituality and good works. Their classic statement of be-
lief is encapsulated in the Imitatio Christi (Imitation of
Christ; c. 1418), attributed to Thomas à Kempis (c. 1380–
1471), the most celebrated Christian mystical work ever
written and widely read during his lifetime. Although es-
sentially medieval and conservative, the book was to have
lasting significance in its tendency to personalize religion
and minimize the importance of formal Christianity. An-
other influential book that had its origins in the move-
ment was the Spieghel der Volcomenheit, a treatise on
mystical theology by Henricus Herp (died 1477), who
later joined the Franciscans; it was translated into Latin
and thence into several European languages. The
brethren’s emphasis on inner spirituality greatly influ-
enced Christian humanists and some of the reformers;
Nicholas CUSANUSand Rudolf AGRICOLAwere among the
influential figures in the first wave of northern European
humanists who were members. Both ERASMUSand LUTHER
were educated by members of the movement, which was
at its peak during the second half of the 15th century.
See also: DEVOTIO MODERNAcommunications The improvement in trade and trans-
port during the Renaissance was modest compared to that
of later centuries. Travel by land and sea was still slow and
dangerous. At sea most ships hugged the Mediterranean
or northern coasts, but improved NAVIGATIONand ship de-
sign in the 15th century made sailors bolder. The devel-
opment of the sea-going CARAVELby Portugal (from about
1430) opened the way for the exploration of the world’s
oceans. By the late 16th century Europe was part of a
global network of maritime communications.ccoommmmuunniiccaattiioonnss 1 11133