O discreto

Abstract

In this essay, the concepts of discretion and vulgarity are revisited, drawing on extensive bibliography related to courtly life. It is suggested that aspects inherent to libertine rationality – composed of skeptical, empiricist, and relativist types – combined with the conduct of the discreet individual, for whom preserving the signs of honor was paramount, whether in minor or major acts during life, or in the representation of one’s own memory after death. It is also noted that simulation and dissimulation were desirable skills among court members, understood as abilities to feign or conceal affections, since a good image depended on the opinion of others.