"Even the father of the gods and king of men who makes the whole of Olympus tremble when he bows his head has to lay aside that triple forked thunderbolt of his and that grim Titanic visage with which he can terrify all the gods whenever he chooses, and humble himself to put on a different mask, like an actor, if he ever wants to do what he always is doing, that is, 'to make a child'. And the stoics, as we know, claim to be most like the gods. But give me a man who is a stoic three or four or if you like six hundred times over, and he too, even if he keeps his beard as a mark of wisdom, though he shares it with the goat, will have to swallow his pride, smooth out his frown, shake off his rigid principles, and be fond and foolish for a while. In fact, if the philosopher ever wants to be a father it's me he has to call on -- yes, me."
Erasmus, Praise of Folly (1509)
[translated by Betty Radice, notes by A. H. T. Levi (1993)].
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