jjares reviewed John Dee: The Life and Legacy of the English Occultist, Alchemist, and Philosopher Who Became Queen Elizabeth I?s Spiritual Advisor on + 3263 more book reviews
One of the things I was surprised by was the fact that when Dee was 15-years-of-age, he went to St. John's College and studied Latin, grammar, rhetoric, logic, Greek, HEBREW, geometry, astronomy, music, and the three philosophies (Natural, Moral, and Divine). Why would Dee be studying Hebrew if the Jews were not allowed into the country until the 1650s (or so)? Was it so he could read the early books of the Bible in Hebrew? Curious.
Dee was certainly a polyglot - everything he touched seemed to reap dividends and led him to more fascinating studies. From mathematics, geography, and cartography, Dee branched out into alchemy and the occult. By 1550, Dee was a university teacher of mathematics. He was widely admired for his charm and ability to explain complex concepts clearly. One of the great things Dee did was to seek out and bring back to England the second-best library in his country. By his death, however, he had about 100 of his 4000 manuscripts left.
Unfortunately, this book devolved into a study of how John Dee was bilked by charlatans trying for mystical knowledge. I couldn't understand the point for so much detail about hoaxes. After running afoul of Pope Sixtus V, Dee had to support himself through fortune-telling sessions and menial jobs. Essentially, Dee destroyed his reputation through his extensive study of the occult. I found this to be a singularly uninteresting study of John Dee.
Dee was certainly a polyglot - everything he touched seemed to reap dividends and led him to more fascinating studies. From mathematics, geography, and cartography, Dee branched out into alchemy and the occult. By 1550, Dee was a university teacher of mathematics. He was widely admired for his charm and ability to explain complex concepts clearly. One of the great things Dee did was to seek out and bring back to England the second-best library in his country. By his death, however, he had about 100 of his 4000 manuscripts left.
Unfortunately, this book devolved into a study of how John Dee was bilked by charlatans trying for mystical knowledge. I couldn't understand the point for so much detail about hoaxes. After running afoul of Pope Sixtus V, Dee had to support himself through fortune-telling sessions and menial jobs. Essentially, Dee destroyed his reputation through his extensive study of the occult. I found this to be a singularly uninteresting study of John Dee.
