Rhetoric and Civilization

Sprezzatura is the Cura

Learning about Sprezzatura, a way of being which is the defined as a nonchalance towards talents so that they appear effortless. In modern terms Sprezzatura is to basically fake it until you make it. This reminds me so much of the experiences I have been having lately with my dental school interviews.

Not knowing what to expect prior to the interviews there is only so much preparation that can been done. During these interviews one is required to think quickly on their feet and rely on past experiences and knowledge in order to do well.  When recently asked an ethical question in Dentistry and then questioned about my response I quickly went into the little I knew about the current opioid epidemic and used that in my reasoning for not giving an alternate answer. This knowledge as well as many other recent Sprezzatura moments like how knowing Spanish (and a little bit of Portuguese) has made learning historical terms like (filial piety) or anatomical terms like interosseus easier.

Although this ideology, outlined by Baltazar Castiglione (a diplomat for Italy during the time of the Renaissance), in “The Ideal of the Well-Rounded Man” and “The Courtier”, has become a distant memory in our day we can still find these ideas shaping our modern lives. I have realized I began a quest for Sprezzatura a little over a year ago when my desire for learning wasn’t being satisfied due to the limited free time I had. This led me to listen to many podcasts and e-books while walking between classes and to study the languages I know.

Hoping to have conveyed well the art that is Sprezzatura so that it can be used as a tool to open doors, give new perspectives, allow us to meet people we might not normally converse with. Sprezzatura is something that we can never achieve perfection in, but this shouldn’t stop us in our quest to be life long learners.