Galileo Study Guide

Scene I: Galileo is in his study. Andrea, the boy of his housekeeper, arrives with a gift from the court of Naples. It is an astronomical model. Galileo dismisses it as an "antique." Andrea wants to learn more about it, so Galileo gives him a lesson and has him describe the various spheres (representing planets), stars, etc. At the center is the Earth, around which all other heavenly bodies spin. This geocentric model of the universe, Galileo tells us, has been believed for over two thousand years. He compares it to a cage. Galileo states that this idea is changing, however. It began when ships started to stray from coasts and explore the oceans. A millennium of faith is becoming a millennium of doubt. Soon, Galileo predicts, everyone will know that the earth is the body that's rotating and people along with it, and not the sun. (read more)