The case for post-scholasticism as an internal period indicator in Medieval philosophy

Johann Beukes

doi:10.4102/hts.v77i4.6270

Abstract

This article responds to a critical research challenge in Medieval philosophy scholarship regarding the internal periodisation of the register. By arguing the case for ‘post-scholasticism’ as an internal period indicator (1349–1464, the era between the deaths of William of Ockham and Nicholas of Cusa), defined as ‘the transformation of high scholasticism on the basis of a selective departure thereof’, the article specifies a predisposition in the majority of introductions to and commentaries in Medieval philosophy to proceed straight from 1349 to 1464, understating 115 years of pertinent Medieval philosophical discourse. It is argued that in the modern account of Medieval philosophy, this understatement is manifested in either a predating of Renaissance philosophy to close the gap between 1349 and 1464 as far as possible or in proceeding straight from 1349 to Renaissance philosophy. The article presents five unique philosophical themes from this delicate period, indicating that ‘post-scholasticism’ was indeed a productive period in late Medieval philosophy, which should not be bypassed as an inconsequential entrance to Renaissance philosophy. The period 1349–1464 should accordingly be appreciated for its idiosyncratic contributions to the history of ideas in the late-14th and early-15th centuries, with reference to the political intensification of the via moderna, the pivotal separation of philosophy and theology and the resulting independence of the natural sciences, in res critique of institutions, transforming pragmatics and the rise of philosophical materialism.Contribution: This article contributes to methodological development in Medieval philosophy by responding to a critical research challenge regarding the internal periodisation of the later Middle Ages. Arguing the case for ‘post-scholasticism’ as an internal period indicator (1349 to 1464 in Medieval philosophy, the article presents unique philosophical themes from the period, indicating that it was a productive stage in late Medieval philosophy which should not be bypassed as an inconsequential entrance to Renaissance philosophy.

Highlights

The internal periodisation of Medieval philosophyThe problem1 of the internal periodisation of Medieval philosophy departs from a single and rather simple question: Where does Medieval philosophy begin and end; which thinkers should be included in and which should be excluded from this discipline in the broader field of the (Western) history of ideas? This is a key question because it determines which philosophers on the margins of the historical spectrum belong to the corpus of Medieval philosophy
The article presents five unique philosophical themes from this delicate period, indicating that ‘post-scholasticism’ was a productive period in late Medieval philosophy, which should not be bypassed as an inconsequential entrance to Renaissance philosophy
Arguing the case for ‘post-scholasticism’ as an internal period indicator

Summary

Introduction

The problem of the internal periodisation of Medieval philosophy departs from a single and rather simple question: Where does Medieval philosophy begin and end; which thinkers should be included in and which should be excluded from this discipline in the broader field of the (Western) history of ideas? This is a key question because it determines which philosophers on the margins of the historical spectrum (with Neoplatonism on the patristic left and the Italian Renaissance on the pre-modern right) belong to the corpus of Medieval philosophy. Courtenay’s (1987:1–11) gripping analysis of educational structures and intellectual life in England in the second half of the 14th century extensively describes this move from natural philosophy in high scholasticism to what is here referred to as ‘post-scholasticism’, arguing that the period 1320–1340 represents a transformational era in English scholasticism, composed of outputs by scholars such as Bradwardine, Swineshead and Heytesbury Work performed in these two decades was consequential up to the end of the 14th century and made possible several significant shifts: moving away from characteristic Medieval school traditions in logic, mathematics and physics, the focus was on private academic projects, bound instead to the person than the scholastic background of the academic. Philosophical materialism is vital in the argument for the periodic independence of post-scholasticism: it is clear that the context for this development was not established by high scholasticism or early Renaissance philosophy, but by the period between the two

Conclusion

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