Medieval Philosophy Research Articles

Chaucer the Alchemist: Physics, Mutability, and the Medieval Imagination by Alexander N. Gabrovsky

Reviewed by: Chaucer the Alchemist: Physics, Mutability, and the Medieval Imagination by Alexander N. Gabrovsky Joe Stadolnik Alexander N. Gabrovsky. Chaucer the Alchemist: Physics, Mutability, and the Medieval Imagination Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan, 2015. Pp. xix, 291. $119.99 cloth; $89.00 e-book. In Chaucer the Alchemist, Alexander N. Gabrovsky proposes to read Chaucer's poetry for the ways he "exploits the scientific thinking of his day in order to conceptualize and aestheticize his own unique philosophy of physics," and more broadly, of worldly change and mutability. Chaucer is cast as a perceptive observer of a world ever in motion and ever in flux; these natural-scientific interests encouraged him to study up on physics, alchemy, and logic, and then to translate this learning into a [End Page 469] number of his poems as narrative programs or interpretive keys. Gabrovsky praisingly calls these poems "thought experiments," and so described, these texts are made to exemplify Chaucer's genius as both literary maker and natural philosopher. Chaucer the Alchemist invites readers, in its title and in its arguments, to reimagine his poetry as the thoughtful, methodical reworking of elemental subject matter: contemporary medieval philosophies of the mutable, the transforming, and the contingent. An introduction argues that references to physical transformation across Chaucer's poetry together reflect that captivation by worldly change. Gabrovsky here provides a survey of "clerical cultures" that may have served as conduits of learning to medieval society broadly and Chaucer's London milieu specifically: namely the mendicant orders and medieval universities; he also places his arguments within the scholarship on Chaucer and medieval science. Four chapters then focus upon one poem matched with a series of academic concepts or modes of thinking. Gabrovsky argues that The House of Fame follows a "philosophical formula for [its] action" (29) as a "product of fourteenth-century debates on the science of mechanics" (28). Two subsequent chapters scour The Franklin's Tale and Troilus and Criseyde for "a network of alchemical imagery" that "guides Chaucer's whole narrative project" in each (189). The fifth chapter understands the avian debate of the Parliament of Fowls to be a logical exercise in conditionals and possibilities, written expertly after a Scholastic pattern of ars obligitoria. A conclusion suggests that the monadic and dyadic concepts of Neoplatonist thought offered Chaucer another way to think abstractly about change, and to write about it. Gabrovsky deserves praise for how Chaucer the Alchemist assembles anew a set of natural-scientific texts and ideas from the corners of medieval intellectual culture for a generalist Chaucerian readership. For instance, his chapter on The Franklin's Tale highlights an alchemical discourse of astrological and sexual conjunction with reference to the Latin Epistola solis ad lunam crescentem. This is the "book Senior" of the Canon's Yeoman's reading list, translated from the Arabic of Muhammad ibn Umail. The mingling of the astrological with the alchemical in the Epistola serves well to warrant Gabrovsky's claim that the zodiacal preoccupations of the learned "philosopher" of Orléans and his client Aurelius chimed with a cognate alchemical allegory, the wedding of sun and moon. Passages from the Epistola and texts such as Albertus Magnus's Liber mineralibus and the De compositione alchimiae of Morienus illuminate [End Page 470] how alchemical theory might underwrite an interpretation of the physical and psychological transformations wrought by the tale's narrative. Gabrovsky grounds another tidy claim for Chaucer's poetic adaptation of physical concepts on solid, convincing ground in his chapter on The House of Fame. Geffrey's changing sense of the wicker labyrinth's motion—whirling from without and "stente" from within—presents readers with a problem of relative perception and, more broadly, worldly and celestial mechanics. Gabrovsky tracks how such questions were taken up in Aristotle's De caelo and Aquinas's commentary upon it, as well as via figures of thought such as John Buridan and Nicole Oresme's example of the observer on a moving ship. When Geffrey claims to "know where he stands" with confidence, to his readers he appears to stand unsteadily and with uncertain shiftiness in the chaotic, spinning world of the poem. At a few points like these...

Duns Scotus and Peirce on the importance of Universals and Scientific Realism

By offering a historical overview of the problem of universals and by focusing in the contributions of the medieval philosopher John Duns Scotus and the founder of American Pragmatism, Charles Peirce, the article introduces Peirce’s insight on the problem. Such insight is tracked by explaining the connections between Aristotle, Duns Scotus, and Peirce. Peirce’s account was named by himself ‘Scholastic Realism’, and such Realism of universals aims to provide a feasible account for contemporary Scientific Realism. The problem of universals, after such a reading, appears as a continuous and vibrant issue that defines both traditional and contemporary philosophical problems.

Salomon Maimons Maimonides-Rezeption im Kontext seiner Auseinandersetzung mit Kants Konzept der Dinge an sich1

Zusammenfassung The 18th century philosopher Salomon Maimon, who originated from a small village in Eastern Europe and who, despite having been destined to become a rabbi at a young age, emigrated to Berlin and other German locations to study philosophy, showed a strong bond to the medieval philosopher Moses Maimonides, most obviously by his self selected surname. Besides this, Maimon’s philosophical works have been significantly influenced by the rationalistic philosophy and theology of Maimonides. Most importantly, Maimonides’ theory of divine reason, which in turn refers to Aristotle’s Metaphysics, is incorporated into the philosophy of Maimon, who decisively transformed this conception into his own notion of an infinite intellect. In this article, it shall be demonstrated that Maimon uses this concept, derived from Maimonides’ thought to a large extent, yet significantly differing from it in important aspects, to argue against Immanuel Kant’s critical philosophy: At first by rejecting the Kantian dualism of sensibility and intellect, then by trying to uncover Kant’s notion of the thing in itself as meaningless and eventually by trying to eliminate this notion from the system of transcendental philosophy in general. To present this specific constellation of argumentation, at first Maimon’s reception of central Maimonidean thoughts shall be examined in a strongly selective manner. In a second step, the application of these thoughts to the difficulties of Kant’s philosophy by Maimon has to be drafted. By inquiring the multifaceted relation of Maimon to the medieval philosopher in these important aspects, Maimonides’ particular relevance for German philosophy in the late 18th century shall be revealed.

Liber de Сausis («Книга про причини»): інтелектуальна подорож від Афін до Парижа й Лондона через Багдад і Толедо

The paper is a commentary on the first Ukrainian translation of the “Liber de causis”. The main topics under consideration are (1) the context of the appareance of the “Liber de causis”; (2) the story of writing this work, (3) his influence on Muslim and Western medieval philosophy and on modern philosophy; (4) its main features. The author for the first time makes a detailed analysis of the interpretations of “Liber de causis” by Thomas Aquinas in different periods of his work.

14-16 November 2016, Barcelona: 7 International Ibero-American Congress of the Spanish Society of Medieval Philosophy on the Occasion of Ramon Llull's Seventh Centenary (1315-1316). Sociedad de Filosofía Medieval (SOFIME)-Universidad Autónoma de Barcelona, organized by Alexander Fidora and Jaume Mensa I Valls

Report of the 7th International Ibero-American Congress of the Spanish Society of Medieval Philosophy on the Occasion of Ramon Llull's Seventh Centenary (1315-1316), held in Barcelona, 14-16 November 2016.

Summa illa dilectio in illa summi boni fruitione. Happiness as Love in the Relational Ethics of Peter Abelard

This article focuses on one of the main authors of medieval philosophy, Peter Abelard. It re-proposes the importance of the moral themes that involve aspects not only of anthropology, but also of ontology, which have not yet been thoroughly studied. For this revaluation of Abelard’s work, the study considers the ethics of relations from two aspects: one objective, God and his will, and the other subjective, man and his consciousness.

Divine Punishment or Disease? Medieval and Early Modern Approaches to the 1518 Strasbourg Dancing Plague

Using writings from observers of the 1518 Strasbourg dancing plague, this article explores the various understandings of dancing mania, disease, and divine judgment applied to the dancing plague's interpretation and treatment. It argues that the 1518 Strasbourg dancing plague reflects new currents of thought, but remains closely linked to medieval philosophies; it was an event trapped between medieval and modern ideologies and treated according to two very different systems of belief. Understanding the ways in which observers comprehended the dancing plague provides insight into the ways in which, during the early modern period, new perceptions of the relationship between humanity and the divine developed and older conceptions of the body and disease began to change, while at the same time, ideologies surrounding dance and its relationship to sinful behavior remained consistent.

COSCIENZA E SINDERESI IN GOFFREDO DI FONTAINES

In q. 2 of Quodlibet XII, discussed in 1295, the secular master of Theology Godfrey of Fontaines poses the question whether an erroneous conscience if acting against binds us to commit a mortal sin. As a matter of fact, it is one of the few texts in which the master from Liege deals with two fundamental concepts of medieval ethics, i.e., conscience and synderesis . Both are unanimously agreed by medieval philosophers to be the two inclinations of the soul that allow human beings to pursue the good and just and avoid evil. According to Godfrey, synderesis works on an universal level and, as habit of natural intellect, like the speculative principles, is innate, inextinguishable, and cannot be overcome by sin. Conscience is defined as a kind of practical knowledge ( notitia ) regarding particular decisions and as the result of a moral syllogism that takes its start from the will and ends in the will. However, because the will chooses always, according to Godfrey, based on the judgement of reason, conscience concerns mostly the way how reason acts. From the Godfreydian texts about conscience and synderesis emerges an optimistic view of the human being and his moral life, typical of many medieval authors. Although someone may be vicious and yield to sin, he remains, according to Godfrey, master ( dominus ) of his acts, owing to his psychic inclinations essentially related to reason. Thus Godfrey’s clearly betrays ‘intellectualistic traits’ in his ethics; possessing and exercising right reason, the human being can better develop his moral virtues.

Ana María Mora-Márquez, The Thirteenth-Century Notion of Signification: The Discussions and Their Origin and Development. (Investigating Medieval Philosophy 10.) Leiden and Boston: Brill, 2015. Pp. 256. $142. ISBN: 978-900-429867-5.

In this slim, dense, and heavily text-based book, Mora-Marquez traces the development of the semantic notion of ‘signification’ (significatio) from its origins in two distinct Greek philosophical conceptions, semeion and symbolon, into a uniquely medieval concept. Because medieval philosophers drew from both logical and grammatical traditions when discussing signification, there is no unified conception of the notion which holds across the entire 13th century or in all relevant disciplines. Mora-Marquez teases out the differences, explains how they relate to each other, and identifies the roots of the differences. Due to the complexity of the material, the book requires careful thought and attention in order to grasp all of the subtle nuances in the ancient and medieval views.

Могут ли демоны творить чудеса?

During the Renaissance, the concept of magic was of particular interest to science; moreover, magic was considered an important part of it. From among the numerous works devoted to this subject, the author of this article proposes to analyze the sixth question of “The Lecture on the Magical Art” by the Spanish theologian Francisco de Vitoria. In the sixth question, Vitoria reflects on whether magicians can force demons according to their will or not. In the argumentation of his answer professor refers to the authoritative sources — treatises of Thomas Aquinas, Augustine, and Aristotle — and confirms his theses with examples from the plots of both Old and New Testaments. The purpose of this article is to consider in some detail one aspect of the sixth question of the translated lecture: namely, a question of the demon’s ability to act independently or by somebody else. For this purpose, the author considers it necessary to turn to the theory of action and cognitive theory of Thomas Aquinas, both of which are reflected in the philosophy of de Vitoria. Moreover, the theologian also suggests looking at the problem of the possibility of implementing an action through Aristotle’s concept of potential and implemented. As a result, the sixth question of the lecture is an interesting synthesis of the ancient and medieval philosophy adapted to the problem, which was under discussion in the 16th century.

Drei Varianten des Paradoxons der Nicht-Existenz

AbstractThe original version of the philosophical paradox of non-existence can be found in Plato’s dialogSophist. Different ancient and medieval philosophers discussed this problem and proposed their own solutions to it. As far as I know, the problem had no important impact on the discussions about the notion of existence in the early modern period between Descartes and Frege. Philosophical interest in the notion of existence in this period was mainly driven by discussions on the ontological argument for the existence of God. Meinong and Russell are responsible for a renaissance of this paradox in the 20th century. Russell shaped two new semantic versions of the paradox. In this paper, I will discuss and introduce three different versions of it. Firstly, the original version, which can be found in theSophist. Secondly, the two more recent and sophisticated semantic versions that concern the semantics of (a) general negative existential sentences like “Unicorns do not exist” and (b) singular negative existential sentences like “Pegasus does not exist”. Philosophical discussion of the paradox in the Analytic Tradition has mainly focused in the last decades on the version related to (b). Concerning the version related to (a), there is a general consensus that Russell convincingly solved it. However, I will show that Russell’s solution of this version of the paradox is problematic, and I will argue for an alternative uniform solution to both semantic versions of the paradox based on free logic.

A reflection on the history of philosophy from historiography of medieval philosophy: between the historical and philosophical reconstitution and the theoretical reconstruction

O presente artigo tem por objetivo expor possíveis abordagens da história da filosofia medieval a partir do debate entre Alain de Libera e Claude Panaccio. Embora a discussão seja em específico sobre a historiografia da filosofia medieval, o plano de fundo é uma discussão a respeito de como lidar com a história da filosofia em geral ou, em última instância, como ler um texto filosófico

Our inalienable ability to sin: Peter Olivi’s rejection of asymmetrical freedom

ABSTRACTFrom the time of Augustine to the late thirteenth century, leading Christian thinkers agreed that freedom requires the ability to make good choices, but not the ability to make bad ones. If freedom required the ability to sin, they reasoned, neither God nor the angels nor the blessed in heaven could be free. This essay examines the work of Peter Olivi, the first medieval philosopher known to reject the asymmetrical conception of freedom. Olivi argues that the ability to sin is essential to creaturely freedom and remains even in heaven. While Anselm is the nominal target of Olivi’s arguments on this topic, they form part of a wider critique directed even more at Aquinas and his followers. Olivi faults them for misunderstanding the nature of the created will and for failing to provide a foundation for a particular kind of moral responsibility: personal merit.

The Relationship Between Beauty and Metaphysics in the Theory of Saint Tomas Aquinas

Metaphysics and beauty are very important and challenging issues in philosophy that have been always noteworthy of philosophers. The relationship between these issues and the condition of these in philosophers's philosophical system is very different and various and every philosopher try to describe this in a specific way. It seems that there are very deep relationship between metaphysics and beauty in the philosophical system of philosophers that metaphysics is a fundamental subject in their philosophical system, because they explain their philosophical issue base on their metaphysical theory. Scholastic philosophers and philosophers of the middle Ages who were affected by Greek philosophy and lived in the Christian World are one group of that philosophers, however this relationship could be different. Saint Thomas Aquinas was a Catholic Priest in the Dominican Order and one of the most important medieval philosophers and theologians who have considered his theory base on metaphysics and theology. So, in this article I try by philosophical analysis method to show how metaphysics and beauty are connected in the philosophy of Thomas Aquinas. The results of this Article show that we cannot separate metaphysics and beauty in philosophy of Thomas Aquinas, so study on metaphysics of Thomas Aquinas is required as a prior condition for study on beauty.

Ultra-modern thoughts: political theology in Leo Strauss’s Philosophy and Law

ABSTRACTA primary theme in Leo Strauss’s early work is how medieval Jewish and Islamic political philosophy, while influenced by Plato, differs from him in crucial ways. This theme is central to Strauss’s 1935 book Philosophy and Law. Philosophy and Law concerns the medieval ‘philosophic foundation of the law,’ which provides a rational justification of revelation. For Strauss, the foundation provides this justification by virtue of some difference it has from Plato. In this paper, I offer a new interpretation of Strauss’s view of this difference. I suggest that, for Strauss, whereas Plato conceived of the legislator and his legislation, the foundation conceives of the sovereign and his sovereign laws. On this basis, I also suggest a solution to a perennial mystery of Philosophy and Law: Strauss claims that the medieval foundation reveals ‘ultra-modern thoughts,’ yet does not explicitly state the identity of these thoughts. I suggest that their author is Carl Schmitt.

The Problem of Error: The Moral Psychology Argument for Atheism

The problem of error is an old argument for atheism that can be found in Medieval and Early Modern Philosophy. Although it is not widely discussed in the contemporary literature in the Philosophy of Religion, I resurrect it and give it a modern spin. By relying on empirical studies in moral psychology that demonstrate that moral judgments from human beings are generally susceptible to certain psychological biases, such as framing and order effects, I claim that if God is responsible for making human beings such that we have these biases, this means that God is not a perfect being. The findings in empirical moral psychology create a problem for the existence of God, traditionally conceived.

The Medieval New: Ambivalence in an Age of Innovation. Patricia Clare Ingham. Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press, 2015. Pp. 277.

<i>The Medieval New: Ambivalence in an Age of Innovation</i>. Patricia Clare Ingham. Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press, 2015. Pp. 277.

The Principle of Individuation in the Constitution of the Human Person

It is generally considered that the principle of individuation is matter and that this doctrine comes from Aristotle. This paper will examine how medieval philosophers approached this problem and we will show that they offered various theories by which the principle of individuation could be matter, form, combination of matter and form, accidents or some special principle such as haecceitas, which we find in the school of J. Duns Scotus. We will assess how all these theories resolve the problem only partially, and thus indicate the need of a single principle of individuation. This becomes particularly relevant in the context of the metaphysical study of a human person. Our research will show that it is actus essendi, which is not only the act of all acts, but also the principle of all principles.

Meister Eckhart’s Notion of Detachment as A New Way of Life in the Transformative Union with God

This essay is going to discuss Eckhart’s notion of detachment and its crucial role in union with God. He is a well-known and important late Medieval theologian, philosopher, and mystic. His radical thoughts were often under suspicion and regarded as heretical. In particular, his idea of detachment was very controversial on the grounds that he denied everything in humanity and identified such a negated self with the essence of God. In other words, Eckhart appears to seek a union with God through his radical notion of detachment. Accordingly, detachment is neither rejection of human person nor the denial of all that we know and possess of both God and ourselves. It is an opening of a space for a new way of life in the transformative union with God. In order to show that, this essay will explore the various aspects of detachment as self-will, God, mankind, the birth of the Word, language, and the unity between the created and uncreated.

An Introduction to the Medieval English: The Historical and Literary Context, Traces of Church and Philosophical Movements in the Literature

The Transition from Greek to medieval philosophy that speculated on religion, nature, metaphysics, human being and society was rather a rough transition in the history of English literature. Although the literature content of this age reflected more religious beliefs, the love and hate relationship of medieval philosophy that was mostly based on the Christianity with Greek civilization was exhibited clearly. The modern philosophical ideologies are the continuation of this period’s ideologies. Without a well understanding of the philosophical issues related to this age, it is not possible to understand the modern ones well. The catholic tradition as well as the religious reform against church called Protestantism was organized in this age. In Medieval Period, philosophy and theoretical thoughts related to the Christianity were well-organized and the philosophy, science and theoretical thoughts served religion. Philosophy had different forms and orientations in various stages of this period. One of these philosophical thoughts was the Augustinian philosophy which was strongly in favor of church with its different practices and styles. It used Platonic and Neo-Platonic traditions to prove that faith is the result of divine dispensations, not the result of human will power and wisdom. On the other hand, according to Aquinas, we experience different types of the effects that existed in the world around us. He believed that we assign an effective cause to each effect we experienced around us. Additionally, he claimed that reasoning was the only way to reach the real faith. In fact, philosophy of Medieval Period attempted to prove that religious assertions and ideologists were in search of matching their philosophical beliefs with the beliefs of Christianity. Christianity as the dominant factor in Middle English Literature helped English to be stablished as a literary language.