SCHOLASTICISM

And the MEDIEVAL UNIVERSITIES

What is Scholasticism?• Scholasticism is a method of critical thought which

dominated teaching by the academics ("scholastics," or "schoolmen") of medieval universities in Europe from about 1100 to 1700.

• The term "scholastic" is derived from the Latin word "scholasticus" and the Greek "scholastikos" (meaning literally "devoting one's leisure to learning" or "scholar") and the Greek "scholeion" (meaning "school"). The term "schoolmen" is also commonly used to describe scholastics.

• IT IS ALSO a program of employing that method in articulating and defending dogma in an increasingly pluralistic context.

• Scholasticism is best known for its application in medieval Christian theology, especially in attempts to reconcile the philosophy of the ancient classical philosophers (particularly Aristotle) with Christian theology.

• However, in the High Scholastic period of the 14th Century, it moved beyond theology, and had applications in many other fields of study including Epistemology, Philosophy of Science, philosophy of nature, psychology and even economic theory.

6 Main Characteristics

1. An acceptance of the prevailing Catholic orthodoxy.2. Within this orthodoxy, an acceptance of Aristotle as a greater

thinker than Plato.3. The recognition that Aristotle and Plato disagreed about the

notion of universals, and that this was a vital question to resolve.

4. Giving prominence to dialectical thinking and syllogistic reasoning.

5. An acceptance of the distinction between "natural" and "revealed" theology.

6. A tendency to dispute everything at great length and in minute detail, often involving word-play.

SCHOLASTIC METHOD• The Scholastic method is to thoroughly and critically read a book by a

renowned scholar or author (e.g. The Bible, texts of Plato or St. Augustine, etc), reference any other related documents and commentaries on it, and note down any disagreements and points of contention. The two sides of an argument would be made whole (found to be in agreement and not contradictory) through philological analysis (the examination of words for multiple meanings or ambiguities), and through logical analysis(using the rules of formal logic to show that contradictions did not exist but were merely subjective to the reader).

• These would then be combined into "questionae" (referencing any number of sources to divine the pros and cons of a particular general question), and then into "summae" (complete summaries of all questions, such as St. Thomas Aquinas' famous "Summa Theologica", which claimed to represent the sum total of Christian theology at the time).

A METHOD OF LEARNING• Scholasticism was not so much a philosophy or a theology as a

method of learning, scholasticism places a strong emphasis on dialectical reasoning and SYLLOGISTIC LEARNING to extend knowledge by inference, and to resolve contradictions.

• Dialectical reasoning:– 1. The art or practice of arriving at the truth by the exchange of logical

arguments.– 2. A method of argument or exposition that systematically weighs

contradictory facts or ideas with a view to the resolution of their real or apparent contradictions.

– 3. In medieval Europe, dialectics (or logic) was one of the three original liberal arts (the"trivium"), in addition to rhetoric and grammar.

Example:– https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t1Lo3P-Dp4Y

Remember Syllogisms?

• Syllogism = an argument composed of two statements or premises (the major and minor premises), followed by a conclusion.

• The classic example:All men are mortal. (major premise)Socrates is a man. (minor premise)Therefore, Socrates is mortal. (conclusion)

• Major premise: A general statement.Minor premise: A specific statement.Conclusion: based on the two premises.

EXAMPLE:• Major premise: Girls are sweet.• Minor premise: Sally is a girl• Conclusion: Sally is sweet.

• The Scholastic method was a major factor contributing to Logic in Western philosophy.

• Scholastic thought is also known for rigorous conceptual analysis and the careful drawing of distinctions.

• Scholastic schools had two methods of teaching: the "lectio" (the simple reading of a text by a teacher, who would expound on certain words and ideas, but no questions were permitted); and the "disputatio" (where either the question to be disputed was announced beforehand, or students proposed a question to the teacher without prior preparation, and the teacher would respond, citing authoritative texts such as the Bible to prove his position, and the students would rebut the response, and the argument would go back and forth, with someone taking notes to summarize the argument).

• Because of its emphasis on rigorous dialectical method, scholasticism was eventually applied to many other fields of study.

• Scholasticism originated as an outgrowth of, and a departure from, Christian monastic schools at the earliest European universities.

• The first institutions in the West to be considered universities were established in Italy, France, Spain, and England in the late 11th and the 12th centuries for the study of arts, law, medicine, and theology, such as Schola Medica Salernitana, the University of Bologna, and the University of Paris.

• It is difficult to define the date at which they became true universities.

• Scholasticism was concurrent with movements in early Islamic philosophy, some of which influenced European Scholasticism. There were also similar developments in medieval Jewish philosophy!

HISTORY

MEDIEVAL EUROPEAN UNIVERSITIES

• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ly9BPvFJfqo

University of Paris

Cambridge University

OXFORD UNIVERSITY

Who’s Who?

• St. Anselm of Canterbury is sometimes misleadingly referred to as the "Father of Scholasticism", although his approach was not really in keeping with the Scholastic method.

• Probably a better example of Early Scholasticism is the work of Peter Abelard and Peter Lombard (c. 1100 - 1160), particularly the latter's "Sentences", a collection of opinions on the Church Fathers and other authorities.

Mendicant Scholastics

• The Franciscan and Dominican orders of the 13th Century saw some of the most intense scholastic theologizing of High Scholasticism, producing such theologians and philosophers as St. Alber the Great, St. Thomas Aquinas, Alexander of Hales(died 1245) and St. Bonaventure (1221 - 1274).

ASSIGNMENT• PETER ABELARD& HELOISE• Class files for folder for test #2.