Medieval and Renaissance Philosophy
Philosophy 297
Spring 2007
TR 1:50 – 3:05 pm
Rex Gilliland
Classroom: EN B218
Office: Engleman D210
Phone: 392-6783
Office Hours: MW 3:15 – 4:45 pm, TTh 12:45 – 1:45 pm, and by appointment.
Email: gillilandr1@southernct.edu
Course Description: The middle ages and renaissance (400 - 1600 AD) are, along with late antiquity, the most neglected periods in Western philosophy. This is unfortunate because they contain crucial developments in metaphysics, philosophy of language, logic, and philosophy of religion that continue to be influential today. In this course, we will cover figures such as Augustine, Boethius, Anselm, Averroes, Aquinas, Scotus, Ockham, Erasmus, and Montaigne, and will consider the influence of Islamic and Jewish philosophy on Western Christian thinkers. We will also discuss how renewed interest in ancient Greek philosophy in the 12th century and 15th centuries contributed, respectively, to the development of philosophy into a sophisticated academic discipline and the emergence of the renaissance. Although our focus will be on theoretical philosophy, we will draw connections to contemporaneous developments in practical philosophy, social and political institutions, economics, science, and technology.
Texts:
1. Medieval Philosophy, 4th
edition, ed. Forrest E. Baird and Walter Kaufmann (
2. All other readings will be available for printout on the SCSU Library Electronic Reserves.
Grading: Attendance and
Class Participation 20%
Exams and
Papers 80%
A+ 97-100; A 93-96; A- 90-92; B+ 87-89; B
83-86; B-80-82; C+ 77-79; C 73-76; C- 70-72; D+ 67-69; D 63-66; D- 60-62; F
0-59
The
majority of your grade will be based on 4 or 5 papers (philosophy majors) or
take-home exams (nonmajors). To earn an ‘A’, nonmajors must write a paper in
place of one of the last two exams. These
assignments will be downgraded for poor spelling, grammar, organization, etc.,
and will have to be rewritten if they have errors of this type. If you have
difficulties in these areas, I strongly recommend taking your papers to the
Prompt and consistent attendance and informed participation in class discussion is expected. You are required to do the reading before class and to bring it with you to class. Your ability to do well on the take-home exams and papers will depend on careful reading, note taking, and participation in class discussion. As a result, poor attendance and tardies will have in an indirect effect on your other grades. Also, I will weigh attendance heavily when determining final grades in borderline cases. Excessive absences will reduce your grade: For every 3 absences, your final grade will be reduced one full letter grade. Tardies and leaving early will be counted as half-absences. Valid excuses will be accepted (e.g., illness or family emergency; provide documentation if available), but students with 9 absences or more for any reason will not pass the class. If you miss a class, I recommend that you make arrangements in advance to copy the notes of another student.
All cell phones, music players, ear pieces/headphones, and other electronic devices must be turned off and put away during class time. I will consider requests to record the class or take notes on a computer (as long as the devices are only used for these purposes).
I strongly encourage students with disabilities, including invisible disabilities such as chronic diseases and learning disabilities, to discuss with me after class or during my office hours appropriate accommodations that might be helpful to them.
Key to Writing
Errors and Abbreviations
Tentative Schedule
T 1/23 Introduction – Plato and Aristotle
I. Early Medieval
Philosophy
Augustine
R 1/25 Plotinus, Enneads
53-60; Augustine, City of
Topic: Neoplatonism, Skepticism
T 1/30 On the Free Choice of the Will 72-84
(Recommended: Confessions 99-104) Problem of Evil Argument
Topic: Human nature and sin
R 2/1 cont.
84-99 Cosmological
Argument
T 2/6 Confessions 104-114
Topic: God and Time
Boethius
R 2/8 The Consolation of Philosophy 151-159
Topic: Free will and God’s foreknowledge
T 2/13 Commentaries 147-150; (Recommended: Abelard 180-188)
Topic: Universals
Anselm and Gaunilo
R 2/15 Anselm,
Prosilogion 171-173; Debate between Anselm
and Gaunilo 173-177 Ontological
Argument
Topic:
The ontological argument for God’s existence Take-Home Exam and
Paper #1
II. Medieval Islamic and Jewish Philosophy
Avicenna
T 2/20 “Essay on the Secret of Destiny” 221-222;
Concerning the Soul 223-233
Topic: The nature of the soul
Averroes
R 2/22 Al-Ghazali, The Incoherence of the Philosophers 235-238; Averroes, The Decisive Treatise 241-255
Topic: Faith and reason
Maimonides
T 2/27 Averroes, The Decisive Treatise 255-260; Maimonides, Guide for the Perplexed 263-274
Topic: The nature of God
R 3/1 Guide for the Perplexed 274-288
III. Late Medieval
Philosophy
Roger Bacon
T 3/6 Opus Majus 301-309
Topic: Empirical Science Take-Home Exam and
Paper #2
Bonaventure
R 3/8 The Mind’s Road to God 312-324 (Recommended: On the Eternity of the World 324-330)
Topic:
Aquinas
T 3/13 Summa Theologica 345-352, 356-362
Topic: The cosmological argument for God’s existence
R 3/15 Summa Theologica 362-374
Topic: Human nature
T 3/20 Spring Break
R 3/22 Spring Break
(M 3/26 Deadline to Withdraw)
T 3/27 Summa Theologica 374-384
Topic: Epistemology
R 3/29 Summa Theologica 391-398
Topic: Free will and virtue
T 4/3 Summa Theologica 399-410
Topic: Natural law
and just war theories Take-Home Exam and
Paper #3
The Condemnation of 1277
R 4/5 Siger of Brabant and Boethius of
Topic: Determinism; The eternity of the world
Duns Scotus
T 4/10 Reportata Parisiensia 446-448; The Ordinatio 448-450, 458-461 (Recommended: 465-467)
Topic: Separating philosophy and theology
Ockham
R 4/12 “On Universals” 471-479
Topic: Universals; Ockham’s Razor
T 4/17 “On Being” 479-480; “On Knowledge” 481-484
Topic: Universals
R 4/19 “On God” 484-491, “On Politics” 491-494
Topic: Monotheism;
The paradox of omnipotence; Civil vs. papal authority
Eckhart and Cusanas
T 4/24 Eckhart, “Sermon #1” 497-501; Cusanas, “On Learned Ignorance” 516-521
Topic:
Mysticism and the limits of reason Take-Home Exam and
Paper #4
IV. Renaissance Philosophy
R 4/26 Mirandola,
Oration on the Dignity of Man
525-527; Machiavelli, The Prince Machiavelli Reading
Topic: Humanism
T 5/1 Montaigne, Apology for Raymond Sebond (Handout); Erasmus,
In Praise of Folly Erasmus Reading
Topic: Skepticism; The birth of modern science
R 5/3 TBA
T 5/8 Erasmus, On Free Will; Luther, The Bondage of the Will; Calvin, Institutes of Religion
Topic:
Free will and predestination Erasmus,
Luther, and Calvin Readings
Final Exam T
5/15 12:45 – 2:45 pm Final Take-Home Exam and Paper