St. Anselm Basic Writings: Proslogium, Mologium, Gaunilo's In Behalf of the Fool, Cur Deus Homo [Paperback]

Saint Anselm of Canterbury (Author), S. N. Deane (Translator), Charles Hartshorne (Introduction)

Book Description

Publication Date: December 30, 1998

Anselm of Canterbury (1033-1109) was one of the originators of medievil scholastic philosophy. This collection of his best-known philosophical works contains, among other things, the Proslogium, in which Anselm first put forward the famous ontological argument for the existence of God. Also included are Gaunilo of Maurmoutier's criticism of Anselm's argument and Anselm's reply to Gaunilo.

Product Details

• Paperback: 342 pages
• Publisher: Open Court; 2 edition (December 30, 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0875481094
• ISBN-13: 978-0875481098
• Product Dimensions: 7.9 x 5.3 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 14.4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #277,801 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

12 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars "Great Defintion for the Existence of God", January 29, 2001

By 

Johannes Platonicus (South Bend, Indiana) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: St. Anselm Basic Writings: Proslogium, Mologium, Gaunilo's In Behalf of the Fool, Cur Deus Homo (Paperback)

St. Anselm, Archbishop of Canterbury, philosopher, father of scholastism, and doctor of the highly-esteemed Ontological Argument has in this work (Proslogium, Monologium, Cur Deus Homo, and Reply to Gaunilo)decribed and defended the nature of the most Trascendent Being in a profound yet simplistic manner.

He begins his treatise stating that "God is greater than that of which can be conceived." While at the same time he emphasizes that we must not be intimidated by God's incomprehensiblity, but rather that we are reconciled to the Divine Knowledge by a means of simply believing in Him. Anselm quotes from (Psalms 14:1) which says that "the fool hath said in his heart, there is no God". So to Anselm the one who does not believe is the one who will never gain understanding, and to the believer, he says that, "they set straight the path to all wisdom and understanding." Thus, an incomprehensible Being, reveals what he wills to the ones who seek Him diligently. This is the scope of his work in rudiments, but Anselm expounds with clarity on each and every subject at hand that he works with. So as the reader you never feel that you are getting to little, or to much information. Also you will invariably receive new insights (which is the bread and butter of the Ontological Argument)no matter how well read and learned you are on the subject.

The introduction to this book proves itself to be invaluable by summarizing the basic philosophy of Anselm. It also contains refutations and defenses to the Ontological Argument by some of the most reknowed philosophers of all time such as Kant, Hegel, Locke, Spinoza, and Descartes', to name a few. This way you can gain a better perspective of the way you will deal with the subject matter will reading. Despite reading a few of these counter-arguments I found that none of them could add to, or take away from the sheer purity of Anslem's argument.

Deemed as the second Augustine , Anselm kept an extreme adherrence to the Holy Sriptures, the edicts promulgated by the Nicene Fathers, and an emphasis rooted deeply in the power of pure reason, which rightly has acredited him such an honorable title.

So I would strongly suggest purchasing this book. It has been a rewarding and valuable asset to have on my shelf and I hope it makes its way to yours.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A great mind at work!, March 25, 2010

By 

Nathan A. Edwards (Jacksonville, FL USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: St. Anselm Basic Writings: Proslogium, Mologium, Gaunilo's In Behalf of the Fool, Cur Deus Homo (Paperback)

St. Anselm's Basic Writings include: Anselm's Proslogium, Monologium, Cur Deus Homo, Gaunilo's In Behalf of the Fool, as well as Anselm's reply to Gaunilo. This volume also contains an overall introduction by Charles Hartshorne followed by thought provoking commentary from Descartes, Spinoza, Locke, Leibnitz, Kant, and Hegel, among others, primarily in response to what has been know as Anselm's Ontological Argument since it was referred to as such by Immanuel Kant. Anselm's works alone make this compilation worth reading. However, as the author's proofs have inspired debate for close to one thousand years, it is extremely beneficial when contemplating these works to become familiar with how some of history's most renowned thinkers have responded to Anselm's ideas. What might make this particular volume stand out among others is the fact that the reader has access to Anselm's reply to one of the most time tested criticisms of his argument produced by Gaunilo, whereas so many of his other critics went unanswered.

The Monologium, which Anselm originally titled An Example of Meditation on the Grounds of Faith, was written to expound, as the original title indicates, thoughts that Anselm arrived upon while meditating on the Being of God. In this work Anselm seeks to demonstrate that, even if one has denied or has no knowledge of a Supreme Nature, one could become familiar with certain truths regarding this Nature through reason alone. Anselm's goal in this work is that of not having to rely upon Biblical Scripture in and of itself as a means to understanding the Nature of the Supreme Being. He argues that there must be some one thing that is supremely good, through which every good thing has their goodness. Anselm builds this argument on a foundation of degrees. When one speaks of different things being good in varying degrees, it must be understood as being good through goodness while goodness itself is the same in each thing. It follows, then, that everything that is good to whatever degree is good through some one thing that is a great good, being goodness itself. Furthermore, anything that is good through something else is less-than that through which it is good; that which is goodness itself, and not good through some other thing, is supremely good. Anselm applies this principle to greatness, justness, dignity, and existence at great lengths to demonstrate the Nature of the Supreme Being.

The Proslogium, originally titled Faith Seeking Understanding, is that work from which St. Anselm's Ontological Argument was drawn. Anselm's motivation for this book was that of finding one argument for the existence of God that would only require itself as proof, as opposed to the numerous arguments posited in the Monologium. One should be encouraged to read and understand Anselm's argument in the context of the entire Proslogium (and Monologium for that matter) as opposed to extracting the one brief chapter in which this Argument is found. Much is disclosed of Anselm's reasoning not only by conceiving of it within its intended context but also by realizing that Anselm "seeks to understand what he believes." This idea of Faith Seeking Understanding, in the opinion of some, might also be responsible for undue criticism towards the author's defense of his work to the Catholic Monk Gaunilo's response to Anselm's Argument. That is, Anselm's defense might have been different had he been unable to appeal to the critics Faith.

The final book in this compilation is Cur Deus Homo, or Why God Became Man. This book is written in the form of a conversation between Anselm and fellow monk named Boso who assumes the role of questioner. While Anselm and Boso both agree that what they believe by faith requires no reason, reasons provide believers with comfort in the rationality of their faith. To achieve the goal of finding their faith rational by the means of simple reason they try to abstain from appealing to Scripture, and manage to accomplish this to some great extent. In this book Anselm does not to shy from any questions that might be brought against such a concept and, as a result, provides many arguments that have stood the test of time. Some have considered this work to be St. Anselm's masterpiece.

St. Anselm's Basic Writings is an excellent read and recommended to anyone who thinks they are even remotely interested in reading it. While some of the author's arguments might not be as solid as he believed them to be at the time, Anselm has been disregarded to an unreasonable degree. Anyone who has only ever heard about Anselm in an introductory philosophy course or has built an opinion of his thoughts without reading his work should certainly take a deeper look and consider his arguments as he intended. Much can be learned from this great thinker and it is a great shame that his name has become somewhat synonymous with faulty logic in the minds of so many without having the opportunity to read his words within their intended context.