Medieval Foundations of the Western Intellectual Tradition (Yale Intellectual History of the West Series) Revised ed. Edition

by Marcia L. Colish (Author)

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ISBN-13: 978-0300078527

ISBN-10: 9780300078527

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This magisterial book is an analysis of the course of Western intellectual history between A.D. 400 and 1400. The book is arranged in two parts: the first surveys the comparative modes of thought and varying success of Byzantine, Latin-Christian, and Muslim cultures, and the second takes the reader from the eleventh-century revival of learning to the high Middle Ages and beyond, the period in which the vibrancy of Western intellectual culture enabled it to stamp its imprint well beyond the frontiers of Christendom.

Marcia Colish argues that the foundations of the Western intellectual tradition were laid in the Middle Ages and not, as is commonly held, in the Judeo-Christian or classical periods. She contends that Western medieval thinkers produced a set of tolerances, tastes, concerns, and sensibilities that made the Middle Ages unlike other chapters of the Western intellectual experience. She provides astute descriptions of the vernacular and oral culture of each country of Europe; explores the nature of medieval culture and its transmission; profiles seminal thinkers (Augustine, Anselm, Gregory the Great, Aquinas, Ockham); studies heresy from Manichaeism to Huss and Wycliffe; and investigates the influence of Arab and Jewish writing on scholasticism and the resurrection of Greek studies. Colish concludes with an assessment of the modes of medieval thought that ended with the period and those that remained as bases for later ages of European intellectual history.

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Editorial Reviews

From Library Journal

This is the first book in what promises to be an exciting new series. It will seek to provide "a chronological account of the intellectual life and the development of ideas in Western Europe from the early medieval period to the present day."
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.

About the Author

Marcia L. Colish is Frederick B. Artz Professor of History at Oberlin College, Ohio.

Product details

Series: Yale Intellectual History of the West Series
Paperback: 448 pages
Publisher: Yale University Press; Revised ed. edition (February 8, 1999)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 9780300078527
ISBN-13: 978-0300078527
ASIN: 0300078528
Product Dimensions: 6.2 x 1.2 x 9.2 inches
Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
Average Customer Review: 10 customer reviews
Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #601,930 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #1180 in Books > Politics & Social Sciences > Philosophy > History & Surveys
- #1274 in Books > Textbooks > Humanities > Philosophy > History & Surveys
- #2427 in Books > Textbooks > Humanities > History > Europe

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Very good work. You must find this time period interesting ...

October 23, 2015

Format: PaperbackVerified Purchase

Very good work. You must find this time period interesting for it to hold your interest.

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Medieval intelectual history

January 27, 2010

Format: PaperbackVerified Purchase

I found this book to be of great help in my understanding of this topic. It covers the full period from begining to end, it outlines all the main players in this field and allows the reader through the biblography to read futher if need be. I would suggest this book be on any reading list for this topic.

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July 28, 2016

Format: HardcoverVerified Purchase

Thank you

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September 15, 2014

Format: PaperbackVerified Purchase

An excellent book

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Dry and uninsightful, but somewhat useful nevertheless

January 1, 2005

Format: PaperbackVerified Purchase

My interest in obscure and esoteric subjects frequently leads me to read books written by academics, with whom I am sympathetic, since I am one myself. So it is unpleasant for me to concede that most academics can't write for beans. The current author's work is a nearly perfect example of this very sad fact, which says so much about the waning intellectual vigor of our age. The title provides a sufficient clue that this is a dry and plodding tome, and this impression is confirmed by each and every page, on which lengthy and opaque sentences coil about one another in pointless complexity without ever giving birth to a new idea or an important insight. The most challenging aspect of this book is not the subtle but intriguing new ideas its author places before us - since there are none of these to think about. Rather, the difficulty arises from the fact that the author's style is as unappealing as a cardboard sandwich.

Instead of new insights, she gives us only an exhaustive (and exhausting!) summary of the major books and intellectual traditions of the Middle Ages. And although she provides a slim but marginally satisfactory historical context, she never places medieval influences in new relationships that clarify their importance. Instead, this book grinds on like some college term paper on steroids. It is full of citations, paraphrases and summaries, but it is completely unstained by original thought. This underscores the dark side of academia's culture: "publish or perish".

Among its flaws, the book reflects a surprisingly poor understanding of the world that preceded 500AD, and the author's grasp of Christianity -- an omnipresent medieval theme -- is brittle and impoverished. Oh, the facts are there, all right, but there is no deep understanding of them. Also, the visual arts are not discussed at all -- a major flaw that must reflect the author's failure to recognize their relevance. And although science is mentioned, the author does not understand it well, so she can not fully appreciate its effects. This is an extremely serious shortcoming.

Still, the book has value. Having read it, I feel much better prepared to delve into the source material, whose scope I now better understand. And the author's summaries of medieval literature are among her best. She has an authentic gift for appreciating literature and for sharing her enthusiasm with her readers. As a result, I look forward to reading these works, which would not otherwise have interested me.

Finally, do not be deceived by the fact that a few commercial "reviewers" have said that this book is an "important intellectual achievement". These claims tell us more about the publishers' need to recoup their costs than about the book's merits. There is absolutely nothing in this book that will noticeably alter the world of ideas. And the alleged "central thesis" -- that our modern age stands upon the Middle Ages more than on the preceding Roman world -- must surely be a joke. To her credit, the author devotes almost no attention to this preposterous claim, and so I doubt that the reviewers actually read the book. After all, no thoughtful person can fail to see that the ancient world profoundly influenced the Middle Ages, which in turn influenced the Europe that emerged from them. As a result, these influences are intermingled, and there is no conceivable method by which the modern influence of Cicero, for example, can be separated from that of Ockham. In fact, the metaphor underlying this "thesis" is broken. Intellectual traditions do not stand upon a foundation as a building does. Instead, they are a river whose water inseparably mixes the contribution of its many enriching tributaries. We can appreciate them all, without pretending that one is the "foundation" and the others are not.

49 people found this helpful

Comment

Fine Survey; 4.5 Stars

February 12, 2012

Format: Paperback

This is a fine survey of a very difficult topic. Colish's essential theme is that Medieval Europe is the true origin of the western intellectual tradition. In this moderate sized book, Colish covers several centuries and a diverse array of topics, including theology, philosophy, science, literature, and educational trends. This book opens with a survey of the founding figures of European Christianity, the Latin Patristic fathers, discusses their work and in particular, how they responded to the challenges of melding Christianity and the powerful Classical traditions in which they were educated. Colish discusses as well what major texts and traditions survived the fall of the western Empire. This is followed by coverage of early medieval Europe, which is largely though not entirely a history of education and efforts to preserve and understand the received tradition. Paralleling these sections are very interesting discussions of intellectual developments in other important contemporary societies, Byzantium and the Islamin world, the latter including a very useful discussion of both Muslim and Jewish thinkers. The importance of Muslim and Jewish thinkers in preserving and responding to the Classical heritage, especially Aristotle, is a particular emphasis.

Colish follows with the emergence of Latin and vernacular literatures as Medieval societies developed and interesting discussions of the articulation of formal educational institutions. Colish really shines, however, with her discussions of the development of Medieval theology and philosophy. Persistent themes are the evolution of rhetoric into more critical evaluations of semantics and grammer, the development of formal logic, the search for critical justifications of religious belief, and the increasingly sophisticated theology-philosophy that emerges with the flowering of scholastic thought. Major figures, trends, and dissidents are covered very well. The impact of the relatively late transmission of much of Aristotle's work and the work of important Muslim and Jewish thinker is another important theme.

Colish concludes with a nice concise set of chapters discussing three major aspects of the Medieval heritage; the natural sciences, economic theory, and political theory. Throughout her discussion of high and late Medieval thought, Colish emphasizes the creative aspects of scholasticism; the diversity of thought, the critical stance towards received texts and positioins, and the importance of rigorous and publicly defended position. The quality of writing is very good, particularly considering the technical difficulties of some of the topics. There is a nice bioliography. I would personally prefer a bit more emphasis on history of science and philosophy, but in a book this length, its hard to argue with Colish's choices.

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