Customer Reviews:
 Medieval Thought 101 July 12, 2005
S. Pactor (San Diego, CA United States)
13 out of 13 found this review helpful
***EDITED 1/19/10*****
This book is a concise introduction to the development of medieval thought. Specifically it discusses the thinkers themselves and the institutions that birthed them. The main word to keep in mind here is that this an "overview" of medieval thought.
Still, making your way through it requires considerable intellectual work. Knowles gives you a page or two of biographical summary (easy going) followed by three or four pages of text about the particular thinkers' attempt to square neo-platonism with Christian aristotlianism. I can't say that I got all the finer points in the text-- far from it.
That aside, the basic evolution is clear, with the high point coming in the thirteenth century as the complete works of Aristotle were rediscovered and absorbed by various thinkers, leading up to the work of Thomas Aquinas. Thereafter, there was a retreat from the project of synthesizing theology with philosophy.
I recently had the occasion to re-read this book after a trip to Italy. I found it much easier sledding the second time through, and it def. helped to have in mind the Italian Renaissance for context... Most of the activity here precedes the Quattrocentro, and most of the action takes place in France, not Italy (though Italy does play a strong role.) I advanced my rating from four to five stars to reflect the fact that I liked this book enough to read it again five years later.
The Best. November 6, 1999
Nawfal (USA)
16 out of 17 found this review helpful
This book is essential for the student of Medieval Philosophy. It is the best, I prefer it even over E. Gilson's introductory Medieval works. It is not superficial, it is rigorous and yet not boring. The serious undergraduate's thirst will be quenched. His history is accurate. This is the standard by which the rest of the Medieval texts for undergraduates will be judged.
An Essential Work for Students of Intellectual History July 17, 2006
M. Lange (Washington)
6 out of 6 found this review helpful
David Knowles's fine book is a great survey of the intellectual struggles of the medieval period. He places these developments in historical context, and shows the rise of the modern university systems in Europe and England as perhaps the greatest achievement of the period. I appreciated his discussions of how the better minds of the age, such as Boethius, Albert the Great, St. Bonaventure, St. Thomas Aquinas, Duns Scotus, and William of Ockham, developed their own ideas in the context of Church dogma, and grappled with, and found ways to reconcile Christian thought with the ancient teachings of Plato, Aristotle, and Plotinus, who came to their attention through ongoing, erratic discoveries and transmission of writings by Arab sources and Islamic philosophers like Avicenna and Averroes.
These developments, and ultimately the work of William of Ockham, set the stage for the Renaissance, Reformation, and Age of Reason that were soon to unfold, and Knowles suggests how the well-demarked positions of leading thinkers manifested in those movements.
Also of tremendous value is his suggestions for further study, with source materials in English, French, and German. He cautions that intensive study of the medieval period really cannot be done without a good reading knowledge of French. No doubt German is also helpful, but more so for the study of mysticism than the medieval scholars he concentrates on in this work. Even so, David Knowles has done a splendid job of giving the general reader a well-informed overview of this subject.
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