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From Hutton Webster's, Early European History (1917); edited for this on-line publication, by ELLOPOS
XXI. MEDIEVAL CIVILIZATION
» Contents of this Chapter
Page 21
STUDY OF ARISTOTLE
The philosophy on which the scholastics relied was chiefly that of Aristotle. Christian Europe read him at first in Latin translations from the Arabic, but versions were later made from Greek copies found in Constantinople and elsewhere in the East. This revival of Aristotle, though it broadened men's minds by acquainting them with the ideas of the greatest of Greek thinkers, had serious drawbacks. It discouraged rather than favored the search for fresh truth. Many scholastics were satisfied to appeal to Aristotle's authority, rather than take the trouble of finding out things for themselves. The story is told of a medieval student who, having detected spots in the sun, announced his discovery to a learned man. "My son," said the latter, "I have read Aristotle many times, and I assure you there is nothing of the kind mentioned by him. Be certain that the spots which you have seen are in your eyes and not in the sun."
ST. THOMAS AQUINAS, 1227-1274 A.D.
There were many famous scholastics, or "schoolmen," but easily the foremost among them was the Italian monk, Thomas Aquinas. He taught at Paris, Cologne, Rome, and Bologna, and became so celebrated for learning as to be known as the "Angelic Doctor." Though Aquinas died at an early age, he left behind him no less than eighteen folio volumes. His Summa Theologiae ("Compendium of Theology"), as the name indicates, gathered up all that the Middle Ages believed of the relations between God and man. The Roman Church has placed him among her saints and still recommends the study of his writings as the foundation of all sound theology.
THE SCHOLASTIC METHOD
Enough has been said to show that the method of study in medieval universities was not that which generally obtains to-day. There was almost no original research. Law students memorized the Justinian code. Medical students learned anatomy and physiology from old Greek books, instead of in the dissecting room. Theologians and philosophers went to the Bible, the Church Fathers, or Aristotle for the solution of all problems. They often debated the most subtle questions, for instance, "Can God ever know more than He knows that He knows?" Mental gymnastics of this sort furnished a good training in logic, but added nothing to the sum of human knowledge. Scholasticism, accordingly, fell into disrepute, in proportion as men began to substitute scientific observation and experiment for speculation.
THE MAKING OF EUROPE / EARLY EUROPEAN HISTORY: Table of Contents
url: www.ellopos.net/politics/european-history/default.asp
Cf. The Ancient Greece * The Ancient Rome
Eastern Roman Empire (Byzantium) * Western Medieval Europe * Renaissance in Italy
