Course description
This course introduces students to prominent thinkers and problems of philosophy from the long period of history broadly called “the Middle Ages,” denoting roughly A.D. 500 to 1500. Students will engage with diverse medieval perspectives, including representation from at least two of the following major philosophical traditions: Latin, Arabic, Jewish, and/or Byzantine. Students will encounter major themes in multiple areas of philosophy--areas such as metaphysics, epistemology, political theory, and ethics--to discover how medieval thinkers grappled with life's biggest questions.
Course content
The course may be organized chronologically, thematically, or by tradition. It includes substantial engagement with diverse medieval perspectives on no fewer than three of the following areas, as determined by the instructor:
- Universals and Particulars (e.g., Porphyry, Abelard, Ibn Sina, Ockham)
- Necessity, Contingency, and Causation (e.g., Boethius, al-Ghazali, Scotus, Ockham)
- Time and Eternity (e.g., Augustine, Boethius, Ibn Rushd, Aquinas, Bonaventure)
- Free Will (e.g., Boethius, Anselm, Bernard of Clairvaux, Levi ben Gershon, Ockham)
- Theories of the Soul (e.g., Ibn Sina, Peter John Olivi, Aquinas, Buridan, Pomponazzi)
- Memory, Cognition, and Perception (e.g., Ibn Rushd, Aquinas, Nicholas of Autrecourt)
- Moral Philosophy (e.g., Augustine, al-Farabi, Moses ben Maimon, Abelard, Aquinas)
- Ethics of Warfare (e.g., Isidore of Seville, al-Razi, Catherine of Siena, Aquinas)
- Natural Law and the Nature of Rights (e.g., Hilary of Poitiers, Aquinas, Suarez)
- Political Philosophy (e.g., Augustine, Marsilius of Padua, Ibn Tufayl, Dante, Suarez)
- Natural Philosophy and Philosophy of Science (e.g., Augustine, Ibn Rushd, Robert Grosseteste, Albert the Great, Aquinas, Nicole Oresme, Hildegard, Copernicus)
- Skepticism (e.g., Henry of Ghent, Siger of Brabant, Nicholas of Autrecourt, Scotus)
- Existence and Nature of God (e.g., Moses ben Maimon, Anselm, al-Ghazali, Aquinas)
- Logic and Syllogistic Theory (e.g., Boethius, al-Farabi, William Sherwood, Buridan)
- Mysticism (e.g., Pseudo-Dionysius, Julian of Norwich, Gregory Palamas, Hildegard)
- Love and Friendship (e.g., Augustine, Heloise, Julian of Norwich, Aelred of Rievaulx)
Learning activities
The course employs a variety of instructional methods to accomplish its objectives, including some of the following: lecture; instructor- or student-led group discussions; student presentations and projects; guided close text reading; audio-visual material.
Means of assessment
Evaluation is based on course objectives and carried out in accordance with the Douglas College Evaluation Policy. The instructor provides a written course outline with specific criteria during the first week of classes.
Evaluation includes some combination of the following elements:
- In-class tests, quizzes, and/or short writing assignments: 0-80%
- Midterm exam(s), oral exam(s), and/or Final Exam: 0-80%
- Prepared written work (e.g., essays, summaries, analyses, or take-home exams): 0-50%
- Prepared presentations or other projects: 0-50%
- General Evaluation (may include attendance, participation, group work, homework, peer evaluations, self-evaluations, etc.): 0-30%
Instructors may use a student’s record of attendance and/or level of active participation in the course as part of the student’s graded performance. Where this occurs, expectations and grade calculations regarding class attendance and participation will be clearly defined in the Instructor Course Outline.
Example evaluation scheme:
- In-Class Quizzes, 5 x 5% each - 25%
- In-Class Argument Responses, 2 x 10% each - 20%
- Short Essays, 2 x 15% each - 30%
- Final Exam (scheduled during final exam period) - 25%
This is a letter-graded course.
Learning outcomes
Upon successful completion of this course, students will be able to:
- demonstrate familiarity with some of the main philosophical issues prevalent in medieval philosophical thought;
- identify several key medieval figures in the context of particular philosophical discussions;
- recognize and explain some of the general philosophical problems that inform the specific questions discussed by these philosophers;
- explain and analyze competing medieval theories and, where appropriate, their relevant similarities and differences;
- describe at least two major traditions of medieval philosophy (Latin, Arabic, Jewish, and/or Byzantine), with reference to both what distinguishes them (e.g., geography, chronology, religion, language, and/or genre), and how they influenced and interacted with each other;
- demonstrate philosophical awareness and analysis in some of the themes that interested medieval thinkers;
- apply philosophical analysis, reasoning, and critical thinking skills to the interpretation of historical texts.
Textbook materials
A list of required and textbooks and materials is provided at the beginning of the semester, and students are responsible for purchasing these. Readings are drawn from primary source texts in modern English translation and/or companion texts by contemporary philosophers.
Examples of conventionally published texts that may be used include:
Companions and Readers with Commentary
- Arlig, Medieval Philosophy: A Contemporary Introduction (Routledge, 2024)
- Boulter, Why Medieval Philosophy Matters (Bloomsbury, 2019)
- Foltz, Medieval Philosophy: A Multicultural Reader (Bloomsbury, 2019)
- Hyman & Williams, Philosophy in the Middle Ages: The Christian, Islamic, and Jewish Traditions, 3rd ed. (Hackett, 2010)
- Marenbon, Medieval Philosophy: A Very Short Introduction (Oxford UP, 2016)
- Rudavsky, Jewish Philosophy in the Middle Ages: Science, Rationalism, and Religion (Oxford UP, 2018)
Primary Texts and Anthologies
- Augustine of Hippo, Confessions, trans. Ruden (Modern Library, 2017)
- Boethius, The Consolation of Philosophy, trans. Watts (Penguin, 2000)
- Julian of Norwich, Revelations of Divine Love, trans. Spearing (Penguin, 1999)
- Moses ben Maimon, The Guide of the Perplexed, trans. Rabin (Hackett, 1995)
- Peter Abelard & Heloise of Argenteuil, The Letters and Other Writings, trans. Levitan (Hackett, 2007)
- Various, Classical Arabic Philosophy: An Anthology of Sources, trans. McGinnis & Reisman (Hackett, 2007)
Some medieval texts are freely available in translation in online databases such as Project Gutenberg, the Internet Classics Archive, Loeb Classical Library, and New Advent.