Chapter 14 - Franciscan Schoolmen

(Originally written July 29, 2006 in Book 5)

The History of Western Philosophy
Bertrand Russell

Chapter 14 - Franciscan Schoolmen

The Franciscans and Dominicans were bitter rivals. The Franciscans were less orthodox. They were disinclined to accept the authority of Thomas Aquinas (a Dominican).

The Franciscans produced Roger Bacon, Duns Scotus, William of Occam, Saint Bonaventura and Matthew of Aquasparta.

Roger Bacon lived from 1214-1294. Bacon was a philosopher and a man of science. Science was mixed up with black magic and alchemy at the time so Bacon was in constant danger of being labeled a heretic. He was placed under a no-publish edict by the head of the Franciscans, but commanded by the papal legate to England to write his philosophy for the benefit o the Pope. He wrote three books in a very short time:
1) Opus Majus
2) Opus Minus
3) Opus Tertium

He was imprisoned for condemning clerics for ignorance. He was imprisoned 14 years and died shortly after being released. He was experimental by nature; encyclopedic but not systematic. He was a good geographer and a good mathematician. He thought logic was useless and wrote on alchemy.

He believed there were four causes for ignorance:
1) frail and unsuitable authority
2) influence of custom
3) the opinion of the unlearned crowd
4) the concealment of ignorance by apparent wisdom

All ignorance produces the evils that plague mankind. The fourth is the worst.

He considers Aristotle to be the chief philosopher and Avicenna the price.

He sees no fault in finding truth from the heathen and quotes Avicenna, Averroes, Alfarabi and Albumazar.

He sees mathematics as the only unrivaled source of certitude.

He believed that the intellect is separate from the soul.

Modern times praise Bacon because he places experimentation as a source of knowledge in higher esteem than argumentation as a source.

He believed in magic and astrology.

He is more respected now than he was in medieval times.

St. Bonaventura (1221-1274) was the General of the Franciscan order. He believed in the ontological argument for God. He believed in Platonic Ideas and saw Aristotelianism as in opposition to Christianity. He quoted Augustine extensively but ignored Pagan and Arab philosophies.

Matthew of Aquasparta (1235-1302) was a follower of Bonaventura. He opposed Aquinas from an Augustinian point of view. He quotes Aristotle, Avicenna, Anselm, the pseudo-dionysius and chiefly, Augustine.

He believed that Plato's ideas produce wisdom, but not knowledge and Aristotle produced knowledge but not wisdom. He sought to sync the two.

Duns Scotus (1270-1308) was Scottish and joined the Franciscans at Oxford University. He fought Aquinas on the immaculate conception and won the argument. He was Augustinian but less severe than other Franciscans.

Franciscans often disagreed with Aquinas because he was Aristotelian and the Franciscans were Platonic (through Augustine).

Scouts was a moderate realist, believed in Free Will and leaned somewhat to Pelagianism.

He held that there was no difference between being and essence.

He focused on evidence, things knowable without proof. There were three kinds of evidence:
1) Principles known by themselves
2) Things known by experience
3) our own actions

Without divine illumination no one can know anything.

He held the the principle of individuation (what makes one thing not identical with another) was due to form, not matter.

William of Occam is the second most important scholastic philosopher next to Aquinas. He lived circa 1290-1350. He was a pupil, then a rival of Scotus. He was excommunicated by Pope John XXII and took refuge with Emperor Louis (who was likewise excommunicated).

Dante (1265-1321) was an influential commentator in this age. Marsiglio of Padua (1270-1342) was a friend of William of Occham and a great political force of the time (in theory, not action). Marsiglio and William sought to preserve the Catholic faith, but fought against papal absolutism.

William's political works are done in a philosophical disputation style. William is best known for Occam's razor "it is vain to do with more what can be done with fewer" (Russell, 472).

In logic, William of Occam was a homilist.

He set to free logic and theory of knowledge from the basis of metaphysics and theology.

He holds that there are six metaphysical terms:
1) being
2) thing
3) something
4) one
5) true
6) good

He holds universals are things that can be predicated to many.

William of Occam believed perception to be the definition of knowledge.

His work encouraged scientific research.

After William of Occam there were no great scholastic philosophers.