Medieval Philosophy: An Introduction

by Frederick Charles Copleston

This classic introduction by a noted scholar compresses much of substance into comparatively little space, offering students and general readers an insightful, accessible survey of the major philosophical trends and thinkers of the Middle Ages. In 200 pages, the text basically covers the thought of ten centuries … “clearly no light task,” says the Times Literary Supplement of London, adding that “this is a careful and erudite book, full of patience and tolerance, catholic in every sense of the word.”
Beginning with the origins and character of medieval philosophy, Professor Copleston goes on to discuss, with great clarity and precision, the problem of universals, the growth of Scholasticism in the early Middle Ages, Islamic and Jewish philosophy, and the Franciscan philosophers of the universities. This is followed by clear, detailed summaries of the thought of such major figures as Thomas Aquinas, the Averroists, Duns Scotus, and William of Ockham. Concluding chapters take an enlightening look at speculative mysticism, and the work of Nicholas of Cusa, and medieval political philosophy.
“A better conspectus of medieval philosophy than this would be difficult to conceive … a notable achievement.” — The Tablet (London).

Genres: Philosophy, History, Nonfiction, Religion

208 pages, Paperback

Published November 28, 2011

About the author

Frederick (Freddie) Charles Copleston was raised an Anglican and educated at Marlborough College from 1920 to 1925. Shortly after his eighteenth birthday he converted to Catholicism, and his father subsequently almost disowned him. After the initial shock, however, his father saw fit to help Copleston through his education and he attended St. John’s in Oxford in 1925, only managing a disappointing third in classical moderations. He redeemed himself somewhat with a good second at Greats in 1929.

In 1930 Copleston became a Jesuit, and, after two years at the Jesuit novitiate in Roehampton, he moved to Heythrop. He was ordained a Jesuit priest at Heythrop College in 1937 and soon after went to Germany (1938) to complete his training. Fortunately he made it back to Britain before the outbreak of war in 1939. The war made it impossible for him to study for his doctorate, as once intended, at the Gregorian University in Rome, and instead Copleston was invited to return to Heythrop to teach the history of philosophy to the few remaining Jesuits there.

While in Heythrop Copleston had time and interest to begin the work he is most famous for, his "A History of Philosophy" - a textbook that originally set out to deliver a clear account of ancient, medieval and modern philosophy in three volumes, which was instead completed in nine volumes (1975). To this day Copleston’s history remains a monumental achievement and stays true to the authors it discusses, being very much a work in exposition.

Copleston adopted a number of honorary roles throughout the remainder of his career. He was appointed Visiting Professor at Pontifical Gregorian University in Rome, spending half of each year lecturing there from 1952 to 1968. He was made Fellow of the British Academy (FBA) in 1970, given a personal professorship from his own university (Heythrop, now re-established in the University of London) in 1972 and made an Honorary Fellow of St. John’s College, Oxford, in 1975. He was Visiting Professor at the University of Santa Clara between 1974 and 1982, and he delivered the Gifford Lectures at the University of Aberdeen between 1979 and 1981. His lectures were published under the title Religion and the One, and were largely a metaphysical tract attempting to express themes perennial in his thinking and more personal than in his history. Gerard J. Hughes notes Copleston as remarking "large doses of metaphysics like that certainly don’t boost one’s sales".

He received honorary doctorates from a number of institutions, notably, Santa Clara University, California, University of Uppsala and the University of St. Andrews (D.Litt) in later years. He was selected for membership in the Royal Institute of Philosophy and in the Aristotelian Society, and in 1993 he was made CBE.

Copleston’s personality saw him engage in the many responsibilities bestowed upon him with generous commitment and good humour.

Reviews

[Genni · Rating 4 out of 5]

Copleston covers Medieval philosophy clearly (including mysticism and political thought) against the backdrop of educational development, and all under 200 pages making this an excellent place to start on the subject.

[Joel Everett · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent introduction to Medieval Philosophy by Copleston. His 9-Volume History of Philosophy series is also highly recommended. Copleston gives a good solid introduction to major figures of the Medieval Period: Augustine (included due to his influence in Medieval Philosophy), Anslem, Bonaventure, Aquinas, Avicenna, Averroes, Ockham and others.

Copleston's writing style if lucid and easy to follow and he does a good job of elucidating the various philosophical terms and concepts then in use.

[Erik Graff · Rating 4 out of 5]

All of Copleston's works serve as intelligent introductions to their topics. A Jesuit, he is particularly good on medieval philosophy. I'd read the second volume of his A History of Philosophy which also covered this period and did so in more depth actually, but, years later and getting rusty in philosophy, I returned to him upon discovering this book. For a layperson simply wanting an introduction to medieval European thought, this would probably be a better choice than the second volume of his History of Philosophy.

[sch · Rating 4 out of 5]

Jan 2025. Another follow-up to Kreeft's SOCRATES'S CHILDREN. He didn't recommend this one per se, but I own it. Looks like a combination of history and exposition, from its roots from the ancients and the New Testament through the 15th century.

After 40 pages: the style is redundant, but helpful rather than tedious. The material merits double-takes. It is very clear, a genuine example of (kind) condescension.

Finished, and grateful to fill in more historical and philosophical gaps in my knowledge. As with Jaroslav Pelikan's account of Catholic heretics, here I find that the "bad guys" in the history of ideas are much more (and intelligent) than I supposed. Copleston is such a gentle and cautious reader and judge of his subjects.

Takeaways:
Chapter 1: Background of early apologists, Augustine, Pseudo-Dionysius, and Boethius. General remarks on faith and reason.
Chp 2: After a historical overview (from Vandals to Charlemagne), a discussion of the (odd!) John Scotus Eriugena, the first great medieval philosopher. After a bit more history and politics, an account of the metaphysical dispute between "ultra-realists," "anti-realists," and the triumphant "moderate realists." The central figure of this debate is Abelard (11c-12c), of whom Copleston later says "he lifted the whole level of philosophical thought on to a new plane" (53).
Chp 3: Review of Anselm (11c), the founding of the earliest schools and universities, and more on Abelard, the structure of whose Sic et Non contributes significantly to each of Thomas's articles in the SUMMA. Also Abelard's 'subjectivist' ethics: actions should be judged strictly by the agent's internal motivation or intention, omitting altogether the action itself and relevant circumstances. Also good to know that the seven "liberal arts" were not universally admired and taught. Hugh of St Victor (12c) offered an interesting account of logic and knowledge; logic is the gateway and knowledge ("science") is divided into "theoretical, practical, or mechanical" (57). His sources are Aristotle and Isidore of Seville (7c). Also the period of Peter Lombard's "Sentences."
Chp 4: The Jewish and Muslim contribution of Greek-to-Latin translations and commentaries. Avicenna and Avicebron (11c) and Averroes and Maimonides (12c).
Chp 5: Traditionalist Franciscans, eg Bonaventure, prefer Augustinian Neoplatonism to new Aristotelian texts. First stirrings of "science" in the modern sense in the English clerics Roger Bacon and Robert Grosseteste (both 13c)
Chp 6: Aquinas (13c)
Chp 7: The Latin "Averroists," a term Copleston considers a misnomer for the more accurate but less convenient "integral Aristotelians." Eg Siger of Brabant (13c). The controversy at the time and the difficulty of assessing their precise meaning at present.
Chp 8: The Franciscan John Duns Scotus (13c-14c), whom I still find opaque.
Chp 9: The Franciscan Englishman William of Ockham (13c-14c), representative of the "via moderna" in philosophy. "Only individuals exist," not universals. But Copleston clarifies that his position is better considered "conceptualism" than "nominalism," for he attributed reality to the "logical" aspect of a term, not its written or spoken aspects. "Universality is not an attribute of things: it is a function of terms in the proposition" (127). Ockham thought himself "more genuinely Aristotelian than realists like Scotus" (129). His 'divine voluntarism' in ethics is more extreme than that of Scotus, too.
Chp 10: The spread of Ockhamism is various new and old universities (but not Cologne or Louvain, which remained Thomistic). Treatment of Ockhamists John of Mirecourt and Nicholas of Autrecourt (both 14c), the latter being called, with some unfairness, "the medieval Hume."
Chp 11: Reactionary mystics, eg Thomas a Kempis (15c), and "speculative" mystics, eg the German Meister Eckhart (14c) and Nicholas of Cusa (15c).
Chp 12: Brief summary of political philosophy: Augustine, Aquinas, Dante, Boniface VIII (who subordinated State to Church), Ockham, and the more radical Marsilius of Padua (who subordinated Church to State--although he meant small city-states in northern Italy).

Would gladly read Copleston's multi-volume history of philosophy.

[Jack R.]

Dated (not only in its brief overview of Jewish and Muslim philosophers but also, particularly, in its discussion of Scotus, which Copleston admits is limited by the then-paucity of translated and collated volumes on the thinker) but succinct and cogent; a worthwhile read for anyone needing to grasp the general, but accurate, outlines of the oft-overlooked century of philosophical thought, some of which still informs the thinking and practice of millions of lay Catholics everywhere.

[Albie]

Medieval Philosophy (Dover Books on Western Philosophy) by F. C. Copleston (2001)

[Sem · Rating 5 out of 5]

Reading this book was like putting on an old pair of slippers which one had thought to be lost and finding them to be as warm and comfortable and perfect as they were in the beginning.