God and Reason in the Middle Ages

by Edward Grant

The Age of Reason associated with the names of Descartes, Newton, Hobbes, and the French philosophers, actually began in the universities that first emerged in the late Middle Ages (1100 to 1600) when the first large scale institutionalization of reason in the history of civilization occurred. This study shows how reason was used in the university subjects of logic, natural philosophy, and theology, and to a much lesser extent in medicine and law. The final chapter describes how the Middle Ages acquired an undeserved reputation as an age of superstition, barbarism, and unreason.

Genres: History, Religion, History Of Science, Philosophy, Nonfiction, Medieval, Theology

408 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2001

About the author

Edward Grant is an American historian of medieval science. He was named a Distinguished Professor in 1983. Other honors include the 1992 George Sarton Medal, for "a lifetime scholarly achievement" as an historian of science.

Reviews

[Benjamin Phillips · Rating 5 out of 5]

An excellent and incredibly thorough survey of the use of reason in the late Middle Ages. Makes and supports the claim that the Age of Reason began in the medieval universities and that the enlightenment used the tools that they made.
A very challenging read, but a good one.

[Flynn Evans · Rating 5 out of 5]

A superb survey of the spirit of medieval thought. Grant cogently argues for why we should see the Middle Age’s as the inauguration of the West’s appreciation for reason, and that we cannot understand our irrepressible desire for true knowledge without first looking to the time of the scholastics and how they harbored the same passion in their time.

[Rachael Malfer · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fascinating read.

[Isaac · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is exceptional. I highly recommend it to anyone with an interest in Medieval history, as it carefully exposes one of the most pernicious myths about that period: the idea that the middle ages was a period of intellectual decline followed by cultural and intellectual stagnation over the course of 1000 years. That is, the myth that the middle ages were the 'dark ages'. In the process, the book rebuts a number of satellite myths, e.g. that everyone in the middles ages believed the earth was flat, that the universities of the late middle ages did not produce anything of intellectual, technological or cultural value, that scholasticism was just pedantic debates over how many angels could fit on the head of a pin, etc. Grant also gives an excellent overview of how the 'dark ages' myth came to be so entrenched in our culture.

The book is written by an academic, and has an academic tone, despite being intended for a broader audience. This will put off some readers - those who have little patience for the study of intellectual history, which requires attention to detail and the careful exposition of ideas and opinions. It's easier to write a book of popular history on war, revolution or court scandals than it is to write a popular history of the intellectual achievements of an age.

[Ayde · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm still amazed at the incredible amount of information about this particular period in history. I've read other sources giving some evidence that the middle ages has been misrepresented, but with little detail. I'm glad I read this book. I was pure serendipity. Getting all this information is like cleaning my glasses and being able to see a clear image of something that was shapeless before. It made more enjoyable some stories placed in the Middle Ages, among other reasons because I discovered I had absorbed the wrong information about this period.

[AskHistorians]

This shows how the mediaeval age was not a non-questioning, authority-following age, but full of rational, logical, and spirited debate about nature and God. Grant plots the use of reason and logic through theology, natural philosophy, and logic.

[Endre Fodstad · Rating 2 out of 5]

Grant puts his case forward clearly and convincingly, but this book mostly works as an academic work. As a popular history, he never manages to escape the dryness that sadly plagues the work.