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The New Middle Ages
Understanding Scholastic Thought With Foucault
In Understanding Scholastic Thought with Foucault, Philipp Rosemann provides a new introduction to Scholastic thought written from a contemporary and, notably, Foucauldian perspective. In taking inspiration from the methodology of historical research developed by Foucault, the book places the intellectual achievements of the thirteenth century, especially Thomas Aquinas, in a larger cultural and institutional framework. Rosemann’s analysis sees the Scholastic tradition as the process of the gradual reinscription of the Greek intellectual heritage into the center of Christian culture. This process culminated in the thirteenth century, when new intellectual techniques facilitated the creation of a culture of dialogue. Rosemann argues that the witch-hunt can be seen as the result of a subtle but crucial transformation of the Scholastic episteme.
263 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 1999
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December 31, 2025
This was an enjoyable, educational, and enlightening read (sorry for the alliteration). While I've been studying scholastic theology/philosophy for quite some time, I'm not as well-versed in medieval studies more broadly. Likewise, I'm less informed on modern continental philosophy--or better to say, 'post'-modern philosophy. These deficiencies in my understanding are why I found this book to be particularly helpful, whether I ultimately agree with Philipp Rosemann's conclusions about the relationship between medieval scholasticism and the post-modernism of Michel Foucault or not (I'm inclined to agree, but I'm not qualified to ultimately adjudicate).
Rosemann obviously understands medieval philosophy, given that he's an expert on Peter Lombard, but he also has an excellent handle on the state (at the time of writing) of medieval scholarship -- the appendix surveying the field is very useful, even if dated. Rosemann is just as adept at handling post-modern thought, and used Foucault's historiography in very enlightening ways. I love 'reception history,' and in a sense, Rosemann's work shows us how medieval scholasticism has been (or can be) received in modern thought. I found his early discussion of Foucault's approach to the past to be especially helpful and I noted a number of parallels with my own historiography, influenced as it is by both the Cambridge School and the Annales.
Rosemann's engagement with medieval/scholastic/Thomist scholarship introduced me to some figures I'd not heard of before, though I do wish he would have also interacted with figures like Garrigou-Lagrange or Maritain, to give a more rounded theological and philosophical picture drawn from more modern (French) thinkers. But the sources he used, ancient and modern, served to make his argument effectively. That argument, in essense, is that Foucauldian historiography can help grant us a more rounded view of the middle ages, it's intellectual and material concerns, and shows where things turned south with the move away from the traditional quaestio form of scholastic method. This move, Rosemann argues, is a cause of modernity.
I think that my favourite discussion in the book was over the relationship between the Greek 'circle' that describes reality and the Christian 'line,' where history moves from a beginning and is working to an end (namely the beatific vision). Rosemann argues that the scholastic synthesis of Greek and Christian thought reframes the Christian linear approach to reality in light of the Greek circle, showing that the Neoplatonic-influenced 'exitus-reditus' scheme, a coming from God and a return back to him, is both circular and linear -- but circular in a 'non-closed' sense, where there is still a start and end, even if the two poles nearly reconnect. This allows both for the Creator/creature distinction and for the participatory nature of finally knowing God. To view reality as a closed circle makes rationality absolute and will eventually lead to its own destruction -- his example of early-modern European witch hunts is particularly enlightening.
All in all, I benefited from this book and am glad I read it.
Rosemann obviously understands medieval philosophy, given that he's an expert on Peter Lombard, but he also has an excellent handle on the state (at the time of writing) of medieval scholarship -- the appendix surveying the field is very useful, even if dated. Rosemann is just as adept at handling post-modern thought, and used Foucault's historiography in very enlightening ways. I love 'reception history,' and in a sense, Rosemann's work shows us how medieval scholasticism has been (or can be) received in modern thought. I found his early discussion of Foucault's approach to the past to be especially helpful and I noted a number of parallels with my own historiography, influenced as it is by both the Cambridge School and the Annales.
Rosemann's engagement with medieval/scholastic/Thomist scholarship introduced me to some figures I'd not heard of before, though I do wish he would have also interacted with figures like Garrigou-Lagrange or Maritain, to give a more rounded theological and philosophical picture drawn from more modern (French) thinkers. But the sources he used, ancient and modern, served to make his argument effectively. That argument, in essense, is that Foucauldian historiography can help grant us a more rounded view of the middle ages, it's intellectual and material concerns, and shows where things turned south with the move away from the traditional quaestio form of scholastic method. This move, Rosemann argues, is a cause of modernity.
I think that my favourite discussion in the book was over the relationship between the Greek 'circle' that describes reality and the Christian 'line,' where history moves from a beginning and is working to an end (namely the beatific vision). Rosemann argues that the scholastic synthesis of Greek and Christian thought reframes the Christian linear approach to reality in light of the Greek circle, showing that the Neoplatonic-influenced 'exitus-reditus' scheme, a coming from God and a return back to him, is both circular and linear -- but circular in a 'non-closed' sense, where there is still a start and end, even if the two poles nearly reconnect. This allows both for the Creator/creature distinction and for the participatory nature of finally knowing God. To view reality as a closed circle makes rationality absolute and will eventually lead to its own destruction -- his example of early-modern European witch hunts is particularly enlightening.
All in all, I benefited from this book and am glad I read it.
Displaying 1 of 1 review