This dissertation traces the intellectual roots of the contemplative/monastic ethic, and the factors which contributed to its decline. / The monastic ethic was a unique blend of Hellenistic philosophical assumptions and early eschatological Christianity. The ideal of renunciation came to dominate medieval Christian ethics so completely, that all Christians, even the laity; measured themselves by the monastic plumb line. Before an ideal of virtuous secularism could be devised, the philosophical substructure on which the vita comtemplativa was based had to be challenged. The philosophers, Thomas Aquinas and William of Ockham, did this by challenging the Platonic epistemological assumptions that lay at the heart of medieval ethics. The nominalists argued that the human mind is severely limited in its ability to penetrate the mysterious nature of God. They placed their emphasis on the will, not the intellect. When the will rather than the intellect became the focus of attention, the debate over the relative merits of action and comtemplation was revived. / It was the Italian Renaissance humanists who played the key role in the vita contemplativa/vita activa debate. Although they were not philosophically inclined, the ideas of the late medieval philosophers were known to them. Their emphasis on the will and the futility of metaphysical speculation is evidence of this. By reviving the viva activa ideal of the classical age and emulating the virtues of the ancients they admired, the humanists were able to formulate a new ideal of Christian conduct. An examination of the thought and writings of four Italian humanists--Franceso Petrarca, Coluccio Salutati, Leon Battista Alberti and Lorenzo Valla--show how these men came to abandon the medieval ideal of renunciation and contemplation for the ideal of the uomo universale, the classically-educated Christian man of virtuous action. / Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 46-01, Section: A, page: 0235. / Thesis (Ph.D.)--The Florida State University, 1984.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:fsu.edu/oai:fsu.digital.flvc.org:fsu_75477 |
| Contributors | ENGRAM, ANN TOMS., Florida State University |
| Source Sets | Florida State University |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Text |
| Format | 348 p. |
| Rights | On campus use only. |
| Relation | Dissertation Abstracts International |
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