Medieval Philosophy (AP3120C)

Undergraduate, 18.0 points

Content

Philosophers of the middle ages investigated such ‘modern’ concerns as cosmology and freedom, the question of being, skepticism about truth and immortality, the nature of happiness and ‘the good life’, love and hate, political authority, beauty, faith and reason. This unit explores texts from the fourth to the fourteenth century that address such concerns. It considers the historical milieux, philosophical thought and selected texts of authors who may include Augustine, Boethius, Erigena, Avicenna, Anselm, Abelard, Peter Lombard, Hildegard, Phillip the Chancellor, Albert, Bonaventure, Aquinas, Siger of Brabant, Roger Bacon, Matthew of Aquasparta, Eckhart, Scotus, and Ockham.

Unit code: AP3120C

Unit status: Approved (Assessment revision)

Points: 18.0

Unit level: Undergraduate Level 3

Unit discipline: Philosophy

Proposing College: Catholic Theological College

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Learning outcomes

1.

Critically explain the specifically-medieval conceptual framework behind the texts studied in the unit
2.

Expound the fundamental ideas, positions and arguments of the thinkers studied in the unit
3.

Compare in a preliminary way ideas, positions and arguments on themes that are found in more than one of the thinkers studied in the unit
4.

Appraise the strengths and weaknesses of the major arguments and positions of the thinkers considered in the unit
5.

Analyse the conceptual frameworks and arguments of the thinkers that are studied in the unit – both singularly and in relation to one another where appropriate – in relation to the core themes examined in the unit.

Unit sequence

36 points of philosophy at second level

Pedagogy

Lectures, seminars, tutorials. When taught as a seminar or online asynchronously, the tutorial/seminar component may be replaced by guided reading exercises.

Indicative Bibliography

  • Bauerschmidt, Frederick Christian. The Essential Summa Theologiae: A Reader and Commentary. Second edition. Grand Rapids: Baker Academic, 2021.
  • Cory, Therese Scarpelli and Gregory T. Doolan, eds. Summa Metaphysicae Ad Mentem Sancti Thomae: Essays in Honor of John F. Wippel. Washington, D.C.: The Catholic University of America Press, 2024.
  • Cross, Richard. The Medieval Christian Philosophers: An Introduction. London: I.B. Tauris, 2013.
  • Davies, Brian, and Eleonore Stump, eds. The Oxford Handbook of Aquinas. Oxford; New York: Oxford University Press, 2011.
  • Gorman, Michael. A Contemporary Introduction to Thomistic Metaphysics. Washington, D.C.: The Catholic University of America Press, 2024.
  • Klima, Gyula, ed. Medieval Philosophy: Essential Readings with Commentary. Malden, MA: Blackwell, 2007.
  • Lagerlund, Henrik, ed. Rethinking the History of Skepticism: The Missing Medieval Background. Leiden: Brill, 2010.
  • Marenbon, John, ed. The Oxford Handbook of Medieval Philosophy. New York: Oxford University Press, 2012.
  • Pasnau, Robert, ed. Mind and Knowledge. Vol. 3, The Cambridge Translations of Medieval Philosophical Texts. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2002.
  • Williams, Thomas, ed. The Cambridge Companion to Duns Scotus. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2002.

Assessment

Type Description Word count Weight (%)

Variant 1

Essay 2500 60.0
Written Examination

2 hour written examination - Hurdle/Compulsory Task.

As a hurdle/compulsory assessment task, passing this assessment is a requirement to pass the unit.

 2000 40.0

Variant 2

Report

Progressive exercises throughout the semester selectively combined into a report

 2000 40.0
Essay

This is a Hurdle/Compulsory Task. As a hurdle/compulsory assessment task, passing this assessment is a requirement to pass the unit.

As an integrity check, the lecturer will meet online or face to face to discuss the contents of the essay with the student after the essay is marked. The timing of this short recorded interview (up to five minutes) will be arranged via email initiated by the lecturer.

 2500 60.0
Approvals

Unit approved for the University of Divinity by Naomi Wolfe on 17 Sep, 2026

Unit record last updated: 2026-09-17 23:28:51 +1000