Formanyofus,theterm’medievalphilosophy’conjuresupthefigureofThomasAquinas,andiscloselyintertwinedwithreligion.InthisVeryShortIntroductionJohnMarenbonshowshowmedievalphilosophyhadafarbroaderreachthanthethirteenthandfourteenth-centuryuniversitiesofChristianEurope,andisinsteadoneofthemostexcitinganddiversifiedperiodsinthehistoryofthought.IntroducingthecoexistingstrandsofChristian,Muslim,andJewishphilosophy,MarenbonshowshowthesetraditionsallgobacktothePlatonicschoolsoflateantiquityandexplainsthecomplexwaysinwhichtheyareinterlinked.Providinganoverviewofsomeofthemainthinkers,suchasBoethius,Abelard,al-Farabi,Avicenna,Maimonides,andGersonides,andthetopics,institutionsandliteraryformsofmedievalphilosophy,hediscussesindetailsomeofthekeyissuesinmedievalthought:universals;mind,bodyandmortality;foreknowledgeandfreedom;societyandthebestlife.ABOUTTHESERIES:TheVeryShortIntroductionsseriesfromOxfordUniversityPresscontainshundredsoftitlesinalmosteverysubjectarea.Thesepocket-sizedbooksaretheperfectwaytogetaheadinanewsubjectquickly.Ourexpertauthorscombinefacts,analysis,perspective,newideas,andenthusiasmtomakeinterestingandchallengingtopicshighlyreadable.
