Logic and other nonsense : the case of Anselm and his God / Ermanno Bencivenga.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Bencivenga, Ermanno, 1950-

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Anselm, Saint, Archbishop of Canterbury, 1033-1109.

Anselm.

Logic, Medieval.

God--Proof, Ontological.

God.

Physical Description:

xii, 132 pages ; 24 cm

Place of Publication:

Princeton, N.J. : Princeton University Press, 1993.

Summary:

Logic is often seen as the bedrock of intellectual life. It aims to be straightforward, true, clear. But in this provocative book of post-modern philosophy, Ermanno Bencivenga presents an extended reflection on the subversive nature of logic - logic that is not stable and certain, but deceptive and tortuous. The author uses Anselm, the Archbishop of Canterbury at the end of the eleventh century, as his case study to show how human reason can be devious. In Anselm's famous texts, his beliefs are not at stake, he is sure of them - he seeks only to understand his faith, not to prove it. But by looking at Anselm's writings as a whole, Bencivenga argues that they undermine Anselm's own interpretation. Not only can reason be more effective than force in fighting the unorthodox, but it can also be a subtle way of undermining orthodoxy. Bencivenga demonstrates how reason plays different roles at the different levels of Anselm's project. For its authoritarian subject, reason imposes a limit on its rebellious character. For its subversive subject, reason opens up an infinite arena for experimentation whose end will never be reached. Ultimately, Logic and Other Nonsense asks hard questions about the nature of philosophy in Anselm's world, as well as our own.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references and index.

ISBN:

0691074275 :

OCLC:

27431487