William of Conches
William of Conches (
Chartres and former student of William's, refers to William as the most talented grammarian of the time, after his former teacher Bernard of Chartres
.
Life
Tilleul but now displayed at St Faith's Church (Église Ste-Foy) in Conches-en-Ouche
William was born around 1085
William began teaching around 1115heresies the same year, William withdrew from public teaching.[1] William's exemption from prosecution alongside his production of more orthodox revisions of some of his previous works, his departure from public teaching, and the bitterness of some of his discussion of clerics in his later works is suggestive of a compromise worked out between Bernard and his friend the papal legate Geoffroy de Lèves, who as bishop of Chartres would have overseen its affiliated school, but there is no explicit surviving record of such an arrangement.[12]
William then sought the patronage and protection of
count of Anjou.[1] In 1143 or 1144, he became the personal tutor of Geoffrey's 9 to 11-year-old son Henry, later King Henry II of England. He also tutored Henry's brothers in the period from 1146 to 1149[13] and composed his Dragmaticon, a revision of his Philosophia in the form of a dialogue,[1] sometime between 1144 and 1149.[14] He dedicated it to Geoffrey.[1] There are some hints in his works that he may have resumed teaching, possibly in Paris, during the 1150s but these are inconclusive.[15]
He died in 1154[4] or shortly afterward,[3] probably at Paris or the environs of Évreux.[1] The funeral slab with his effigy has been moved from its original location at St Germanus's Church, Tilleul, to St Faith's Church in Conches.[5]
Works
The number and attribution of works by William of Conches has been a persistent problem of medieval bibliography,[16] as has the inaccuracy of the many manuscripts and editions.[17]
It is now certain that William wrote two editions of the encyclopedic De Philosophia Mundi ("On the Philosophy of the World"),
William is also credited with numerous glosses on classic texts. He wrote surviving overviews of commentaries on
Gospels (Glosa super Evangelia) credited to him was either entirely spurious or a misattribution of content from William of Auvergne.[31]
William's generally credited works are marked by special attention to
human fate.[33]
De Philosophia Mundi
William's chief work appears in manuscript as his Philosophy (Philosophia)Jean-Barthélemy Hauréau in 1858.[40][41] It has also been known as William's Lesser Philosophy (Philosophia Minor)[42] by comparison with the misnamed, miscredited, and misdescribed Magna de Naturis Philosophia. More recently, Gregor Maurach produced partial and complete editions of the text compiled from numerous manuscripts[43][44][45] before it was fully realized that William had composed two separate editions, one during his youth and another revised around the time of Bernard's attacks on Abelard and others.[46] According to Paul Edward Dutton's tally, 68 manuscripts of the original edition and 16 of the revised edition are currently known to exist.[47][48]
The first edition of the De Philosophia Mundi was divided into four books,
William glosses the composition of the world as rooted in the
moistness: earth was cold and dry, water cold and moist, air hot and moist, and fire hot and dry. These traits compelled the atoms into certain movements, which he discusses in Aristotelian terms.[51] In his later Dragmaticon, he responds to reductio ad absurdum objections against the infinities implicit in atomism with his belief that the atoms are infinitely divisible only in the sense that they are too miniscule for human apprehension and infinitely numerous only in the sense that their number is—for humans—incalculably large.[52]
Discussing cosmology, William elaborates a
The discussion of medicine deals chiefly with
soul, which he considered to provide various powers when joined to the body.[51] He believed that sense perception derived from the world, reason from God, and that memory preserved them both.[51]
Editions
- Philosophicarum et Astronomicarum Institutionum Guilielmi Hirsaugiensis Olim Abbatis Libri Tres [The Former Abbot William of Hirsau's Three Books of Philosophical and Astronomical Instruction] (in Latin), Basel: Heinrich Petri, 1531.
- "Honorii Augustudunensis Praesbyteri Liber Tertius de Philosophia Mundi" [On the Philosophy of the World, the Third Book of Honorius of Autun the Priest], D. Honorii Augustudunensis Presbyteri Libri Septem... [D. Honorius of Autun the Priest's Seven Books...] (in Latin), Basel: Heirs of Andreas Cratander, 1544, pp. 110–227.
- "Venerabilis Bedae Presbyteri Περὶ Διδάξεων sive Elementorum Philosophiae Libri Quatuor" [The Venerable Bede the Priest's Perì Didáxeōn or Four Books of the Philosophy of the Elements], Secundus Tomus Operum Venerabilis Bedae Presbyteri... [The Second Volume of the Works of the Venerable Bede the Priest...] (in Latin), Basel: Johann Herwagen Jr., 1563, pp. 311–342.
- Gratarolo, Guglielmo, ed. (1567), Dialogus de Substantiis Physicis ante Annos Ducentos Confectus a Vuilhelmo Aneponymo Philosopho... [A Dialogue on Physical Substances Composed 200 Years Ago by William Aneponymous a Philosopher] (in Latin), Strasbourg: Josias Ribel.
- "Περὶ Διδάξεων sive Elementorum Philosophiae Libri Quatuor" [Perì Didáxeōn or Four Books of the Philosophy of the Elements], Venerabilis Bedae Presbyteri Anglo-Saxonis Doctoris Ecclesiae Vere Illuminati Operum Tomus Secundus... [The Second Volume of the Works of the Venerable Bede, Anglo-Saxon Priest, Truly Enlightened Doctor of the Church...] (in Latin), Cologne: Johann Wilhelm Friessem Jr., 1688, pp. 206–343.
- Cousin, Victor, ed. (1836), "Appendix V... Commentaire d'Honoré d'Autun sur le Timée..." [Appendix V... Commentary of Honorius of Autun on the Timaeus...], Ouvrages Inédits d'Abélard... [Unedited Works by Abelard], Collection de Documents Inédits sur l'Histoire de France..., Deuxième Série: Histoire des Lettres et des Sciences [A Collection of Unedited Documents on the History of France... Second Series: History of Letters and Sciences] (in Latin), Paris: Royal Printing House, pp. 648–657.
- Migne, Jacques Paul, ed. (1850), "Περι Διδαξεων sive Elementorum Philosophiae Libri Quatuor" [Peri Didaxeōn or Four Books of the Philosophy of the Elements], Venerabilis Bedae Anglosaxonis Presbyteri Opera Omnia, Tomus Primus [The Complete Works of the Venerable Bede, Anglo-Saxon Priest, Vol. I], Patrologia Latina [Latin Patrology], Vol. 90 (in Latin), Paris: Ateliers Catholiques, cols. 1127–1178.
- Migne, Jacques Paul, ed. (1854), "De Philosophia Mundi Libri Quatuor" [Four Books on the Philosophy of the World], Honorii Augustodunensis Opera Omnia [The Complete Works of Honorius of Autun], Patrologia Latina [Latin Patrology], Vol. 172 (in Latin), Paris: Ateliers Catholiques, cols. 41–101.
- Migne, Jacques Paul, ed. (1854), "Commentarius in Timaeum Platonis Auctore ut Videtur Honorio Augustodunensi" [Commentary on Plato's Timaeus Apparently by the Author Honorius of Autun], Honorii Augustodunensis Opera Omnia [The Complete Works of Honorius of Autun], Patrologia Latina [Latin Patrology], Vol. 172 (in Latin), Paris: Ateliers Catholiques, cols. 245–252.
- Jourdain, Charles, ed. (1862), "Des Commentaires Inédits de Guillaume de Conches et de Nicolas Triveth sur La Consolation de la Philosophie de Boèce" [On the Unedited Commentaries of William of Conches and Nicholas Trivet on Boethius's Consolation of Philosophy], Notices et Extraits des Manuscrits de la Bibliothèque Impériale et Autres Bibliothèques... [Notices and Extracts of the Manuscripts of the Imperial Library and Other Libraries...], Vol. XX, Pt. 2 (in French and Latin), Paris: Imperial Printing House, pp. 40–82.
- Ottaviano, Carmelo, ed. (1935), Un Brano Inedito della Philosophia di Guglielmo di Conches [An Unpublished Excerpt from William of Conches's Philosophy] (in Latin), Naples: Alberto Morano.
- Parent, Joseph-Marie, ed. (1938), "Les Œuvres de Guillaume de Conches: Les Gloses de Guillaume de Conches sur La Consolation de Boèce & sur Le Timée" [The Works of William of Conches: The Gloses of William of Conches on the Consolation of Boethius & on the Timaeus], La Doctrine de la Création dans l'École de Chartres: Étude et Textes [The Doctrine of the Creation at the School of Chartres: Study and Texts], Publications de l'Institute d'Études Médiévales d'Ottawa [Publications of the Ottawa Institute of Medieval Studies], Vol. VIII (in French and Latin), Ottawa: Institute of Medieval Studies, pp. 115–177.
- Parra, Clotilde, ed. (1943), Guillaume de Conches et le Dragmaticon Philosophiae: Étude et Édition [William of Conches and the Dragmaticon of Philosophy: Study and Edition] (in Latin), Paris: National School of Charters.
- Delhaye, Philippe, ed. (1949), "L'Enseignement de la Philosophie Morale au XIIᵉ Siècle" [The Teaching of Moral Philosophy in the 12th Century], Mediaeval Studies (in French and Latin), vol. 11, Toronto: Pontifical Institute of Mediaeval Studies, pp. 77–99, .
- Jeauneau, Édouard, ed. (1957), "L'Usage de la Notion d'Integumentum à Travers les Gloses de Guillaume de Conches" [The Use of the Idea of Integumentum throughout the Glosses of William of Conches], Archives d'Histoire Doctrinale et Littéraire du Moyen Age [Archives of the Doctrinal and Literary History of the Middle Ages] (in French and Latin), vol. 24, Paris: Librairie Philosophique J. Vrin, pp. 35–100, JSTOR 44403077.
- Jeauneau, Édouard, ed. (1965), Glosae super Platonem [Glosses on Plato], Textes Philosophiques du Moyen Age [Philosophical Texts of the Middle Ages], Vol. XIII (in Latin), Paris: Librairie Philosophique J. Vrin, ISBN 2-7116-0336-9.
- Maurach, Gregor, ed. (1974), Philosophia Mundi: Ausgabe des 1. Buchs von Wilhelm von Conches' Philosophia... [The Philosophy of the World: Edition of the 1st Book of William of Conches's Philosophy] (in German and Latin), Pretoria: University of South Africa Press.
- Maurach, Gregor; et al., eds. (1974), "Guilelmi a Conchis Philosophiae Liber Tertius" [Book Three of William from Conches's Philosophy] (PDF), Acta Classica [Classical Acts], Vol. XVII (in Latin), Pretoria: Classical Association of South Africa, pp. 121–138.
- Maurach, Gregor; et al., eds. (1980), Philosophia [Philosophy], Studia [Studies], Vol. 16 (in Latin), Pretoria: University of South Africa Press.
- Wilson, Bradford, ed. (1980), Glosae in Iuvenalem [Glosses on Juvenal] (in Latin), Paris: Vrin.
- Ronca, Italo, ed. (1997), Guillelmi de Conchis Dragmaticon [William of Conches's Dragmaticon], ISBN 2-503-04522-7.
- Ronca, Italo; et al., eds. (1997), A Dialogue on Natural Philosophy (Dragmaticon Philosophiae), Notre Dame: University of Notre Dame Press.
- Nauta, Lodi, ed. (1999), Guillelmi de Conchis Glosae super Boetium [William of Conches's Glosses on Boethius], ISBN 2-503-04582-0.
- Jeauneau, Édouard, ed. (2006), Glosae super Platonem [Glosses on Plato], Corpus Christianorum Continuatio Mediaevalis, Vol. 203 (in Latin) (Rev. ed.), Turnhout: Brepols.
- Albertazzi, Marco, ed. (2010), Philosophia [Philosophy] (in Latin), Lavis: La Finestra, ISBN 978-88-95925-13-4.
- Martello, Concetto, ed. (2011), Platone a Chartres: Il Trattato sull'Anima del Mondo di Guglielmo di Conches [Plato at Chartres: William of Conches's Treatise on the World Soul], Machina Philosophorum, Vol. 25 (in Italian and Latin), Palermo: Officina di Studi Medievali.
- Martello, Concetto, ed. (2012), Anima e Conoscenza in Guglielmo di Conches [Soul and Consciousness in William of Conches] (in Italian and Latin), Catania: Cooperativa Universitaria Editrice Catanese di Magistero.
See also
Notes
- ^ William's birth was placed in Cornwall by John Bale on the supposed authority of John Boston of Bury St Edmunds Abbey, although Mary Bateson and others have considered this implausible.[1]
- ^ He has sometimes been identified as the "Guillaume de Conques" listed as born 1080 and died 1154 who figures in the list of faculty of the medical school of the University of Montpellier, although this remains a minority opinion.[7]
- ^ ... Willelmus de Conchis, grammaticus, post Bernardum Carnotensem, opulentissimus ...[9]
- ^ Elementum ergo, ut ait Constantinus in Pantegni, est simpla et minima pars alicuius corporis—simpla ad qualitatem, minima ad quantitatem.[50]
- ^ Si ergo illis digna velimus imponere nomina, particulas praedictas dicamus "elementa", ista quae videntur "elementata".[50]
- ^ Quae elementa numquam videntur, sed ratione divisionis intelliguntur.[50]
References
Citations
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k DNB (1900).
- ^ a b Ferrara (2016), p. 13.
- ^ a b Ramírez-Weaver (2009), p. 1.
- ^ a b c d e f g h Brit. (2024).
- ^ a b Ferrara (2016), pp. 2–3.
- ^ Parra (1943), p. 178.
- ^ Ferrara (2016), p. 14.
- ^ a b Ramírez-Weaver (2009), p. 8.
- ^ Migne (1855), col. 832.
- ^ Anderson (2016), p. 169.
- ^ Adamson (2019), p. 97.
- ^ Ferrara (2016), pp. 26–28.
- ^ Ferrara (2016), p. 10.
- ^ Ferrara (2016), p. 9.
- ^ Ferrara (2016), p. 33.
- ^ a b c Poole (1920), Appendix VI: Excursus on the Writings of William of Conches.
- ^ Jeauneau (1973), pp. 23–24.
- ^ a b c d Ferrara (2016), p. 35.
- ^ a b Migne (1850).
- ^ a b Petri (1531).
- ^ Migne, Phil. Mundi (1854).
- ^ a b Poole (1920), Appendix V: Excursus on a Supposed Anticipation of Saint Anselm.
- ^ a b Ottaviano (1935).
- ^ a b Ferrara (2016), pp. 39–41.
- ^ Glosae super Priscianum, p. 10.
- ^ Ferrara (2016), p. 49.
- ^ Ferrara (2016), pp. 43–48.
- ^ Ferrara (2016), pp. 35–36.
- ^ Jourdain (1862); Parent (1938); & Lodi (1999).
- ^ Cousin (1836); Migne, Comm. Tim. (1854); Parent (1938) & Jeauneau (1957), pp. 88–100; Delhaye (1949), pp. 95–96; Jeauneau (1965); Jeauneau (2006); Martello (2011); & Martello (2012).
- ^ a b c Ferrara (2016), p. 36.
- ^ a b Cath. Enc. (1913).
- ^ a b Adamson (2019), p. 96.
- ^ Herwagen (1563).
- ^ Friessem (1688).
- ^ Cratander (1544).
- ^ Migne (1854).
- ^ Oudin (1722), col. 1230.
- ^ Jourdain (1838), pp. 101–104.
- ^ Hauréau (1858), cols. 668–670.
- ^ Ferrara (2016), pp. 36–37.
- ^ Ferrara (2016), p. 37.
- ^ Maurach, Phil. Mundi (1974).
- ^ Maurach, Acta Cl. (1974).
- ^ Maurach & al. (1980).
- ^ Ferrara (2016), pp. 38–39.
- ^ Dutton (2006), pp. 37–39.
- ^ Dutton (2011), pp. 477–485.
- ^ a b Parra (1943), p. 177.
- ^ a b c De Philosophia Mundi, Book I, Ch. 22.
- ^ a b c d e f Parra (1943), p. 179.
- ^ Adamson (2019), p. 99.
- ^ Parra (1943), pp. 179–180.
- ^ a b Parra (1943), p. 180.
- ^ a b Adamson (2019), pp. 99–100.
- ^ Genesis 1:6–8
- ^ Genesis 2:21–22
- ^ a b Adamson (2019), pp. 100.
Bibliography
- "William of Conches", Britannica, Chicago: Britannica Group, 2024.
- ISBN 978-0-19-884240-8.
- Anderson, Ross Matthew (2016), The Effect of Factionalism on Jewish Persecution: How the Conflict between Bernard of Clairvaux's Cistercian Order and Peter Abelard's Scholasticism Contributed to the Equating of Jews with Heretics, Raleigh: North Carolina State University.
- Bateson, Mary (1900). "William of Conches". Dictionary of National Biography. London: Smith, Elder & Co.
- Dutton, Paul Edward (2006), The Mystery of the Missing Heresy Trial of William of Conches, Étienne Gilson Series, Vol. 28, Toronto: Pontifical Institute of Mediaeval Studies, ISSN 0708-319X.
- Dutton, Paul Edward (2011), "The Little Matter of a Title: Philosophia Magistri Willelmi de Conchis [The Philosophy of Master William of Conches]", Guillaume de Conches: Philosophie et Science au XIIᵉ Siècle [William of Conches: Philosophy and Science in the 12th Century], Micrologus Library, Vol. 42, Florence: SISMEL-Edizioni del Galluzzo.
- Ellard, Peter Charles (2007), The Sacred Cosmos: Theological, Philosophical, and Scientific Conversations in the Twelfth Century School of Chartres, ISBN 9781589661332.
- Ferrara, Carmine (2016), Guglielmo di Conches e il Dragmaticon Philosophiae [William of Conches and the Dragmaticon Philosophiae] (in Italian), Fisciano: University of Salerno.
- Hauréau, Jean-Barthélemy (1858), "Guillaume de Conches" [William of Conches], Nouvelle Biographie Générale... [New General Biography...], Vol. 28 (in French), Paris: Firmin Didot Bros., cols. 667–673.
- Jeauneau, Édouard (1973), Lectio Philosophorum: Recherches sur l'École de Chartres [Selections of the Philosophers: Research into the School of Chartres] (in French and Latin), Amsterdam: Adolf M. Hakkert, ISBN 90-256-0606-7.
- John of Salisbury (1855), "Metalogicus", Joannis Cognomine Saresberiensis Carnotensis Episcopi Opera Omnia [The Complete Works of John of Salisbury, Bishop of Chartres], Patrologia Latina [Latin Patrology], Vol. 199 (in Latin), Paris: Ateliers Catholiques.
- Jourdain, Charles (1838), Dissertation sur l'État de la Philosophie Naturelle en Occident et Principalement en France pendant la Première Moitié du XIIᵉ Siècle [Dissertation on the State of Natural Philosophy in the West and Principally in France during the First Half of the 12th Century] (in French), Paris: Firmin Didot Bros.
- Frankfurt: Moritz Georg Weidmann.
- Poole, Reginald Lane (1920), Illustrations of the History of Medieval Thought and Learning (2nd ed.), London: Richard Clay & Sons.
- Ramírez-Weaver, Eric M. (2009), "William of Conches, Philosophical Continuous Narration, and the Limited Worlds of Medieval Diagrams", Studies in Iconography, vol. 30, Kalamazoo: Western Michigan University, pp. 1–41, JSTOR 23924339.
- Turner, William (1913). "William of Conches". Catholic Encyclopedia. New York: Robert Appleton Company.
External links
- Philosophia Mundi [The Philosophy of the World], Book I (in Latin) & Moralium Dogma Philosophorum [Philosophers' Teachings of Morality] (in Latin) at the Latin Library
- MS ljs384: De Philosophia Mundi, Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania, 1100s.
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