The Ethics of Nature in the Middle Ages: On Boccaccio's Poetaphysics

The Ethics of Nature in the Middle Ages: On Boccaccio's Poetaphysics

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  • 製本 Hardcover:ハードカバー版／ページ数 258 p.
  • 商品コード 9780333749142
  • DDC分類 189

Full Description


In this volume, the author argues that mediaeval thinkers had a way of calling humankind "natural" without implying that humans are bound by a universal, "a historical" essence. He seeks to show that in the Middle Ages "nature" and "history" were not regarded polar opposites. Using Boccaccio's theory of "poiesis" as a focal point, he offers fresh interpretations of the works covered, particularly of Boccaccio's writings.

Contents

Introduction: The Ethics of Nature in the Middle Ages - Physis and Ethos - Some Medieval Notions of Natura - Augustine's Anti-Essentialism - Boccaccio's Poetaphysics - Postscript: Naturalism in Modern Boccaccio Studies - The Nature of Poetry - Imitatrix Naturae - Helen's Natural Beauty - The Word Was in the Beginning - The Nature of Desire - The Art of Moses - Education of a Natural-Born Poet - The Upspringing of Metaphor - Principles of Roman Archaeology - Cicero's Defense of Poetry - Boccaccio on the Poetics of History - Poetic Solitude - The Language of the Gods - Two Ways Not to Read (And Going Both Ways) - Epilogue: Homo Homificans - Notes - Works Cited