Brill Medieval Commentaries on Aristotle's Categories: 10 (Brill's Companions to the Christian Tradition, 10)

Medieval commentary writing has often been described as a way of "doing philosophy," and not without reason. The various commentaries on Aristotle's "Categories" we have from this period did not simply elaborate a dialectical exercise for training students; rather, they provided their authors with an unparalleled opportunity to work through crucial philosophical problems, many of which remain with us today. As such, this unique commentary tradition is important not only in its own right, but also to the history and development of philosophy as a whole.The contributors to this volume take a fresh look at it, examining a wide range of medieval commentators, from Simplicius to John Wyclif, and discussing such issues as the compatibility of Platonism with Aristotelianism; the influence of Avicenna; the relationship between grammar, logic, and metaphysics; the number of the categories; the status of the categories as a science; realism vs. nominalism; and the relationship between categories. The contributors are: Michael Chase, Allan Back, Bruno Tremblay, Robert Andrews, Paul Symington, Giorgio Pini, Martin Pickave, Todd Bates, Alexander W. Hall, and Alessandro D. Conti. From the Back Cover Medieval commentary writing has often been described as a way of "doing philosophy," and not without reason. The various commentaries on Aristotle's "Categories" we have from this period did not simply elaborate a dialectical exercise for training students; rather, they provided their authors with an unparalleled opportunity to work through crucial philosophical problems, many of which remain with us today. As such, this unique commentary tradition is important not only in its own right, but also to the history and development of philosophy as a whole. The contributors to this volume take a fresh look at it, examining a wide range of medieval commentators, from Simplicius to John Wyclif, and discussing such issues as the compatibility of Platonism with Aristotelianism; the influence of Avicenna; the relationship between grammar, logic, and metaphysics; the number of the categories; the status of the categories as a science; realism vs. nominalism; and the relationship between categories. Contributors are: Michael Chase, Allan BAck, Bruno Tremblay, Robert Andrews, Paul Symington, Giorgio Pini, Martin PickavA(c), Todd Bates, Alexander W. Hall, and Alessandro D. Conti. About the Author Lloyd A. Newton, Ph.D., (2003) in Philosophy, University of Dallas, is currently an Associate Professor of Philosophy at Benedictine College, Kansas. He has published several articles on medieval logic and is working on translating Duns Scotus' Commentary on Aristotle's Categories.