Late Medieval and Renaissance Philosophy

Abstract

The transition from the high Scholastic synthesis of the thirteenth century to the critical nominalism of the fourteenth century established a fundamental rift between theology and philosophy. The via moderna, defined primarily by the thought of William of Ockham, replaced metaphysical realism with a terminist logic that emphasized the primacy of individual intuition and the radical contingency of the natural order. This analytical approach undermined the perceived demonstrative power of natural theology, relegating metaphysical questions to the sphere of faith while facilitating the growth of empirical science through the work of figures like Buridan and Oresme. During the Renaissance, this intellectual fragmentation accelerated as the recovery of classical texts inspired a diverse range of schools, including revived Platonism, Stoicism, and Skepticism. The resulting focus on autonomous human reason and a mechanistic view of nature reached its zenith in the scientific revolution of Galileo and Newton, which transformed physical science into a discipline distinct from traditional natural philosophy. Concurrently, a late Scholastic revival in Spain, led by thinkers such as Francisco Suarez, systematized legal and political theory, articulating influential concepts of natural law and sovereignty. Collectively, these movements represent the dissolution of the unified medieval worldview and the emergence of an intellectual landscape characterized by secularized philosophy, individualistic humanism, and the systematic application of mathematics and observation to the physical world. – AI-generated abstract.