Books by Lodi Nauta
One of the leading humanists of Quattrocento Italy, Lorenzo Valla (ca. 1406–1457) has been praise... more One of the leading humanists of Quattrocento Italy, Lorenzo Valla (ca. 1406–1457) has been praised as a brilliant debunker of medieval scholastic philosophy. In this book Lodi Nauta seeks a more balanced assessment, presenting us with the first comprehensive analysis of the humanist’s attempt at radical reform of Aristotelian scholasticism.
This study examines Valla’s attack on major tenets of Aristotelian metaphysics, showing how Valla employed common sense and linguistic usage as his guides. It then explicates Valla’s critique of Aristotelian psychology and natural philosophy and discusses his moral and religious views, including Valla’s notorious identification of Christian beatitude with Epicurean pleasure and his daring views on the Trinity. Finally, it takes up Valla’s humanist dialectic, which seeks to transform logic into a practical tool measured by persuasiveness and effectiveness.
Nauta firmly places Valla’s arguments and ideas within the contexts of ancient and medieval philosophical traditions as well as renewed interest in ancient rhetoric in the Renaissance. He also demonstrates the relevance of Valla’s conviction that the philosophical problems of the scholastics are rooted in a misunderstanding of language. Combining philosophical exegesis and historical scholarship, this book offers a new approach to a major Renaissance thinker.
Papers by Lodi Nauta
Rudolph Agricola's De inventione dialectica has rightly been regarded as the most original and in... more Rudolph Agricola's De inventione dialectica has rightly been regarded as the most original and influential textbook on argumentation, reading, writing, and communication in the Renaissance. At the heart of his treatment are the topics (loci), such as definition, genus, species, place, whole, parts, similars, and so on. While their function in Agricola's system is argumentative and rhetorical, the roots of the topics are metaphysical, as Agricola himself explicitly acknowledges. It has led scholars to characterize Agricola as a realist or even an extreme realist. This article studies two little treatises on universals by Agricola that throw further light on his realism. It is suggested that they could be viewed as an early step in his long-term project of revising and re-organizing the systems of topics as he encountered them in Aristotle, Cicero, and Boethius. The article offers a close analysis of the treatises, suggesting that Agricola's realism owes a (general) debt to the school of the Scotists. In both earlier and later work Agricola emphasizes the common aspects of things that enable us to categorize and talk about things without denying their fundamental unicity and individuality. An edition of Agricola's second treatise on universals-a reply to a critic-is added.
Miscellanea by Lodi Nauta
Early modern thought is commonly portrayed as individualistic and solipsistic. Des-cartes turned ... more Early modern thought is commonly portrayed as individualistic and solipsistic. Des-cartes turned inside to gaze at his clear and distinct ideas; Locke argued that words stand for nothing but the ideas in the mind of the individual speaker. The power of words was often treated with suspicion; ideally, we should do without words and "think upon things". The social aspect of knowledge, culture, and language was not entirely ignored but the focus was on the individual mind and rules of correct thinking. Accordingly, our mental lives and modes of interaction would be explained as building on what is introspectively available. In recent years, however, this picture has been challenged in various respects. This workshop is aimed at stimulating exchange between scholars, early career researchers and graduate students whose work concerns social dimension of these issues. Please send an abstract to Martin Lenz ([email protected]) by 15 September 2017. The abstract must be no longer than 300 words, prepared for blind reviewing and sent as a .docx file (please do not use pdf format). The subject of the mail should be " Socialis-ing Minds ". The author's name and contact information (name, affiliation, email and professional status – graduate student, postdoc, lecturer etc.) should also be specified in your message. The abstracts will be peer-reviewed and you will be notified of the outcome of the review by November 20. If your paper is accepted for presentation, we will ask you to provide a draft or extended abstract for circulation two weeks in advance of the workshop. There are no registration fees. Attendance is free but limited. For speakers, the organ-isers will cover the costs of accommodation and meals. No financial help, however, can be provided for travel expenses.
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Books by Lodi Nauta
This study examines Valla’s attack on major tenets of Aristotelian metaphysics, showing how Valla employed common sense and linguistic usage as his guides. It then explicates Valla’s critique of Aristotelian psychology and natural philosophy and discusses his moral and religious views, including Valla’s notorious identification of Christian beatitude with Epicurean pleasure and his daring views on the Trinity. Finally, it takes up Valla’s humanist dialectic, which seeks to transform logic into a practical tool measured by persuasiveness and effectiveness.
Nauta firmly places Valla’s arguments and ideas within the contexts of ancient and medieval philosophical traditions as well as renewed interest in ancient rhetoric in the Renaissance. He also demonstrates the relevance of Valla’s conviction that the philosophical problems of the scholastics are rooted in a misunderstanding of language. Combining philosophical exegesis and historical scholarship, this book offers a new approach to a major Renaissance thinker.
Papers by Lodi Nauta
Miscellanea by Lodi Nauta
This study examines Valla’s attack on major tenets of Aristotelian metaphysics, showing how Valla employed common sense and linguistic usage as his guides. It then explicates Valla’s critique of Aristotelian psychology and natural philosophy and discusses his moral and religious views, including Valla’s notorious identification of Christian beatitude with Epicurean pleasure and his daring views on the Trinity. Finally, it takes up Valla’s humanist dialectic, which seeks to transform logic into a practical tool measured by persuasiveness and effectiveness.
Nauta firmly places Valla’s arguments and ideas within the contexts of ancient and medieval philosophical traditions as well as renewed interest in ancient rhetoric in the Renaissance. He also demonstrates the relevance of Valla’s conviction that the philosophical problems of the scholastics are rooted in a misunderstanding of language. Combining philosophical exegesis and historical scholarship, this book offers a new approach to a major Renaissance thinker.