¡Destruction of manuscripts not so general as formerly ! supposed The mon 1 asteries collected and preserved books Most mon 1 served but few books 'Exchange of books On the other hand, the monks have often been accused of destroying the literature of the past. Many of the extant manuscripts devoted to the chronicles of the monastic foundation, to wearisome comment on some older sacred writings, or to the disquisitions of the Schoolmen, are written on parchment from which a previous writing, usually of some classical texts, has been removed by chemical or mechanical process. In this way, undoubtedly, many classical texts were destroyed. Such were chosen for destruction with the distinct feeling that they were unworthy of preservation. Possibly in this way some ancient texts have been lost for all time. It is now believed that this custom was not nearly so general as was formerly supposed. It was probably due to a scarcity of parchment, especially during the thirteenth century. The Monasteries as Depositories of Literature and Learning. One service which monasticism performed for learning cannot be gainsaid. Whatever of ancient learning and literature we have preserved to us to-day, is largely owing to the monks. Though the Arabs added much during the later Middle Ages, even then such additions were given into the possession of the monks. While the majority of monasteries possessed but few books, asteries pre- probably none outside of a strictly religious character, there were many that possessed hundreds and some few whose volumes mounted to the thousands. The few monasteries especially noted for their learning had large libraries, and gave particular attention to the collection of books through the exchange of duplicates made by the monks. Among these more noted foundations, there existed a very definitely regulated system of exchange. Several of the later orders made special provision in their rules invention of for this interchange and for the requisite work of copying; some few made it a means of financial support. But with the founding of the universities and finally with the invention of printing, the monasteries ceased to give much attention to this activity; or at least, with changed conditions, the literary character of their service no longer appeared conspicuous. With the printing, importance of monks in multiplication of books ceased wrote saints and The Monks as Literary Producers. Though the range of The monks their interests was not broad, yet until the general appearance chronicles, of vernacular literature in the eleventh and twelfth centuries, lives of the monks produced practically all the literature of this period. scholastic This included the lives of the saints, short moral tales or sermons, discussions - such as are collected in the Gesta Romanorum, - Biblical or patristic comment, and monastic chronicles. During the latter half of the Middle Ages the literary product of the Schoolmen and of the vernacular poets became far more important than that of the monks. Yet the Schoolmen were practically all monks, for the most part at least were nominal adherents of the two great friar orders. The one other class of secular writings besides the chronicles is that devoted to the discussion of the Seven Liberal Arts or of one of the component subjects. ment of The Literary Heritage of Monasticism: The Seven Liberal DevelopArts. The Middle Ages possessed in outline all the knowl- the Seven edge of the few preceding and the few succeeding centuries; Liberal Arts but in its content this knowledge was immeasurably more meager than that of either the preceding or of the following era. It was far from being in its ancient form, for most of the original writings had disappeared, but consisted of the knowledge of the ancients organized in a much abridged form by a few learned men, chiefly of the fifth century. The expression, The Seven Liberal Arts, as inclusive of all learning, came into vogue at this time. Long before the fifth century, however, practically all these differentiations into subjects had occurred; but it was reserved for the ecclesiastical and symbolical tendencies of the Middle Ages to limit the sciences definitely to seven. Plato had shown the distinction between what now came to be called the trivium, including grammar, rhetoric and dialectic, and the quadrivium, including arithmetic, geometry, music and astronomy. Varro, the most learned of the Romans, wrote, in the last pagan century, upon the liberal arts or studies, which included all of these, together with architecture, medicine The content and philosophy. Quintilian, in his treatise on education, omitted dialectic and arithmetic from the liberal studies. St. Augustine (p. 107) wrote a treatise on two of these subjects and stated that he intended to write on five others. Writing in the same period, Capella completed his treatise on the seven in which all knowledge was presumed to be summarized. Content of the Seven Liberal Arts. One can hardly estimate the extent and the value of the learning of the Middle Ages until broader then the content of these liberal arts is noted. Geometry, for ex of these subjects was ample, always included the rudiments of geography; astronomy included physics; grammar included literature; rhetoric included history. The actual extent to which the literature of the ancients found any place whatever under grammar and rhetoric is a question to which very diverse answers are given. Isidore and Cassiodorus (p. 124) knew Greek and possessed a small library of Greek classics; but during the following centuries. the knowledge of the Greek language almost disappeared from western Europe. Even the indirect knowledge of Greek literature, through Latin summaries or through extended references by such writers as Boethius, was very meager, as, indeed, was that of Latin literature. Some of the writings of Virgil and of Cicero were well known. For the most part, however, monasteries possessed but very few of the works of classical authors. The general attitude toward this literature The hostile and its study was distinctly hostile. Alcuin tells his pupils at Tours, "The sacred poets are sufficient for you; there is no ature as a reason why you should sully your mind with the rank luxuriance fine art of Virgil's verse." EDUCATIONAL WRITERS OF THE EARLY MIDDLE AGES. A few of the most important of these deserve to be mentioned. attitude toward liter Marriage of Philology and Mercury Martianus Capella, a representative of the pagan culture of Capella's North Africa, wrote (between 410-427 A.D.) a treatise entitled The Marriage of Philology and Mercury. Throughout the first half of the Middle Ages this was used more widely than any other book as a text of the ancient learning. The god Mercury desires. to marry, and all the machinery of the pagan heaven is set in motion, first to determine to whom, and then to celebrate the consummation of the marriage to the most learned maiden, Philology. The seven bridesmaids, or handmaidens, presented by Phoebus, are the Ars Grammatica, Ars Dialectica, Ars Rhetorica, Geometrica, Arithmetica, Astronomia, Harmonia, and each, as led forward in the ceremony, gives her parentage and expounds to the assembly the substance of the art typified. These specches contain, in the driest of text-book form, practically all of the learning of the schools of these centuries. Boethius (c. 480-524) was the most influential of all the Text-books learned men of the early Middle Ages. His chief service was of Boethius to give to several succeeding centuries the little knowledge of the Greek writers, especially of Plato and Aristotle, that they preserved. While some of his briefer treatises gave impetus to the early scholastic movement, his more important works were not Literary influence of Cassiodorus known until the twelfth century. He gave to the Middle Ages logic and ethics, or the basis of the entire dialectic element in their education. He also wrote on arithmetic, geometry and music. These works of his were extensively used as text-books; some continued to be employed in some universities until well into the eighteenth century. Cassiodorus (c. 490-585) was the prime minister of at least four of the early barbarian emperors, or Gothic kings, and thus on education served them as the interpreter of Latin culture as well as the exponent of their will to the conquered Romans. The latter half of his long life was spent in a monastery which he himself had founded. Here he wrote for his monks commentaries, textbooks and an educational treatise containing a presentation of the seven liberal arts. Cassiodorus laid much emphasis upon study by the monks, urged them to give attention to classical writings, and directed that those without interest in letters should devote themselves to agriculture. These should read Cato, Columella and others writers on agriculture. Much of his wealth he devoted to the collection of manuscripts. It was through his influence that the custom of copying these as a specific part of the work of the monasteries, became established. To the influence of Cassiodorus was largely due the dissemination of the custom, begun by one of his monks in 562 A.D., of dating from the Christian era. Etymologies of Isidore Grammars Isidore (c. 570-636), bishop of Seville, is the distinctive representative of the medieval learning. For his monks and clergy he composed an encyclopedia called Origines or Etymologies, which purported to be a summary of all knowledge worth knowing. This served as a common text in all the sciences. To gain a general survey of the text-books of the early Middle Ages, there should be added to these few works the Grammars of Donatus (c. 333-400), and of Priscian (c. 500) and The Distychs of Cato (said to be the work of Cato the Elder, 234149 B.C.). This latter was a selection of moral sentiments in versified form, illustrating grammatical and rhetorical structure. |