| Thomas Aquinas (1225 – 1274) was arguably the most influential philosopher and theologian of the European Middle Ages. His considerable volume of works fused together Aristotelian philosophy and Catholic theology into an original synthesis that has influenced thinkers down into the modern era. This class however will not be about philosophy as such, instead we will look at Aquinas as an archetype of the medieval scholar. He lived and thrived in the early era of the medieval universities, as well as being an early member of the Dominican mendicant order. Consequently, we will focus on those aspects of his biography relevant to development of a persona who moved in the intellectual circles of the High Middle Ages. |