Don't Think for Yourself

Authority and Belief in Medieval Philosophy

Peter Adamson

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English

University of Notre Dame Press
15 February 2024

Western philosophy: Medieval & Renaissance, c 500 to c 1600; Philosophy: epistemology & theory of knowledge; Philosophy of religion; Islam

Series: Conway Lectures in Medieval Studies

"How do we judge whether we should be willing to follow the views of experts or whether we ought to try to come to our own, independent views? This book seeks the answer in medieval philosophical thought.

In this engaging study into the history of philosophy and epistemology, Peter Adamson provides an answer to a question as relevant today as it was in the medieval period: how and when should we turn to the authoritative expertise of other people in forming our own beliefs? He challenges us to reconsider our approach to this question through a constructive recovery of the intellectual and cultural traditions of the Islamic world, the Byzantine Empire, and Latin Christendom.

Adamson begins by foregrounding the distinction in Islamic philosophy between taqlid, or the uncritical acceptance of authority, and ijtihad, or judgment based on independent effort, the latter of which was particularly prized in Islamic law, theology, and philosophy during the medieval period. He then demonstrates how the Islamic tradition paves the way for the development of what he calls a ""justified taqlid,"" according to which one develops the skills necessary to critically and selectively follow an authority based on their reliability. The book proceeds to reconfigure our understanding of the relation between authority and independent thought in the medieval world by illuminating how women found spaces to assert their own intellectual authority, how medieval writers evaluated the authoritative status of Plato and Aristotle, and how independent reasoning was deployed to defend one Abrahamic faith against the other. This clear and eloquently written book will interest scholars in and enthusiasts of medieval philosophy, Islamic studies, Byzantine studies, and the history of thought."

By: Peter Adamson
Imprint: University of Notre Dame Press
Country of Publication: United States
Dimensions: Height: 229mm, Width: 152mm,
ISBN: 9780268203405
ISBN 10: 0268203407
Series: Conway Lectures in Medieval Studies
Pages: 194
Publication Date: 15 February 2024
Audience: Professional and scholarly , Undergraduate
Format: Paperback
Publisher's Status: Active

Introduction 1. Taqlīd: Authority and the Intellectual Elite in the Islamic World 2. Too High a Standard: Knowledge and Skepticism in Medieval Philosophy 3. Testing the Prophets: Reason and the Choice of Faiths 4. Using the Pagans: Reason in Interreligious Debate 5. Some Pagans are Better than Others: the Merits of Plato and Aristotle 6. Finding Their Voices: Women in Byzantine and Latin Christian Philosophy 7. The Rule of Reason: Human and Animal Nature

Peter Adamson is professor of philosophy at Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München. He is the author and co-author of a number of books, including A History of Philosophy without Any Gaps: Philosophy in the Islamic World.

Reviews for Don't Think for Yourself: Authority and Belief in Medieval Philosophy

"“This is a highly original work in its combination of popular and scholarly themes. Adamson weaves together a number of disparate sources under the broad theme of the epistemic legitimacy of authority, many of them unexpected companions.” —Deborah L. Black, author of Logic and Aristotle’s “Rhetoric” and “Poetics” in Medieval Arabic Philosophy ""Don’t Think for Yourself is a timely intervention from the past into the present. And while it is up to the individual reader to decide who they think offers the best insight today, Peter Adamson offers us a chance to have a dialogue across the generations, cultures and geographies. . . . We may not agree with what our predecessors thought about expertise and our relationship to it, but reading them might trigger a new way of thinking about our problems. A thoughtful, engaging and erudite book that leaves one wanting more."" —The New Arab ""Thoughtful, lucid, and concise... A book which can be read fruitfully not only by medievalists of all disciplines, but also by anyone interested in the philosophic contributions of the past."" —The Medieval Review"