Ancient thought and the medieval synthesis I

This chapter explores the ancient pagan backdrop to the European intellectual tradition, placing special emphasis on Christianity’s appropriation of a rump philosophical inheritance. The decline of Greek in the Western world meant that many key texts in the pagan philosophical tradition were simply gone. Hence, this chapter notes not only the significance of absence—that is, the lack of Platonist and Aristotelian texts—but also the productive presence of surviving textual traditions, including the Neoplatonist works of Plotinus. Among other thinkers considered are Aristotle (384–322 BC), Augustine of Hippo (AD 354–430), Plato (428–347 BC), and Plotinus (AD 204–270).