Chaucer's Philosophical Visions
- Author / Editor
- Lynch, Kathryn L.
Chaucer's Philosophical Visions
- Published
- Woodbridge, Suffolk ;
- and Rochester, N.Y. : D. S. Brewer, 2000.
- Physical Description
- viii, 178 pp.
- Series
- Chaucer Studies, no. 27.
- Description
- Chaucer's dream visions confront contemporary philosophical debates, which also shape his poetics. BD is concerned with the status of universals, the relationship of universals to singulars, and the certainty of human knowledge. HF mocks "the logical systems that attempt to organize and give meaning to worldly diversity" (p. 64). Discussions of human will by Aquinas, Duns Scotus, Bradwardine, and Wyclif shed light on PF, which begins in a world without will but concludes with the formel eagle's acting freely. Like HF, LGW is about competing truths. The F prologue is the likely revision because its tension and ambiguity are important elements of Chaucer's style. In LGW, Chaucer creates a world where external verification is very difficult; both male and female characters commit the liar's paradox.
- Chaucer Subjects
- Parliament of Fowls.
- Legend of Good Women.
- House of Fame.
- Book of the Duchess.