DeLancett, Heather 1 2003

The Great Chain of Being Weaving through the Medieval Period

The underlying ideological assumption of a set of interrelated concepts conjoined and expressed in the terminology The Great Chain of Being significantly influenced all medieval thought, and artistic and scientific manifestations springing forth from that thought, in many profound and tangible ways. Utilizing the methodology of a historian of ideas, as most brilliantly expounded upon by Arthur Lovejoy in his Harvard lectures on the topic, we can trace this chain throughout all the great debates and dilemmas of philosophical inquiry during the Medieval Period. I write this paper with the intention to explore, within the limits of acceptable duration, what these interrelated concepts described by The Great Chain of Being consist of, how they gained the influence to be so philosophically and theologically potent; and, with all brevity, look at a few selected manifestations within medieval society. I do not consider myself to be a philosophical Idealist, or one tending toward the conviction that all history is shaped mainly, if not merely, by leading ideas acted upon by those in authoritative power. That being stated, I recognize that danger is evoked when trying to evade strong evidence of a deeply embedded doctrine possessing, (while being at once both an assumed fundamental parameter and the foundation of an entire worldview), immense potential for providing justification for other, often equally unanalyzed, agendas and assumptions. It is helpful, and often somewhat humorous, to analyze periods of history from a specific modality of inquiry; however, it is still more helpful for a diligent student to bear in mind that there are many lenses from which to view. Without discounting the worth of tracing this idea compound in its many forms, I find it important to explicitly address that this methodology is but a tool to facilitate deeper understanding, lest such methods themselves become doctrines. In order to formulate ideas of how the Great Chain of Being impacted Medieval thought and society, we first must look at the origins of its conception and the reasons for its emergence. This takes us back to Ancient Greece in the time of Plato, though it could be argued that many of the Pre-Socratic philosophers are important in their contributions of setting the stage for Platos postulates to figuratively turn the world on its end. Most Platonic scholars agree that Socrates was directly influential in pushing the philosophical envelope, from which Platos version of Pandoras box sprang. He did so by cleverly, and often annoyingly, demanding definitions of terms that could be applied universally. His pupil Plato, in search of these universal definitions and of a conception of God, created a mysterious metaphysics which continues to ripple throughout all aspects of society even today (Lovejoy, 31-35). It was the universal definition of the abstract ideas that so fueled Plato, like many of the other Pre-Socratic philosophers, to look for an essence inherent in manifest things of everyday experience. Platos inquiries into this essence led him away from everyday material things to propose a World of Forms, in which the pure, ideal, eternal, and unchanging definition or ideal aspect of these abstract concepts, such as justice or love, existed. This projected a typically terrestrially based mentality into otherworldly dimensions. The concepts inherent in the Great Chain of Being were born out of

DeLancett, Heather 2 2003 attempts to make this otherworldly realm of Forms logically work within a metaphysical context (Lovejoy, 39). It was fun for philosophers at the time to muse about another realm of being in which everything was perfect, eternal, and completely unaffected by the will of men. It provided support and merit for the Greek love of rational thought. Reflection upon the World of Forms quickly became accepted as the noblest activity, a refining fire for the rational intellect, a higher form of being. This attitude seems to be both partially a cause and partially an effect of the hierarchy of being that Plato used to explain his concept of the Good, i.e. God. This Good had to be shown to be perfectly good, totally self-sufficient and therefore totally removed from the affairs of the world, and yet able to create the world in which we find ourselves (Lovejoy, 49-52). The hierarchy of being was essential in the explanation of how a self-contained Good/God, who is eternally in need of nothing, could emanate the physical world into existence. It was thought that each level of emanation away from the source, the Good, contained descending levels of spirit and ascending levels of matter. The spirit, being most perfect, was the most valued. The earth, being the most matter, was but an imperfect reflection of this higher world of spirit, which was accessible for contemplation only from the highest levels of the rational mind. Lest you begin to think weve spent too much time discussing Platos theory here, I will point out that this is the foundation on which Christianity was built, which in itself was the primary influence of all medieval thought, art, architecture and government. Platos Idea of the Good later became synonymous with God, and the questions he posed; the solutions he offered; and the debatable holes in his metaphysical theory, were the most heated topics of early Christian theology. Most philosophy of the Medieval ages is dedicated to reconciling the Christian concept of the Trinity with the Neo-Platonic (or perhaps more accurately Middle Platonic) conception of hierarchy (or the emanation of being from the perfect source to the most base level of value). Many modern philosophers regard the Medieval philosophers to be merely a long succession of Christian apologists, which is quite illustrative of just how much influence the Church came to have during this period (Copleston, 1). As Church rose in significance and power, so did the Platonic ideas that had enigmatically paved the way for its theology. The Church used the Platonic conception of divine hierarchy to model its authority structure of clerical offices. The bishops were the overseers; the presbyters/priests were the elders; the deacons were the servants, all being perceived as having different admixtures of spirit and matter, or different levels of holiness (Corrigan, 177). The writings of Pseudo-Dionysius the Areopagite are some of the most explicit examples of the Great Chain of Being weaving its way through medieval Christian theolody. In The Celestial Hierarchies and The Ecclesiastical Hierarchies the visible Church on Earth is explained to be the counterpart of the angelic celestial hierarchy (Corrigan, 177). Although there were Aristotelian influences in the Medieval period, which by nature were more concerned with earthly, practical, and pragmatic attitudes, much of the period was characterized by looking towards heaven. The idea of the afterlife in the other world became a very popular

DeLancett, Heather 3 2003 preoccupation, often pointed towards in order to explain or distract from the evils of this world. The feudal structure of society was well maintained by the deeply embedded assumption of each person having a specific level in the great hierarchy, which if defied would upset the balance of the entire of the feudal structure of societal structure. The widespread acceptance of this hierarchy as natural order, which Aristotle had himself integrated into science and the study of nature, impacted every area of inquiry and all aspects of life in Medieval Christendom. As monasticism developed and grew more widespread in practice, so did the concept of selfdenial of the pleasures of this world, in favor of the contemplation of the eternal. The attitude of turning away from the world found its architectural expression in the plain exteriors and rich interiors of monastic churches. (Fleming, 193). Not only is architecture being affected in this way, but also the art in the forms of paintings, sculptures, and mosaics. Nearly all artworks of this time period are focused on heavenly and divine otherworldly ideals. Though the monastic attitude was very Platonic in origin one of contemplating the eternal forms through reason - the artwork commissioned to decorate the churches begins to shift into a uniquely Christian idea that was also beginning to form at the time. God had to be felt through faith rather than comprehended by the mind. Only through the intuitive eye of faith could his essence be grasped (Fleming, 193). The intuitive and symbolic Medieval artwork was the chief expression of this shift of attitude, though its preoccupation with the otherworldly is a continuing theme from Platonic beginnings. The Great Chain of Being, and its inherent ideas of the imperfection of this world, the existence of a more perfect world, the nature of the Good or God, the level of emanation of spirit and matter forming the universe, and the hierarchy of value that can be derived from those levels; these are all very pervasive themes throughout Medieval society and culture. Though not all, and maybe not even most, of the Medieval conceptions of these ideas can be traced directly to the works of Plato, they were built upon throughout the entire period from a mainly Neo-Platonic philosophy. Its amazing what some metaphysical ideas can do.

**References available on request.