Overview

The early medieval Scottish philosopher and theologian John Duns Scotus shook traditional doctrines of universality and particularity by arguing for a metaphysics of 'formal distinction'. Hundreds of years later, why did the 19th-century poet and self-styled philosopher Gerard Manley Hopkins find this revolutionary teaching so appealing? John Llewelyn answers this question by casting light on various neologisms introduced by Hopkins and reveals how Hopkins endorses Scotus' claim that being and existence are grounded in doing and willing. Drawing on modern responses to Scotus made by Heidegger, Peirce, Arendt, Leibniz, Hume, Reid, Derrida and Deleuze, Llewelyn's own response shows why it would be a pity to suppose that the rewards of reading Scotus and Hopkins are available only to those who share their theological presuppositions.

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9781474464604

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This is an exquisite work of scholarship by an extraordinary thinker at the height of his powers. The significance of Duns Scotus for Hopkins' philosophical and poetic originality is well-known. What has never been exhibited before is the scope and complexity of that lineage. Llewelyn writes with an authority and intimate grasp of the material that is truly breathtaking. --Professor David Wood, Vanderbilt University I sometimes find myself saying that (apart from new translations of classic works of philosophy) very few new titles in philosophy are exhilarating to read. This is one. --Professor Robert Bernasconi, Penn State University

Author Information

John Llewelyn, Reader in Philosophy, University of Edinburgh (Retired).

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