Duquesne University Duquesne Scholarship Collection Electronic Theses and Dissertations Spring 2013 The etM alogicon of John of Salisbury: Medieval Rhetoric as Educational Praxis Brian Gilchrist Follow this and additional works at: https://dsc.duq.edu/etd Recommended Citation Gilchrist, B. (2013). The eM talogicon of John of Salisbury: Medieval Rhetoric as Educational Praxis (Doctoral dissertation, Duquesne University). Retrieved from https://dsc.duq.edu/etd/580 This Immediate Access is brought to you for free and open access by Duquesne Scholarship Collection. It has been accepted for inclusion in Electronic Theses and Dissertations by an authorized administrator of Duquesne Scholarship Collection. For more information, please contact [email protected]. THE METALOGICON OF JOHN OF SALISBURY: MEDIEVAL RHETORIC AS EDUCATIONAL PRAXIS A Dissertation Submitted to the Department of Communication & Rhetorical Studies McAnulty College and Graduate School of Liberal Arts Duquesne University In partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy By Brian J. Gilchrist May 2013 Copyright by Brian Gilchrist 2013 THE METALOGICON OF JOHN OF SALISBURY: MEDIEVAL RHETORIC AS EDUCATIONAL PRAXIS By Brian J. Gilchrist Approved March 22, 2013 ______________________________ __________________________________ Dr. Pat Arneson Dr. Richard H. Thames Associate Professor of Communication Associate Professor of Communication & Rhetorical Studies & Rhetorical Studies (Committee Chair) (Committee Member) ______________________________ Dr. Janie Harden Fritz Associate Professor of Communication & Rhetorical Studies (Committee Member) ______________________________ __________________________________ Dr. James Swindal Dr. Ronald C. Arnett Dean, McAnulty College and Graduate Chair, Department of Communication School of Liberal Arts & Rhetorical Studies Professor of Philosophy Professor of Communication & Rhetorical Studies iii ABSTRACT THE METALOGICON OF JOHN OF SALISBURY: MEDIEVAL RHETORIC AS EDUCATIONAL PRAXIS By Brian J. Gilchrist May 2013 Dissertation supervised by Dr. Pat Arneson This dissertation addresses the following question: what are the implications of John of Salisbury‟s rhetorical theory for his approach to education? The Metalogicon, John‟s defense of the trivium, represents the primary text analyzed throughout the project. John‟s medieval rhetorical theory explicated the reciprocal relationship between rhetoric and education. The art of rhetoric acquired educational elements by providing ethical- theoretical frameworks to inform the practices of students and teachers. Experiences from the practices of students and teachers influenced the art of rhetoric. John called for an approach to medieval rhetorical education that could be placed into the service of all people living in God‟s world. Five chapters offer answers to the guiding question. Chapter One, “John of Salisbury: A Rhetorician of the Middle Ages,” situates John within the historical moment of the High Middle Ages in Western Europe. John‟s iv personal experiences and the overall significant historical events shaped his perspective about medieval rhetorical education. Chapter Two, “John of Salisbury‟s Intellectual Influences: Cicero and Aristotle,” explores how the writings of Cicero and Aristotle informed John‟s assumptions about the relationship between Ciceronian rhetoric and Aristotelian dialectics within medieval rhetorical education. John attempted to place the newly translated Latin writings of Aristotle, The Organon, into the service of medieval rhetorical education. Chapter Three, “John of Salisbury‟s The Metalogicon: An Artifact of Medieval Epideictic Rhetoric,” examines The Metalogicon as a composition representing medieval epideictic rhetoric. John offered an account of his educational experiences in which he praised teachers who promoted the liberal arts, blamed teachers who rejected the liberal arts, and celebrated the timeless values of a philosophical approach to education. Chapter Four, “The Metalogicon as Rhetorical Dialectical Synthesis,” articulates John‟s contribution to medieval rhetorical theory. John synthesized Ciceronian rhetoric with Aristotelian dialectics to expand the scope of rhetorical practices. Chapter Five, “The Metalogicon: A Medieval Response to Contemporary Calls for Educational Praxis,” concludes the dissertation by announcing John‟s call for praxis as the telos of medieval rhetorical education. The Metalogicon offered implications to the communication discipline by addressing John‟s contribution to medieval rhetorical theory and articulating pedagogical practices beneficial to contemporary educators. v DEDICATION This dissertation is dedicated to my mother Linda who provided countless amounts of love and support throughout my life. vi ACKNOWLEDGEMENT I wish to thank the following people who have made this dissertation possible. First, I want to thank my family, especially my mother Linda, for their encouragement. The Department of Communication & Rhetorical Studies provided academic stimulation and financial aid that gave me the opportunity to reach for a better life. I should like to pay particular tribute to Ronald C. Arnett, Pat Arneson, Isaac E. Catt, Janie Harden Fritz, Erik Garrett, Craig T. Maier, Kathleen Glenister Roberts, Richard Thames, and Calvin L. Troup. Many other colleagues generously offered ideas and help, among them Ken Bohl, Jill Seibert Burk, Deborah Eicher-Catt, Jerry Clack, Lisa A. Davis, Dave DeIuliis, Kathy Glass, Natalie Nardelli Gigliotti, Annette M. Holba, John Jasso, John Lawson, Paul Lucas, Christina L. Marinchak, Doug Marshall, Rita McCaffrey, Amanda G. McKendree, Melinda Miller, Marianne Pabis, Jeanne Pursuit, Celeste Grayson Seymour, Amanda Seville, Dave Stern, Anthony Wachs, and Cem Zeytinoglu. This dissertation articulates the power of teaching. It is highly personal, which reflects the lifelong influences of extraordinary teachers. These wonderful educators include Ed Burak, Eileen Byrne, Patrick W. Conner, Lara Farina, Ed Kanitra, Adam Komisaruk, John Lamb, Sue Ann Masley, Janet Meyers, Sarah Alison Miller, Richard Pierce, Mike Samek, Robert Shevchik, William B. Smith, Ethel Morgan Smith, Dave Vestal, Robert Wojtkowski, and Katherine Yerep. Finally, I wish to thank my students for their inspiration, especially the students from Hopewell High School class of 2012, the students from my English classes during the Summer Sessions at the Community College of Beaver County (2008-2012), the students from my Communication Skills classes at Robert Morris University, the students from my English classes at West vii Virginia University, and the students from my Communication classes at Duquesne University. viii TABLE OF CONTENTS Page Abstract iv Dedication vi Acknowledgement vii Chapter 1: John of Salisbury: A Rhetorician of the Middle Ages 1 The High Middle Ages 5 Portrait of John‟s Early Life 19 John‟s Writings 38 Conclusion 39 Chapter 2: John of Salisbury‟s Intellectual Influences: Cicero and Aristotle 41 Cicero‟s Influences on the Middle Ages 42 Aristotle‟s Influences on the Middle Ages 49 Cicero and Aristotle‟s Influences on John 56 Conclusion 71 Chapter 3: John of Salisbury‟s The Metalogicon: An Artifact of Medieval Epideictic Rhetoric 73 Medieval Epideictic Rhetorical Tradition 73 John‟s Approach to Epideictic Rhetoric 76 The Metalogicon as an Artifact of Medieval Epideictic Rhetoric 85 Conclusion 101 Chapter 4: The Metalogicon as Rhetorical Dialectical Synthesis 103 Interpretive Translation as a Rhetorical Act 104 Scholarly Perspectives about John 107 ix Communication Scholarship about John 109 John‟s Rhetorical Theory in The Metalogicon 111 Conclusion 138 Chapter 5: The Metalogicon: A Medieval Response to Contemporary Calls for Educational Praxis 139 Traditions of Medieval Rhetorical Education 139 John‟s Perspective about Teaching 145 John‟s Ethical Approach to Medieval Rhetorical Education 147 John‟s Medieval Rhetorical Education Promotes Virtue 149 John‟s Call for Rhetorical Educational Praxis 153 The Implications of John‟s Medieval Rhetorical Theory 157 Summary 175 175 References 178 x CHAPTER ONE John of Salisbury: A Rhetorician of the Middle Ages Public education in contemporary, postmodern American society remains a contentious issue following the passage of The No Child Left Behind Act of 2001. The NCLB Act (2001) proposed to evaluate school performance in relationship with standardized test scores. This national piece of legislation granted individual states the right to create their own standardized tests. Standards of achievement in the test scores were determined on a state-by-state basis (ED.gov). In the years following the enactment of the NCLB Act (2001), elected representatives from both the Democratic Party and the Republican Party expressed reservations about the success of the legislation. While politicians from both parties may agree that the American public educational system from kindergarten through 12th grade should be reformed to meet the challenges of a globalized marketplace, they cannot arrive at a consensus to solve the problems. Over the course of the next decade from 2001 to 2012, controversies emerged regarding how individual states developed practices for meeting standards of student learning outcomes. Since 2011, The Texas State Board of Education changed the content of textbooks, especially in United States history class, used in public schools to increase learning outcomes of students. Some of these proposals included alternative interpretations