206. Eileen Sweeney on Anselm

The question of texts which do not only show the argument itself but also personal involvement, how it was explored, what one believes, which emotions are stirred up, etc., goes back to Plato, Plato's nested dialogues, and Platonic Myths, directly. And the problem to distinguish what the author meant in which way and how to recognize the difference of invention and reality from an ancient perspective through modern eyes is a never-ending problem with Plato's texts, too. Anselm's Proslogion with appendices (Gaunilo's reply etc.) shows a certain dialectic structure, too, and philosophy starts to become interesting exactly when we have to guess and to postulate, i.e. to jump into "eikos mythos" (Timaeus 29d).

I am grateful for the references, more than once, to St. Anselm's prayers and meditations.  When we hear the description "of Canterbury," we may think that he was English.  In fact, he was Italian.  I was quite surprised, the first time I read one of his prayers, to find out that they seem as though they could have come from the Spanish Baroque.  (E.g., Lope de Vega, Soliloquios.)  Fascinating figure. 

Thanks for this excellent podcast and series.