Medieval political theory—a reader: the quest for the body politic, 1100-1400 (review)

174 Reviews Nederman, Cary J. and Kate L. Forhan, eds, Medieval political theory—a reader: the quest for the body politic, 1100-1400, London and N.Y., Routledge, 1993; paper; pp. xiii, 257; R.R.P. AUS$38.95 This is an anthology for students of political theory and medieval culture. It includes selections from Bernard of Clairvaux, Marie de France, John of Salisbury, 'Glanville', Thomas Aquinas, Giles of Rome, John of Paris, Dante, Marsilius of Padua, William of Ockham, and others. The editors' introductions are excellent, informative, and brief. The translations are mostly accurate, and they are generally readable without being overly free. However, there are some lapses from accuracy. For example, on p. 160 there is a passage which, if translated literally, would read: ' . . . nothing belonging to evangelical perfection is repugnant to the lord Pope by reason of his status [i.e., is inconsistent with the Pope's office]. But it is certain that, if the Pope, by reason of his status as Pope and vicar of Christ, is lord of all, the renunciation of property and rejection of lordship in temporals is repugnant to him by reason of his status, since the opposite befits him per se'. This is translated as follows: ' . . . the lord Pope does nothing inconsistent with his proper condition, which is one of evangelical perfection. It is thus evident that, if the Pope in his proper condition (inasmuch as he is Pope and vicar of Christ) as lord of everything has abdicated property rights and rejected lordship over temporal goods, this is inconsistent with his proper condition, since it is suited to the opposite condition'. O n p. 214 there is a passage that should read: 'In a general grant, those things are understood to be excepted (though not especially mentioned) which are illicit and which the grantor did not specifically grant'. This is translated: 'These exceptions are grasped in a general endowment, although those which are illicit and which the endower should in no way have conceded are in no way specifically expressed'. Those who use this anthology should check the translations, even though in general they are good. The book is intended mainly as a textbook for students of political theory. For that use it would need to be supplemented by additional extracts. It is not possible to get a good sense of Marsilius' Defensor pads from extracts limited to Discourse I. Thomas Aquinas is well represented, but it is a pity not to have chapter 14 of On kingship, in which Thomas argues at length that since kings care for lower ends and the Pope for higher ends, kings must be subordinate to the Pope. It would be desirable also to Reviews 175 have chapter 17 of John of Paris's Of royal and Papal power, which is a very effective criticism of Thomas's argument. One would like to have more from John of Paris on property as well. However, no selection will satisfy everyone. To the 'Suggestions for further reading' should be added two translations by R. W . Dyson: Giles of Rome, On ecclesiastical power (Woodbridge, 1986) and James of Viterbo, On Christian government (Woodbridge, 1995). These are important contributions to the church-state controversy on the Papalist side, which is not well-represented in this anthology. John Kilcullen School of History, Philosophy and Politics Macquarie University Ocker, Christopher, Johannes Klenkok: a friar's life, c. 1310-1374 (Transactions of the American Philosophical Society, Vol. 83, part 5), Philadelphia, American Philosophical Society, 1993; paper; pp. viii, 116; R.R.P. US$15.00. This monograph presents the life of what the author calls 'a moderately successful friar' (p. 5). It is an attempt to move beyond what Ocker identifies as the two dominant stereotypes of the late medieval friar: the bad friar characterized by a range of different moral failings, and the theologian friar known by his intellectual achievement. By describing in detail the life and career of Johannes Klenkok, an Augustinian from Saxony who died from the plague while a minor penitentiary in Avignon, Ocker attempts to show how the late medieval friar was involved in a complex network of local and regional obligations within the different communities...