La Mort de Socrate au Moyen Âge (XIIIe-XIVe siècles)

Resum

Socrates death constitues a traditional narrative text in the encyclopaedic ethical literature at authors such as Vincent of Beauvais or John Waleys. Socrates medieval death presents several elaborations based on six well known and common themes (mainly about Socrates piety, his heroic death and his impassiveness at the time of his death in jail), shared by the hellenistic and roman authors and those of medieval period. This study will show how Socrates death, very famous and present in the XIIIth Century will gradually disappear itself in the next centuries (with the withdrawal of Platonism from the University) and will go back ultimately to be rediscovered in the form of universal Model of Wisdom and of philosophical Thought. Socrates dies twice (in jail and in the culture of his medieval time) but is revived twice: through the immortality of his soul and in the platonic philosophy of some brilliant scholastical figures such as Roger Bacon and Henri Bate of Maline.