Western Civilization

communication for students, regardless of their coun-

try of origin. Basically, medieval university instruction

was done by the lecture method. The wordlectureis

derived from the Latin verb meaning “to read.” Before

the development of the printing press in the fifteenth

century, books were expensive, and few students could

afford them, so masters read from a text (such as a col-

lection of laws if the subject was law) and then added

their commentaries. No exams were given after a series

of lectures, but when a student applied for a degree, he

(women did not attend universities in the Middle Ages)

was given a comprehensive oral examination by a com-

mittee of teachers. These exams were taken after a

four- or six-year period of study. The first degree a stu-

dent could earn was theartium baccalaureus(ar-TEE-um

bak-uh-LAR-ee-uss), or bachelor of arts; later he might

receive anartium magister(ar-TEE-um muh-GISS-ter), or

master of arts. All degrees were technically licenses to

teach, although most students receiving them did not

become teachers.

After completing the liberal arts curriculum, a stu-

dent could go on to study law, medicine, or theology,

which could take a decade or more. Theology was the

most highly regarded subject of the medieval curricu-

lum. A student who passed his final oral examinations

was granted a doctoral degree, which officially allowed

him to teach his subject. Students who received degrees

from medieval universities could also pursue other

careers besides teaching that proved to be much more

lucrative. A law degree was deemed essential for those

who wished to serve as advisers to kings and princes.

The growing administrative bureaucracies of popes and

kings also demanded a supply of clerks with a univer-

sity education who could keep records and draw up of-

ficial documents. Medieval universities provided the

teachers, administrators, lawyers, and doctors for me-

dieval society.

Medieval universities shared in the violent atmos-

phere of the age. Records from courts of law reveal

numerous instances of disturbances in European univer-

sities. One German professor was finally dismissed for

stabbing one too many of his colleagues during faculty

meetings. Not uncommonly, town-and-gown struggles

(“gown” refers to the academic robe worn by teachers

and students) escalated into bloody riots between

townspeople and students.

A Revival of Classical Antiquity

Another aspect of the intellectual revival of the High

Middle Ages was a resurgence of interest in the prod-

ucts of classical antiquity—the works of the Greeks

and Romans. In the twelfth century, western Europe

was introduced to a large number of Greek scientific

and philosophical works, including those of Galen and

Hippocrates on medicine, Ptolemy on astronomy, and

University Classroom.This illustration

shows a university classroom in fourteenth-

century Germany. As was customary in

medieval classrooms, the master is reading

from a text. The students vary considerably

in age and in the amount of attention they

are giving the lecturer.

bpk, Berlin/Kupferstichkabinett, SMB/J

€org P. Anders/Art Resource, NY

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