Anselm: A Very Short Introduction

Thomas Williams

Feb 2023 · Tantor Media Inc · Narrated by Shea Taylor

About this audiobook

Anselm of Canterbury (1033-1109) was the outstanding philosopher-theologian of the Latin West between Augustine and the thirteenth century. As a public figure, especially as Archbishop of Canterbury, he corresponded with kings and nobles, popes and bishops, in letters that reveal a fascinating personality and flesh out the practical dimensions of his theoretical philosophy. He wrote at a time when a renewed interest in logic encouraged careful and rigorous argumentation, but before the recovery of Aristotle filled the philosophical discourse with difficult technical jargon, making for writing that is unrivalled for its lucidity and accessibility. He offers the first clear account of what we now call a libertarian view of free will, according to which free choices cannot be determined by the agent's internal states or by external influences. His famous "ontological argument" for the existence of God continues to generate discussion, debate, and puzzlement. His understanding of God is rightly regarded as one of the definitive expressions of classical theism or perfect-being theology, which remains influential in philosophy of religion and analytic theology. His account of the Atonement is one that every theologian to this day still grapples with.

About the author

Thomas Williams is the Isabelle A. and Henry D. Martin Professor of Medieval Philosophy at Georgetown University. He has published widely on medieval philosophy and theology. He is coauthor of Anselm, editor of The Cambridge Companion to Medieval Ethics, and translator of Augustine: Confessions, among many others.

Shea Taylor is an actor and author with a background in musical theater, English literature, and songwriting. He is the narrator of more than 100 audiobooks and the recipient of an AudioFile Earphones Award. He also moonlights as an audiobook director/engineer.