Trivium
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In medieval universities, the trivium comprised the three subjects taught first: grammar, logic, and rhetoric. [1] Grammar is the mechanics of a language; logic (or dialectic — logic and dialectic were synonymous at the time) is the "mechanics" of thought and analysis; rhetoric is the use of language to instruct and persuade. (As Latin was both a second language and the international language of scholarship and thought, it had to be learned intentionally and thoroughly.) These were considered preparatory fields for the quadrivium, which was made up of arithmetic, geometry, music, and astronomy. In turn, the quadrivium was considered preparatory work for the serious study of philosophy and theology. The trivium was the beginning of the liberal arts. At many medieval universities this would have been the principal undergraduate course.
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[edit] References
- ^ A cure for the educational crisis: Learn from the extraordinary educational heritage of the West. RenewAmerica analyst. Retrieved on June 2, 2006.
[edit] Further reading
- Joseph, Sister Miriam. The Trivium: The Liberal Arts of Logic, Grammar, and Rhetoric. Paul Dry Books Inc, 2002.
- Winterer, Caroline. "The Culture of Classicism: Ancient Greece and Rome in American Intellectual Life, 1780-1910." Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press, 2002.
