Category Archives: trivium

John of Salisbury on the Liberal Arts

“While there are many sorts of arts, the first to proffer their services to the natural abilities of those who philosophize are the liberal arts.  All of the latter are included in the courses of the Trivium and Quadrivium.  The … Continue reading

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Grammar is our Mother

“Grammar is the cradle of all philosophy, and in a manner of speaking, the first nurse of the whole study of letters.  It takes all of us as tender babes, newly born from nature’s bosom.  It nurses us in our … Continue reading

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The Soul of a word

“A word’s force consists in its meaning.  Without the latter it is empty, useless, and (so to speak) dead.  Just as the soul animates the body, so, in a way, meaning breathes life into a word. Those whose words lack … Continue reading

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Martin Luther, doctors, lawyers and such…..

“Where are the preachers, jurists, and physicians to come from, if grammar and other rhetorical arts are not taught? For such teaching is the spring from which they all must flow.” Martin Luther, “A Sermon on Keeping Children in School,” … Continue reading

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