Questions on the De Anima of Aristotle

These Oxford "Questions" on Aristotle's De Anima deal philosophically with issues usually studied by theologians. Adam Burley, Master in Arts, would become a distinguished parish priest: the Bachelor, Walter Burley, later would oppose the "new way" as an eminent theologian.

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This text of Oxford "Questions" on Aristotle's De Anima, assembled before 1306, conveys a number of philosophical positions for which modern scholars often depend upon theologians. The single manuscript in which this series has been found is a collection of texts useful for students in Arts. A number of the authors represented, including Adam Burley, are known solely through this collection; others, including Walter Burley and Richard of Campsall, would make their reputations later as theologians.
Adam, Master in Arts, and Walter, a Bachelor, here dealt with strongly controverted issues from a rigorously "philosophical" perspective; the 'unity of intellect' and human freedom of choice are debated without reference to Church or Bible. Albert, Henry of Ghent, and Giles of Rome are the sole scholastic masters whose arguments are invoked.