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<blockquote data-quote="pawsplay" data-source="post: 3559532" data-attributes="member: 15538">Cute, but not what I'm talking about at all. The problem of defining the Medieval period is a real problem:<a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paradox_of_the_heap" target="_blank">http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paradox_of_the_heap</a>But in any case, it is the position opposite of mine that has invoked the heap fallacy, by suggesting that the medieval mind cannot cease to be medieval, gradually over the course of centuries, while the Renaissance mind cannot become medieval, by inching toward the medieval period. I raised the question, &quot;Is there not some intermediate state which is neither fully medieval nor fully Renaissance?&quot;Any time period, chosen arbitrarily, can be described, and those attributes assigned to it used to differentiate it from what came before and after. But even that is aside the point. While the medieval mindset, that is, a generalization of a typical person of an era before the major changes of the Renaissance, can be described in certain terms.... we define it in particular terms as to how it is distinct from other states of being. However, the medieval mind and the Renaissance mind also have many characteristics in common.Labeling something as &quot;Medieval&quot; has the effect of exaggerating difference. In some cases, the exaggeration reaches a point of essentializing something. Rather than &quot;the medieval mind has X tendency&quot; it becomes, &quot;the medieval mind is of this particular nature.&quot; Medieval people weren't dumb, nor was the culture of that era stagnant. It took a lot of &quot;medieval minds&quot; to pave the way for science and humanism. In any era, give me a million people, and I can find one who would agree with a given philosophy of any other era. Arguing &quot;the medieval mind cannot&quot; is simply mistaken or at least simplistic. Many medieval minds would easily grasp skepticism, individual liberties, secularism, and so forth. &quot;The medieval mind is likely to reject X&quot; can be logically predicted or supposed. While the condition simply did not exist at the time, I am confident a medieval laborer could be trained to work in a 20th century steel mill with little difficulty. Likewise, forging steel is within the grasp of most modern persons who are willing to devote some time and resources to it.</blockquote>

[QUOTE="pawsplay, post: 3559532, member: 15538"] Cute, but not what I'm talking about at all. The problem of defining the Medieval period is a real problem: [url]http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paradox_of_the_heap[/url] But in any case, it is the position opposite of mine that has invoked the heap fallacy, by suggesting that the medieval mind cannot cease to be medieval, gradually over the course of centuries, while the Renaissance mind cannot become medieval, by inching toward the medieval period. I raised the question, "Is there not some intermediate state which is neither fully medieval nor fully Renaissance?" Any time period, chosen arbitrarily, can be described, and those attributes assigned to it used to differentiate it from what came before and after. But even that is aside the point. While the medieval mindset, that is, a generalization of a typical person of an era before the major changes of the Renaissance, can be described in certain terms.... we define it in particular terms as to how it is distinct from other states of being. However, the medieval mind and the Renaissance mind also have many characteristics in common. Labeling something as "Medieval" has the effect of exaggerating difference. In some cases, the exaggeration reaches a point of essentializing something. Rather than "the medieval mind has X tendency" it becomes, "the medieval mind is of this particular nature." Medieval people weren't dumb, nor was the culture of that era stagnant. It took a lot of "medieval minds" to pave the way for science and humanism. In any era, give me a million people, and I can find one who would agree with a given philosophy of any other era. Arguing "the medieval mind cannot" is simply mistaken or at least simplistic. Many medieval minds would easily grasp skepticism, individual liberties, secularism, and so forth. "The medieval mind is likely to reject X" can be logically predicted or supposed. While the condition simply did not exist at the time, I am confident a medieval laborer could be trained to work in a 20th century steel mill with little difficulty. Likewise, forging steel is within the grasp of most modern persons who are willing to devote some time and resources to it. [/QUOTE]

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