Gerard Manley Hopkins and the Spell of John Duns Scotus

'I sometimes find myself saying that (apart from new translations of classic works of philosophy) very few new titles in philosophy are exhilarating to read. This one is.' Professor Robert Bernasconi, Penn State University 'This is an exquisite work of scholarship by an extraordinary thinker at the height of his powers. The significance of Duns Scotus for Hopkins' philosophical and poetic originality is well-known. What has never been exhibited before is the scope and complexity of that lineage. Llewelyn writes with an authority and intimate grasp of the material that is truly breathtaking.' Professor David Wood, Vanderbilt University A fresh look at Gerard Manley Hopkins and his celebration of John Duns Scotus The early medieval Scottish philosopher and theologian John Duns Scotus shook traditional doctrines of universality and particularity by arguing for a metaphysics of 'formal distinction'. Why did the nineteenth-century poet and self-styled philosopher Gerard Manley Hopkins find this revolutionary teaching so appealing? John Llewelyn answers this question by casting light on various neologisms introduced by Hopkins and reveals how Hopkins endorses Scotus claim that being and existence are grounded in doing and willing. Drawing on modern responses to Scotus made by Heidegger, Peirce, Arendt, Leibniz, Hume, Reid, Derrida and Deleuze, Llewelyn's own response shows by way of bonus why it would be a pity to suppose that the rewards of reading Scotus and Hopkins are available only to those who share their theological presuppositions. John Llewelyn was Reader in Philosophy at the University of Edinburgh and Visiting Professor of Philosophy at the University of Memphis and Loyola University Chicago. He has written, edited or translated a dozen philosophical books. Cover images: statue of John Duns Scotus at Duns (c) Colin Brydon. Statue of Gerard Manley Hopkins at Denver (c) Rowan Gillespie.