al disputes soon arose, this was known as the battle of Universals. One position was called the Realist position. This was the idea that body and soul were separate. The soul goes to its ideal realisation, heaven, there is no need to worry about the material world. The opposing argument was known as the Nominalalist position, “that physical were the only reality” (Robert E. Lamm 212). The middle ground between these two arguments was known as Conceptualism, put forth by Peter Abelard, it suggests that “reality as idea exists only in the sense-apparent object” (Robert E. Lamm 213). Monasticism was a way of life for those who thought everyday life too sinful, and decided to devote themselves to God, either communally in the monastery or lavriote, a life of solitude. St Benedict around five hundred and forty AD set down rules which were to become the basis for monastic life in the Catholic church; poverty, obedience, chastity, and work. In these monasteries theology was preserved. A different form of monasticism developed in Ireland due to the fact it was isolated from the rest of Europe. Monks were more like the hermits of Egypt rather those of Roman Christianity. Scholarship developed in these monasteries, also a new form of art called Hiberno-Saxon. These monasteries kept literacy skills alive. Monks would transcribe and decorate sacred texts by hand. Such texts include the Book of Kells and the Lindisfaire Gospels.Religion also played a part in revolutionising the arts, language and literature were revived. Numerous accounts of the crusades were written in various languages, such as Geoffrey de Villehordouin’s of the forth crusade written in French, the first text in French of its kind and Seigneur de Jounville’s History of Saint Louis. Another famous literary work was Dante’s Divine Comedy, written during the High Middle Ages. In this work Dante discusses all level of being; ...
