DUNS SCO'TUS. One of the greatest think ers of the :Middle Ages. who, by hi s acumen, won for himself the title 'Doctor Subtilis,' or 'Subtle Teacher.' He was born either in 1265 or in 1274. The place of his birth is not known. England. Scotland. and Ireland all claim him. He entered the Order of Franviseans, studied at Oxford. and in 1301 became professor of theology there. Ilis'preleet ions were attended by crowds of auditors. In 1301 he removed to Paris, and in 1308 to Cologne, Nt here lie died in November of the sanie year. The general principles of the Scotist system of philosophy deviate only in some points from the Thomist doctrine. Duns Scotus establishes the necessity of revelation on the ground that reason does not teach us clearly and plainly the highest end of our existence—the in tuition of God. in addition to natural knowl edge or philosophy. revelation is necessary to enable man to know the fullness of truth, and, on the basis of this knowledge, to fulfill his eter• nal destiny. Revelation. therefore. supplements and perfects this knowledge; and consequently no contradiction can exist them. The object of theology is God. as God "sub rations dritatis." while philosophy only treats of Clod in as far as lle is the first cause of things. Theology is a practienl science, directed not so much to the removal of ignorance as the furtherance of our salvation. The incorruptibility and im mortality of the human soul he holds to he a truth of faith, whieh cannot be demonstrated by reason. Duns Seotus was a realist in philosophy (See NOMINALISM). and yet maintained that uni versals do not need to be differentiated to become individual- Individuality is original, and the universal, while preilxisting in (od's plan, has real existence only in the individuals, from whiell, by abstraction. the human mind comes to cognize it. The supreme function of mind is for Dims Scotus, not thought, as for Thomas Aquinas, but twill; and he maintained the posi tion by acutely pointing out that clear thought presupposes the exercise of will in attention.
Will is free, he taught, and not determined by motives. This is true. not only of men, but of God, 'who therefore does not, as Thomas Aquinas asserts, command an action because lie sees it to be good. but makes it good by commanding it. Duns Scotus had numerous adherents, the best known among whom was Francis of Mayro (1.1:325). Rut when the revival of learning calm-. the •Dunsinen,' or followers of Duns, 'raged in every pulpit' against the new classic studies, and brought their name into sneh disrepute as stupid obstructionists that the word donee = Dunstuan) came to mean a blockhead. The most famous of Duns Seotits'ti works, besides his commentaries on the Bible and Aristotle, is his commentary on the Sentences of Peter Lombard, called the Opus 0.roniensc, of which the Opus Porisicase is an abridgment. The chief edition of his works is that prepared by his order, and usually assigned to Luke Wadding (12 vols., Lyons, 1639), but it is by no means complete, containing only his philosophical works; nor is it all authentic, as at least one of the volumcs is a compilation of lecture notes taken by his hearers. Duns Scotus's works have not received the attention they deserve, and a satisfactory work on his philosophy is still to seek. Consult : Werner, Duns Scotus (Vienna, 1881) : Pluz.sn ski, Essai stir la philosophic. de Duns Scotus (Paris, 1SS7) ; Sieheek. "Die \Villenslehre Lei Duns Scotus mud seinen Nachfolgern," in Zeit schrift (sir Philosophic (Berlin, 1S9S) ; Royce, Conelpf ion of God (New York, 189S) ; also the histories of philosophy by Ueherweg, Erdmann, Windelband, and Matting.