On the Textual Origins of the University

In this talk I want to explore the conceptual implications of the hypothesis put forward by philosopher Ivan Illich that the origin of the university in the Middle Ages lies in a technical innovation - namely the radical transformation of reading and writing from an auditory to a visual practice. My research question is the following: How can a technical innovation give birth to an institution? In order to answer this question, I will first outline and describe the series of innovations and changes that transformed the reading practices in the Middle Ages - what Illich calls the 12-th century revolution - and how these accumulated into a novel practices of reading. Secondly I will explore the links between the new textual practices and the lecturing practices in the studium generale at that time. Third I will explore competing explanations for the birth of the university put forward by other historians - mostly focusing on the economic and legalistic explanations. Fourth, I will explain what the institutionalization of the university meant in the Middle Ages and then I will look for connections with the technical innovations in writing at that time.status: publishe