Augustine’s Quest for Knowledge – Lesson 2

These 45 question-and-answer flashcards cover Augustine’s educational journey, Roman schooling structures, his moral reflections, the influence of Cicero’s Hortensius, and his engagement with Manichaeism, providing a comprehensive review for exam preparation.

What moral danger did young Augustine see in his early pursuit of knowledge?

He sought knowledge for social recognition and personal gain rather than for truth and moral transformation.

Later in life, Augustine said that wisdom must be rooted in and directed toward whom?

Wisdom must be rooted in humility and directed toward God, the source of all truth.

Which book of Augustine contains the line, “I had become to myself a place of unhappiness…”?

Confessions 2.10

Who gave Augustine his first informal lessons in Latin grammar and arithmetic?

His mother, Monica.

According to Augustine, what has “more power to make us learn” than a terrifying obligation?

Free curiosity.

What are the three subjects of the Trivium in the classical liberal arts?

Grammar, Dialectic (Logic), and Rhetoric.

List the four disciplines of the Quadrivium.

Arithmetic, Music, Geometry, Astronomy.

Name one primary aim of Roman education besides civic training.

Oratorical training—perfection in public speaking joined with moral virtue.

Under which teacher title did Roman PRIMARY education take place?

A Ludi Magister (or Literator).

Where did Augustine receive his primary education?

Thagaste.

What type of prayer did young Augustine first learn because of harsh school punishments?

A prayer of plea to be spared the rod.

Augustine admitted he disobeyed parents and teachers chiefly for what reason?

Love of games and play.

In what town did Augustine study under a Grammaticus from about ages 11/12 to 16/17?

Madaura.

Why did Augustine dislike learning Greek at Madaura?

It felt dry, required constant dictionary use, conflicted with his love for poetry, and involved painful punishments.

What ‘idle year’ did Augustine experience and why?

Age 16 (369-370 AD); he stopped schooling due to lack of finances.

Which city became Augustine’s center for higher education in Rhetoric (371-373)?

Carthage.

Who financed Augustine’s studies in Carthage?

Romanianus.

Give two phrases that sum up the goals of a trained orator according to Augustine’s Carthage schooling.

Docere (teach), Movere (move/convince), Dilectare (delight/entertain).

Name Augustine’s son born during his Carthage years.

Adeodatus.

Which work by Cicero did Augustine read in 373 that sparked his love for philosophy?

Hortensius.

Define ‘philosophy’ as Augustine learned from Hortensius.

Love, pursuit, and possession of wisdom.

What immediate effect did reading Hortensius have on Augustine’s outlook?

It converted him intellectually; he became less materialistic and ardently sought wisdom.

According to Cicero in Hortensius, what is the essential condition for happiness?

Living a moral life.

Cicero’s ideal of the wise person includes recognizing an immortal soul, seeking truth, and doing what regarding vice?

Fleeing vice and practicing virtue.

What major defect did Augustine note in Hortensius?

It lacked reference to Christ.

From 373-382 Augustine adhered to which dualistic religion?

Manichaeism.

Why did Augustine begin to doubt Manichaean teachings on astronomy?

They could not explain phenomena like solstices, equinoxes, or eclipses, conflicting with mathematics and observation.

Whom did the Manichaeans claim could resolve Augustine’s doubts and reveal universal knowledge?

Faustus of Milevi.

What impression did Faustus ultimately make on Augustine when they met in 383?

Pleasant and eloquent but ignorant of philosophy and natural science, unable to answer Augustine’s questions.

After meeting Faustus, how did Augustine’s attitude toward Manichaeism change?

His confidence in the sect waned; he stayed outwardly but looked for something better.

Which scriptural passage read in class emphasizes that “the LORD gives wisdom… knowledge and understanding”?

Proverbs 2:6-15.

What mnemonic trio does Augustine say an orator must accomplish: Docere, , and Dilectare?

Movere.

What did Augustine call Carthage in describing its temptations?

A ‘cauldron of unholy loves.’

According to Cicero, what goods (name two) turn people away from the search for wisdom?

Riches, pleasures, and honors (any two).

Which year marks Augustine’s birth?

354 AD.

What was the dominant cultural character of Roman education where Augustine studied?

Classical Greco-Roman and humanistic.

In Augustine’s view, doing good deeds against one’s will is not to one’s _.

Credit (Conf. 1.12).

What was the sole educational level available in Thagaste when Augustine was young?

Primary education.

Which author’s nine treatises on the ‘Disciplines’ did Augustine avidly read while teaching?

Varro.

List any three of Varro’s nine disciplines Augustine studied.

Grammar, Astronomy, Logic, Music, Rhetoric, Medicine, Geometry, Architecture, Arithmetic (any three).

How did Augustine describe the people of Madaura, where he studied as a teen?

A pagan town, people annoying, typical Roman colony.

What practical reason did Augustine give for taking a concubine?

Decency and respect for himself, though driven by lust.

What is Augustine’s earliest recorded prayer primarily about?

A plea to be spared flogging at school.

Which book by Augustine gives a vivid picture of pagan public life in Carthage?

City of God.

Complete the quotation from Augustine’s description of Hortensius: “Suddenly every vain hope became to me…”.

Empty.

Augustine’s reading of Hortensius is often called the beginning of his conversion.

Intellectual.

What overall lesson can modern students draw from Augustine’s restless search, as highlighted at the end of the lecture?

To dedicate time and effort to study in pursuit of knowledge, truth, and wisdom.