MOLINISM: "FACT WITH FANCY"

The term "Molinism" in criticism relating to Browning's "The Ring and the Book" traditionally has been understood to refer to the heretical work of Miguel de Molinos (b. 1640). The definition of "Molinism" in "The Catholic Encyclopedia" - "the theolo...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Victorian poetry 1983-10, Vol.21 (3), p.229
Main Author: Verbrugge, Rita Maria
Format: Article
Language:English
Online Access:Get full text
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Summary:The term "Molinism" in criticism relating to Browning's "The Ring and the Book" traditionally has been understood to refer to the heretical work of Miguel de Molinos (b. 1640). The definition of "Molinism" in "The Catholic Encyclopedia" - "the theology of Luis de Molina" (b. 1535) - is generally ignored. Molina's theology includes emphases on the freedom and responsibility of the individual to make choices and to exercise his or her free will. These emphases coincided with Browning's own ideas on the necessity of making a choice in "that critical moment" of decision. Browning uses both the ideas of Molina as well as the ambiguities provided by the names Molina, Molinos, Molinist, and Molinism to further his theme that the artist can take the tentative elements of factual truth and create an enduring, truthful work of art
ISSN:0042-5206