SOURCE: Kenny, Anthony. “The Philosopher of Truth.” In Wyclif, pp. 1-17. Oxford, England: Oxford University Press, 1985.

In the following essay, Kenny probes Wyclif's position as an epistemological Realist by contrasting his views on the subject of universals with those of the nominalist William of Ockham.

Wyclif lived from the late twenties to the early eighties of the fourteenth century. He was a dozen years older than Geoffrey Chaucer, and they had friends in common. His career fell under the last two kings of the main Plantagenet line, Edward III and his grandson Richard II. Because Edward had a long dotage, and Richard succeeded while still a child, the effective ruler of England during much of Wyclif's working life was John of Gaunt, Duke of Lancaster, Edward's son and Richard's uncle. To many people, John of Gaunt is best known for the speech placed on his dying lips in...