Section XII Chapter 6 269-278 Chapter 7 279-288 Summary and Analysis

The first essay in this section is titled "In Praise of St. Thomas". Eco begins this essay by discussing the life of St. Thomas Aquinas and suggests that the worst thing to have ever happened to him was being named a saint. Eco declares that unfortunately, when this occurs, the person becomes "cliché". Eco describes the torments that Thomas frequently endured from classmates and others while progressing through the monastery. One of the stunts Thomas endured was to have a naked girl sent into his room while he was trying to become an abbot. Thomas apparently chased the girl out of his room with a brand, intending to burn her buttocks.

Eco states that during Thomas' time, the world was very much still in the thrall of religious thought. God was...