Andrés López De Medrano

Andrés López de Medrano (1780 – May 6, 1856) was a nobleman, educator, doctor, lawyer, journalist, poet, author, politician and the first enlightened philosopher of the Dominican Republic. Medrano served as rector of the University of Santo Domingo in 1821 and was a professor of Latin and Rhetoric. He was also appointed Syndic Procurator General and councilman of the Santo Domingo Cabildo. Born in Santiago de los Caballeros, he was a supporter of Dominican Independence and became one of the most important intellectual figures in the early 19th century.

Medrano is best known for writing one of the most important philosophical works of the 19th century, a treaty or guide entitled ''Logic, Elements of Modern Philosophy'' (1814), which became the first book of Dominican philosophy and the first book printed in the Dominican Republic. López de Medrano's other work ''Metaphysics or a Small Outline of Philosophy'', was published in 1842 in Barcelona by the Widow and Daughter of Garriga and Aguasvivas.

Education

Don Andrés López de Medrano studied at the University of Santo Tomás de Aquino, later the University of Santo Domingo. In 1822, during the Haitian occupation of Santo Domingo, he emigrated to Venezuela, where he earned a bachelor's degree and graduated in the arts from the University of Santa Rosa de Lima in Caracas. He wrote a thesis titled "The Soul Considered as a Divine Creation." Later, he graduated as a Doctor of Philosophy in Medicine.

Career

Medrano worked as a substitute professor and examiner for awards in Latin and Arts. Upon his return to Santo Domingo, López de Medrano practiced medicine and was elected councilman of the Santo Domingo Cabildo. He was also a professor of Latin and Rhetoric at the Seminary College of Santo Domingo and was appointed Syndic Procurator General.

He enthusiastically swore and celebrated the Cádiz Constitution of 1812. His Public Manifesto was written for the 1820 elections for deputies to the Cortes.

Syndic Procurator General of Santo Domingo

López de Medrano was recognized as an advanced thinker for his time, advocating for freedom of thought, press, and the right to form political parties. As Syndic of Santo Domingo, Medrano appears to have been the first to create a political party inspired by the ideals of "one man, one vote," challenging aristocratic discriminatory ideas that excluded Africans and the poor from participation.

Rector of the University of Santo Domingo

In 1821 Medrano was elected rector of the University of Santo Domingo.

Dominican Independence

Creoles such as Manuel Caravajal and Andrés López de Medrano resented their minor positions within the colonial bureaucracy and felt abandoned by Spain. After three centuries of colonial rule under the Spanish Monarchy, independence came rather suddenly to most of Spanish America. On 1 December 1821, Medrano supported the independence of the Dominican Republic with José Núñez de Cáceres, however this led to his imprisonment in Puerto Rico, where he settled in Aguadilla. After declaring independence from Spain, they requested to unite the Dominican Republic with the Republic of Gran Colombia. However, they received no response from Bolívar, and in 1822 Haiti invaded Santo Domingo again.

Exile

Medrano went into exile in Puerto Rico and did not return, although in 1844, after the war of Independence against Haiti, the first Dominican Constitution was signed. In 1852 he helped create the newspaper ''El Ponceño''.

Poet

Medrano wrote ''The third sonnet of Puerto Rican Poetry'' and ''Proloquios'' ''or Congratulations to the Puerto Ricans'', praising Governor Miguel de la Torre. According to Cruz Monclova, his appointment as Governor caused:

"...great joy throughout the island, among friends, colleagues, and representatives, notably including a doctor from Santo Domingo named Andrés López de Medrano, who wrote very melodious prologues or congratulations to the Puerto Ricans for the appointment of His Excellency Governor and Captain General, Don Miguel de la Torre, in which among a hundred and more superfluous things, written in verbose and bombastic style."https://catalogo.academiadominicanahistoria.org.do/opac-tmpl/files/ppcodice/CLIO-2000-162-121-128.pdf

Late career and death

He was elected syndic procurator of the Aguadilla Town Hall, inspector of public schools, and member of the Puerto Rico Health Council in 1837, and in 1847, he became a physician for the Ponce Health Board and director of the Public School. He died on May 6, 1856 in the city of Ponce, Puerto Rico.

Family

Born in Santiago de los Caballeros, Dominican Republic during the reign of King Charles III of Spain, Andres López de Medrano was the son of Andrés López and Jacinta de Medrano. Through his mother Jacinta, Andrés is a member of the noble House of Medrano. The House of Medrano, from the Kingdom of Castile and Navarre, entered Santo Domingo in the 16th century and held high ranking positions in the city, operating within the first seat of the Spanish colonial rule in the New World, the Captaincy General of Santo Domingo.

Treaty of Logic, Elements of Modern Philosophy (1814)

Medrano's work "''Logic, Elements of Modern Philosophy''" was written in 1813 and published in 1814 at the printing house of the General Captaincy of Santo Domingo.López de Medrano, Andrés (1814) ''Introduction to Logic, Elements of Modern Philosophy for the Use of Domician Youth. Printing Press of the General Captaincy of Santo Domingo.'' It was temporarily lost until rediscovered by Friar Cipriano de Utrera in the General Archive of the Indies. Known as "''Introduction to Logic, Elements of Modern Philosophy,"'' its conceptual and theoretical support is seen as a contribution to the national spirit. In 1928, researcher Máximo Coiscou Henríquez brought the text from the General Archive of the Indies. While writing his ''"Introduction to'' ''Logic, Elements of Modern Philosophy for the Use of Dominican Youth,"'' Don Andrés López de Medrano stated:

"Blessed is the country if it sees such children flourish, and very happy I am, distinguished with so much honor, sure of so much glory, I can teach and establish modern philosophy, supporting it with very solid experiments."

Medrano authored several works, the most notable was his work entitled "''Introduction to Logic, Elements of Modern Philosophy for the Use of Dominican Youth"'' (1814). Thanks to his work ''Logic,'' the author and philosopher Don Andrés López de Medrano managed to significantly overcome the scholasticism in force during three centuries of colonial history. This book replaced Condillac's works as a primary textbook.

''Logic, Elements of Modern Philosophy'' became the first book of Dominican philosophy and the first book printed in the Dominican Republic.

His work "Logic" was republished in 1956 in the Annals of the University of Santo Domingo, with a biographical note by historian Emilio Rodríguez Demorizi, who concludes by affirming that:

"López de Medrano was one of those illustrious Dominicans whom the vicissitudes of the homeland sent to other shores, where they continued the tradition of Spain."

Overview

Written in Latin, ''Logic, Elements of Modern Philosophy'' is the most important philosophical work of the 19th century at the national level. The ''Logic'' of Don Andrés López de Medrano became not only the first book of philosophy written in Santo Domingo but also the first on which philosophical ideas of a modern nature are sustained and promoted. Medrano's Treaty of Logic, written in 1813 and published in 1814, is a pioneering philosophical text in the Dominican Republic aimed at youth. Medrano demonstrates a mastery of both Aristotelian logic and the main epistemological schools of modernity: empiricism and rationalism. He frequently references John Locke and Étienne Bonnot de Condillac, showing a significant influence from these thinkers, and also mentions Descartes and Leibniz. His work reflects an eclectic approach, merging ideas from various philosophical systems and advocating for the freedom of criticism and thought while engaging with traditional scholasticism and traditional ideas.

Medrano's work is seen as a significant contribution to the development of modern philosophical thought in the Dominican Republic, blending empirical observation with logical deduction and rational analysis.

The work is structured into four main sections covering ideas, knowledge, reasoning, and methods of discussion, authority, and hermeneutics. Medrano's approach uses empirical and rationalist methodologies, categorizing philosophy into rational, natural, metaphysical, and ethical disciplines and delineates the operations of the mind into sensations, judgment, reasoning, and method.

Table of Contents

This work, written in 1813 and published in 1814, holds the distinction of being the first book on logic and the first philosophical text in the Dominican Republic. Initially lecture notes, this text is a guide to logic. Medrano has divided it into four main sections:

1. On Ideas and Words: Discusses the nature and relationship between ideas and words.
* Chapter 1: On Ideas
* Chapter 2: On Words

2. On Knowledge: Examines propositions, degrees, and impediments of knowledge, and the nature of truth.
* Chapter 1: On Propositions
* Chapter 2: On the Degrees and Impediments of Knowledge
* Chapter 3: On Truth and its Criteria

3. On Reasoning: Explores various forms of argumentation and logical fallacies.
* Chapter 1: On Argumentation
* Chapter 2: On Other Forms of Argumentation
* Chapter 3: On Sophisms

4. On Methods of Discussion, Authority, and Hermeneutics: Focuses on discussion methods, the role of authority, critical analysis, and interpretation techniques.
* Chapter 1: Method of Discussion
* Chapter 2: Authority and Critical Art
* Chapter 3: Art of Hermeneutics

Four operations of the mind

According to Medrano, The object of logic is to guide the mind in its operations. He distinguishes four operations of the mind, namely: sensations, judgment, reasoning, and method. Medrano emphasized the importance of method as the fourth operation of the mind, aiming to clear any confusion that might hinder understanding. He diverged from Condillac by placing method at the end of an epistemological process, which he believed should be addressed before constructing knowledge. Medrano stated, "it is better not to investigate anything than to undertake an investigation without method."''Logic, Elements of Modern Philosophy'', Lopez de Medrano, Andres (1814) Page 78. Medrano writes that method is essential as the guiding path in our quest for knowledge.

Philosophy

Medrano introduces the concept of philosophy according to its etymological meaning. He writes:

" hilosophyis the science of human and divine things knowable by natural light."''Logic, Elements of Modern Philosophy'', Lopez de Medrano, Andres (1814) Page 76.

In his ''Logic,'' Medrano divides philosophy into four disciplines, according to the "diversity of their objects." The first discipline aims to "discover the truth and avoid errors," which he calls rational philosophy or logic. The second he calls natural philosophy, the third metaphysics, and the fourth ethical philosophy or axiology.

Ideas

In the first chapter of the book on Ideas, Medrano defines an idea as "a mere representation in the mind of some object." Medrano writes:

"... Ideas, although spiritual by their own nature, as they immediately affect the soul, nevertheless, arise from the senses, and we have no innate or infinite ideas, that is, imprinted on our souls by the hand of the creator since creation itself."

Medrano rejects innate