Nicholas Pavick Dr. Kelly DeVries Europe & The World March 2, 2014 The Plot Against Medici When interpreting a novel, it is easy to look too deeply into its meaning, particularly if you have never gone through the process before. To accurately excavate the meaning and or thesis within the novel the reader is required to think critically, develop a theory, and back it with details from the story. The reader cannot be afraid to become lost in the book, or speculate about the story’s implications. In the novel, April Blood, the author Lauro Martines spoils the reader by including every ghastly punishment implemented on the Pazzi conspirators. Martines’s writing does not lack in detail throughout the story, even providing an appealing and energetic approach to the story. However, he does not reach the climax of the events on April 26 until mid way in the novel. Martines greater goal here, is to show how that a mixture of aspects had to do with the attempted over throwing of the Medici. Personally, I always find it irrational and barbaric that two groups of people can allow money and power to ruin a relationship. Greed can sometimes be our greatest enemy and with revenge as a compliment, a disaster starts to brew, or in this case the Medici Pazzi conspiracy. Most stories are written in the view of the victor, however, Martines treats the reader to insight on the Pazzi mindset. Thus, Martinez’s thesis is revealed throughout the novel and is supported that politics, conflicts of interests, greed, and power were the main underlying factors that decided the relationship and outcome of the powerful Medici family and the quickly rising Pazzi influence. As a senior in High School, I was prompted to do an essay on false power which directly... ... middle of paper ... ...ics, conflicts of interests, greed, and power were the main underlying factors that decided the relationship and outcome of the powerful Medici family and the quickly rising Pazzi influence. We can see revenge and politics in prime examples such as: Pazzi’s ties with the Pope, Guglielmo Pazzi marrying Lorenzo's sister, Tommaso’s bribery and support of the Medici, the attempted excommunication of Lorenzo, and Lorenzo’s visit to the King of Naples. Renaissance Italy was far from just art and literature, it was a tangled mess of politics and emotions and Martines is there every step of the way. Like all good stories, the reader learns that nothing good will ever come from evil and revenge. Although, that is why we study history and read these novels such as Martines’s, so we can learn from the past and move on, not making the same mistakes as our ancestors.
In the book, Giovanni and Lusanna, by Gene Bucker, he discusses the scandalous actions of a Florentine woman taking a wealthy high status man to court over the legality of their marriage. Published in 1988, the book explains the legal action taken for and against Lusanna and Giovanni, the social affects placed on both persons throughout their trial, and the roles of both men and women during the time. From the long and complicated trial, it can be inferred that women’s places within Florentine society were limited compared to their male counterparts and that women’s affairs should remain in the home. In this paper, I will examine the legal and societal place of women in Florentine society during the Renaissance. Here, I will argue that women were the “merchandise” of humanity and their main objective was to produce sons.
The Return of Martin Guerre, written by Natalie Zemon Davis, is the tale of a court case that takes place in sixteenth century France. Martin Guerre is a peasant who deserted his wife and family for many years. While Martin Guerre is gone, a man named Arnaud du Tilh arrives at Martin’s village and claims to be Martin Guerre. Bertrande, who is Guerre’s wife, Guerre’s sisters, and many of the villagers, accepts the imposter. After almost three years of being happily married, Bertrande takes the fraud to court under pressure of Pierre Guerre, her stepfather and Guerre’s brother. Arnaud du Tilh is almost declared innocent, but the real Martin Guerre appears in the courthouse. Throughout this tale, many factors of the peasant life are highlighted. The author gives a very effective and detailed insight to a peasant’s life during the time of Martin Guerre. Davis does a successful job of portraying the peasant lifestyle in sixteenth century France by accentuating the social, cultural, and judicial factors of everyday peasant life.
Catherine de Medici’s culpability for the turbulent events in France in 1559-72 remains a topic of some debate. Highly personal protestant pamphleteers associated Catherine with sinister comparisons to the contemporary evil Machiavelli which eventually developed into the ‘Black Legend’. Jean. H. Mariégol consolidates this interpretation, overwhelmingly assuming Catherine’s wickedness; the Queen Mother was deemed to be acting for ‘personal aggrandizement’ without an interest in the monarchy.
The opening lines of the novel shows the motive of passion. In the novel, later, Mme. de Clèves asks for further explanation for the love between a woman and the king with “several other lovers” (1039). This passion forms the “political and social effects” (1039) that change the norms in the court. The court mixes this false “event into its own structure, so that the implausible now becomes the n...
Machiavelli, Niccolo. The Prince. Trans. Luigi Ricci, revised by E.R.P. Vincent. New York: Signet Classic, 1999
The Medici family is officially in power. It is 1434 and the House of Medici has been looked up to since the 13th century, but now the Medici family is influencing major change. Due to the family’s support in arts and humanities the Renaissance has taken place. During the renaissance civilians primary focus was the idea that everyone should be educated and participate in arts and science. This change in the way people thought was influenced by the Medici family. The Medici family flourished financially in the 1400’s and continued to gain power politically in the 14th century. Several members of the Medici family created success for the
Renaissance Italy was full of famous powerful families: The Medici who ruled Florence, the Sforza ruled Milan and Forli. But out of all of them, the Borgia Family were the most famous and infamous that have ever graced the pages of history. The Borgia’s are a fascination to study because history is so divided over them. They used the power of the Catholic Church for their own personal fortune and political power. They were rumored to have committed every sin and vice under the sun. Many in their time period believed that they were mass poisoners. Yet at the same time, their sins paralleled those of most the nobility and royalty of that age, including previous popes. The Borgia’s presided over some of the most important events of the times; the Bonfire of the Vanities, the Spanish inquisition, the expulsion of the Jews from Spain, the Italian Wars, and, Treaty of Tordesillas. They can also be traced to the beginnings of the Protestant Reformation. This paper tells of the Borgia’s rise and fall in the Papacy and their deeds and impact on the world at the time.
The four scenes that best illustrate the theme of selfishness and the realities of a self-centered life, and empathy are the first scene in which Juvencio begged his son to save him, the scene in which Juvencio describes the crime he committed with a total lack of empathy, the scene in which don lupe describes the viciousness with which Juvencio killed his father, and the scene in which don lupe’s son orders that Juvencio be killed. All of these factors add up to a very interesting work of
The author’s purpose is to also allow the audience to understand the way the guards and superintendent felt towards the prisoners. We see this when the superintendent is upset because the execution is running late, and says, “For God’s sake hurry up, Francis.” And “The man ought to have been dead by this time.” This allows the reader to see the disrespect the authority has towards the prisoners.
When somebody abuses a great amount of power, that individual can lose all of their power. The struggle against someone who abuses power is perfectly depicted in the novel, One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest, by Ken Kesey. When someone abuses their power, they can impose certain feelings and actions on others. If someone tries to conceal their personality. Finally, if someone abuses power and is constantly challenged by another individual who is trying to take the power abuser’s power away from them, the power abuser will always be frightened of his or her challenger.
Their heart-rending deaths are of course tragic, resulting as they do from an unforeseeable flaw in Friar Laurence's well-intentioned but unlikely plan. Their lives, however, serve to prove that young love is viable, that young people know what they want and will go to extreme lengths to find it. The fair (ie beautiful) city of Verona is a city of promise, one where young love can flourish; it is also a city where swords are drawn in an instant and where life can perish on a sword-point. In such a situation, we cannot be surprised at the existence of a smouldering feud between two prominent families (the Capulets and the Montagues) nor should we be surprised if the young people do not always follow their parents' wishes.
The Vicario brothers in Gabriel García Márquez’s Chronicle of a Death Foretold and Esteban Trueba of Isabel Allende’s The House of the Spirits are prime examples of vengeance not being sweet relief, but instead a bitter burden. Even if it is meant to protect personal morals and values, the act of escalating the anger into violence will never satisfy. The keen understandings of the Chronicle of a Death Foretold’s narrator and Alba give hope for the future to not be rot by the illogical thought that revenge is sweet because in reality, it eventually turns bitter.
Florence, Italy was a city just like any other during the Renaissance. It was city of 50,000 people, less than there were in Paris and Venice but more than most other European cities. The busiest parts of the city were the Ponte Vecchio, a place lined with markets and houses, the neighborhood of the Orsanmichele and Mercato Vecchio, or the Old Market. Florence was a place of beauty and leisure. A Venetian visitor once said, “There is in my opinion no region more sweeter than that wherein Florence is a placed for Florence is situated in a plain surrounded on all sides by hills and mountains…And the hills are fertile cultivated, pleasant…” (Unger, pg. 1). Florence was a very prosperous city; it made fortunes off of wool and banking trades. A certain Florentine family contributed to the vast wealth as well. The Medici family was no doubt the foundation of prosperity for Florence.
Power has been defined as the psychological relations over another to get them to do what you want them to do. We are exposed to forms of power from the time of birth. Our parents exercise power over us to behave in a way they deem appropriate. In school, teachers use their power to help us learn. When we enter the work world the power of our boss motivates us to perform and desire to move up the corporate ladder so that we too can intimidate someone with power one day. In Joseph Conrad’s Heart of Darkness Kurtz had a power over the jungle and its people that was inexplicable.
“The Prince”, by Niccolo Machiavelli, is a series of letters written to the current ruler of Italy, Lorenzo de’ Medici. These letters are a “how-to” guide on what to do and what not to do. He uses examples to further express his views on the subject. The main purpose was to inform the reader how to effectively rule and be an acceptable Prince. Any ruler who wishes to keep absolute control of his principality must use not only wisdom and skill, but cunning and cruelness through fear rather than love. Machiavelli writes this book as his summary of all the deeds of great men.