How Did the Renaissance Change Man's view of Man?

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When a person lays their eyes on a stranger, anywhere, they may make false accusations about them. They may look menacing and mean, but if you get to know them and understand them, they may be the sweetest person you know. So in what way did their personality make you think differently about them? The same question can be asked about the Renaissance, but instead of people, a time period. 500 CE to about 1350 CE was the time period called the Middle Ages, where the lifestyle of a European was based upon the Roman Catholic Church and the Pope. At this time, schools were few, and illiteracy was very common among the citizens. The serfs, which were peasant farmers who worked for a lord, looked up to the Catholic Church and so did other Europeans. Renaissance art and literature focused on Jesus Christ and sin at the time. But, at around the 1300's, literacy spread and more serfs gained freedom and took up the idea of trade. At this time as well, a way of life called humanism developed, "which praised the beauty and intelligence of the individual", as stated in the Background Essay. This time period could be considered a high- class movement, but at the same time, shopkeepers and street-sweepers could afford books and articles discussing new ideas. The invention of the printing press in the 1400's boosted the movement and momentum of the Renaissance, increasing the amount of books available and causing illiteracy to decrease, and literacy to increase. Eventually, the literate scholars started to question the teachings of the church. But, what actually made them change their minds? Renaissance thinkers were interested in man's real nature and his place in the real world. Three good examples of this can be seen in Renaissance painting, li...

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...ad dissected human corpses to better portray what the human body looked like to his medical students. This method also increased their knowledge of the human body more. The illustration shown in Document D displayed each and every muscle and tissue that Andreas discovered during his dissections. His way of studying did nothing but help educate his students and other scholars, as well.
Renaissance-era ideas about the nature of man and how they changed from medieval times can be found in several areas including art, literature, and anatomy. As seen in each document, the changes have been drastic and can be seen today. William Shakespeare changed our thought on literature and Leonardo da Vinci changed our perspective on artistic details. In Renaissance times, these accomplishments could have been seen as hobbies, but today, they have made there way to becoming careers.

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