Renaissance Humanism for Women

Did the Renaissance society produce a Renaissance for women? The term Renaissance, meaning “rebirth”, may seem to have an equal meaning for men and women alike. However, seen through the primary and secondary sources, it is clear that women were left out of the extraordinary advances that were accomplished. The intellectual, cultural, and artistic revival began in the 1300s in Italy and by the 1500s, had spread to include all of Western Europe. Renaissance Humanism shaped people to grow to their full potential and to apply their natural aptitude to help the community. While the society definitely did shape a renaissance for men, women were excluded from the advancements of education and culture therefore failing to create a renaissance for women. The primary and secondary sources show that women were not given an equal education and were banished from society, depicting the ways in which women were deprived from experiencing of rebirth of society.

While most renaissance readings ignore the role of women in the Renaissance, the sources make clear that throughout the time of “rebirth”, women were not given an equal education to men. The Renaissance education focused on the classics of philosophy, mathematics, and classical literature to produce a well-rounded individual. This definition however, fit that of only a man. In Document A, Jakob Burckhardt wrote that women in society were not expected to be active participants, but instead, their function was to only influence the distinguished men. Women did not contribute to decisions, but instead, stood up for their spouse’s opinion. Document B, by J. Stephan Edwards, also supported Burckhardt by writing that education for men and women were different. The study of liberal arts was...

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...mestic roles while men had the separate role in public domains. Lastly, Martin Luther in Document G writes that, “Women ought to stay home; the way they were created indicates this.” Luther argued that because men have broad shoulders and narrow hips, they possess more intelligence than women who have narrow shoulders and broad hips. The members of the Renaissance period truly believed that women were not fit to be living the life equal to a man’s.

In conclusion, the Renaissance period completely disregarded producing a Renaissance for women. Not only did the sources show that education given to the sexes was different, but they also depicted the ways in which women were completely banished from society. Though the term “Renaissance” means “rebirth” it was only referring to the further advances for men, excluding women from all improvements and developments.