The Renaissance

1582 Words4 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: The Catholic Church's role in the renaissance

During the 1400s and 1500s in mainly Italy there was a major change that took place in all aspects of life. This was called the Renaissance and was a movement that helped give rebirth to culture and the arts. This movement went away from the medieval times that had forced a feudalist system on its people. The Medieval times were a dark period in European history that saw a major decline in arts and government. This declining can be attributed to a number of different reasons. One of which was the Bubonic Plague that spread throughout Europe and Asia and killed millions of its inhabitants. This was the final nail in the medieval coffin. Throughout these times the major focus for government and the arts were all religion oriented. The Black Death killed with no discrimination and took the lives of priest and thieves alike. This caused many to question their religion. After all, how could one preach that good people will be held in high regards with their lord when they can die from the same vicious disease as hookers or evil people? The Black Death was also somewhat of a cleansing for many societies. Although it was a horrible epidemic it took care of the rapid population expansion and just like a with brush clear-cut the undergrowth to allow for more growth to occur. This in fact did happen and after the Plague has resided new ideas and policies grew from it. There were now more areas that people could be skilled in and housing and work were in great need which caused and economic boom. With this prosperity allowed more time for positive thinking and this thinking lead people to go back and study their humanity and to see how they could improve themselves.

The rebirth started in northern Italy and gave rise to many great improve...

... middle of paper ...

...eans saw it first in action during this time. The Renaissance saw many improvements in everything from conditions of living to ideals and perception. This time was exactly that, a shift in perspective. It demonstrated how growth is good and how crisis's can turn out to be helpful in the long run although they may see tragic at the time they occur. During the Medieval period, there were two focal points to European society: feudalism and the Church; the first to govern the material world, the second to govern the spiritual world. Both feudalism and the Church were highly-structured and rigid systems, intolerant of change, and both clearly supported the proposition that the rights of the individual be lower than the rules of society.

The thing that eroded the power of these institutions, and was central to the Renaissance, was the rebirth of the individual in society.

Show More
Related

  • The Renaissance Period in Europe

    689 Words  | 2 Pages

    The Renaissance Period is widely known for the abundance of amazing portraiture that circulated around Europe. During the Renaissance, Albrecht Dürer, a German artist painted a self-portrait in 1500 that had qualities that differed from the usual style of artist in that time (Chauhan). Jean Clouet also painted a portrait for the King of France and became the official court painter. Both artists had a talent for portraiture, while their styles were quite different. King Francis I wanted to be seen as a powerful man, and appointed Clouet to paint him in a classically renaissance way that highlights his wealth and authority. Dürer, described as a cocky, self-centered man, painted himself in a light that is unique and puts him on a ‘holy’ pedestal (Stokstad 356). In this essay I will show how although both paintings have clear differences with their style, both men in the compositions are conveyed in a great and very powerful sense.

    Read More

  • Differentiating the Renaissance Period and Middle Ages Era in Europe

    1003 Words  | 3 Pages

    ... life in the early modern period. “Thus, from the beginning, the double conception of medieval darkness and subsequent cultural rebirth was colored by the acceptance of classical standards…” (Doc.1) Writers and thinkers were inspired by the classical culture of the Greeks and Romans. They found their society much more “fascinating” than feudal and religious literature. They re-identified architecture, astronomy, medicine, and math. They corrected the order of the Church and began to believe again in karma, reincarnation and moksha. Renaissance men advanced the knowledge of human body, scientific calculations, and changed building attributes. As the change of these amenities came a change in the social structure. More men and women became literate, resulting in the increase and need for universities. Education. The Renaissance has a long and complex historiography.

    Read More

  • Italian Renissance and the Reformation

    1465 Words  | 3 Pages

    Between the Renaissance and the Reformation, many important changes came along to society. One of the most important was the new idea of humanism which led to magnificent progression in art, architecture, and literature. Another important change was with religion. An example of this would be the creation of Protestantism when people began disagreeing with the decisions of the Catholic Church. All of these changes were important in helping the people still hurting from the Black Death, as well as building a foundation for today’s society.

    Read More

  • The Art of the Renaissance

    2065 Words  | 5 Pages

    Though the Renaissance era included all of Europe, Italy was the cradle of the movement. The cities of Florence, Rome and Venice were of great importance to this period. Major artists created art mainly in these three. As the center of Italy, Rome held the residence of the Pope and many other important factors. Throughout history, the Roman Catholic Church was very insistent on promoting their ideas. During this time, they used artists and their creativity to promote the Bible and other aspects of their beliefs. Artists were paid, or commissioned by patrons (often the Pope) to create art they wanted. One of the most ambitious patrons was Pope Julius II, who realized the impact visual images had on people’s ideas (Kleiner, 599). Pope Julius II was called the warring Pope, because he often went and involved himself in wars. He also held very humanistic ideas. Because of this, Michelangelo’s relationship to Pope Julius II was very different from his relationship with Pope Leo X, who succeeded Julius II. Julius, because of his adaptions to humanistic thoughts, he let Michelangelo express himself to the fullest, even when forcing him to paint the Sistine Chapel. Leo X, however, was very critical of everything Michelangelo set out upon. This resulted a strained relationship, and eventually abandonment of projects that were supposed to be completed. It is clear that Pope Julius II had a liking for Michelangelo, while the Medici’s looked on him as a type of lowly artist subject to their will.

    Read More

  • Middle Ages and The Renaissance

    543 Words  | 2 Pages

    In the year of 1348 the black death (a.k.a Plague) arrived in England. Everyone dying left and right it was a major disaster. people in the middle ages were confused and scared or what was going on and curious to why this is happening. Nearly half of the population was dead cause by the black death. However after this world wide catastrophe along came the Renaissance. In my opinion the Renaissance is a pick up from what had happen early ( Black Death). However there have their similarities and differences for examples in the Middles Ages God was control to peoples live and the Renaissance did not apply to that. Furthermore the Renaissance they had invention creativity. Finally both The Middle ages and The Renaissance was Art Architecture.

    Read More

  • Dbq How Did Renaissance Change Man's View Of Man

    562 Words  | 2 Pages

    The period of the Renaissance changed a man's view of man. The Renaissance was a new life changing way for everyone in the middle ages for both men and women. A very important quote from the document “People saw themselves in a new way”. The build up of how the Renaissance started and this time is called the middle ages and was a period of time which stretched from 500 ce to about 1350 during the middle ages the Roman Catholic church and the Pope were primary players.For over 300 years Renaissance spread from Italy to Western Europe.The way it spread was like a car moving from place to place. The main question the document is asking is “How did Renaissance change man’s view of man “? One major key term in that question is Renaissance and “this means rebirth”. My main thesis is the way the renaissance has changed man’s view of man and

    Read More

  • Essay On The History Of The Middle Ages

    547 Words  | 2 Pages

    The era of the Middle Ages does not paint a bright picture for many people because it was a dark time in history. The Middle Ages were a terrible time to live in with the grime, debauchery, and disease. The rich were very well off while the poor made it through a hard life. The decline of the Middle Ages was at the end of the fourteenth century because of, “crop failures, famine, population decline, plagues, stagnating production, unemployment, inflation, devastating warfare, abandoned villages, and violent rebellions by the poor and weak of towns and countryside, who were ruthlessly suppressed by the upper classes.”1 Even though the Middle Ages were a time of adversity it did have great growth...

    Read More

  • The Renaissance Time Era

    1222 Words  | 3 Pages

    This time era was filled with many good things that allow modern life to exist. The Renaissance was a time of many new ideas and many new practices in medicine, entertainment, punishments and many other topics. Without the knowledge that was gained in this era many things that we take for granted now would never of existed. In this essay I will tell you about the many things that occurred during this time period and how people in this time would have lived their daily lives.

    Read More

  • Renaissance and Reformation

    797 Words  | 2 Pages

    As previously stated, the renaissance was the rebirth of society. What led to this was a decrease in faith because of the great schism, a conflict between two popes, where both said they were the pope. People were starting to take a secular view compared to what the church told them to believe. Society was changing to where individual viewpoints mattered. With politics starting to matter, and a better economy, places were beginning to be city centered, specifically city states, which are urban societies that have taken secular views.

    Read More

  • Renaissance In The Middle Ages

    548 Words  | 2 Pages

    The renaissance was a time in history when people began a new outlook on life. Individualistic views and glorification of the human self and body became very prominent during this time especially in the art and renaissance culture. The new view of individualism showed in every phase of the renaissance. Art in the form of paintings and sculptures, mirror the glorification of the human form. Literature was more secular and exhibited individualism and improvement of individuals, this was also shown in education. As well as the revival of the classics and the new outlook on the human mind and it’s

    Read More

  • A Comparison of The Renaissance and Baroque Periods

    1129 Words  | 3 Pages

    Because of that , many people were driven away from the traditions of the church and sought more freedom of expression and individualism. As economies improved, there was more wealth and a desire for self improvement which greatly influenced the arts. While... ...

    Read More

  • How Did The Renaissance Affect The Economy

    701 Words  | 2 Pages

    Therefore, this lead to a new life for the people’s marriage and family life, patronage of the arts, the society’s secular outlook on things, and even their individualism. It is believed that the development of the Renaissance was caused because of the women not being able to remarry after the passing of their first husband, but they receive all of their husband’s inheritance. Therefore, this caused a larger number of singles which is believed to be why the Renaissance reputation was sodomy, prostitution, and love triangles. However, women had the advantage because if they were married they had wealth and after their husband’s death they had their freedom. Art served as a political function because of its power that it served like that of civic pride for patriotism. Art became so important that it caused it to people to begin to buy it as an investment. Secularism and Individualism were outlooks on the Renaissance. Secularism grew because of the ability for people to fulfill their lives with anything that their money could buy which helped the art and literature during the Renaissance.

    Read More

  • Early Renaissance Art

    926 Words  | 2 Pages

    People want to study the past and learn more about culture. People began to see importance in human emotion, and they began to see that there was much more than just religion. Europe was facing many problems, like the Black Death. But the problems caused a shift in the world view of people in 14th century Italy. During the early 1400’s, Europe witnessed a major rebirth of fine art, painting, sculpture, drawing and architecture.

    Read More

  • Renaissance: A Cultural Movement Of The Renaissance

    1266 Words  | 3 Pages

    The Renaissance or “rebirth” is a cultural movement that started in Italy during the late 14th century and expanded to the early 17th century. The Renaissance was a bridge that allowed Western Europe to move from the medieval era to the modern era. Renaissance later spread to other parts of Europe. Advances in technology allowed art and architecture to flourish during the Renaissance era. Cities like Florence in Italy saw a spike in artists and architects who have changed from mere paid skilled laborers to professional artists.

    Read More

  • Renaisance Education: Values and Purposes

    823 Words  | 2 Pages

    The Renaissance was a time of change. It began in Italy during the 14th century, and spread throughout the North. People all over Europe were affected, for the better and for the worse. Some people finally had a chance to control their own fate. Others, like upper class women, lost their social status. The values and purposes of Renaissance education were to improve the society, increase the economy, and restore the religious beliefs.

    Read More

More about The Renaissance

Open Document