Painting and Sculpture Were Not the Only Arts Revolutionized During

the Renaissance

The Writers of the Renaissance

Machiavelli

Machiavelli was born in Florence

Machiavelli was born into a tumultuous era

Popes were leading armies, and wealthy city-states of Italy were falling into the hands of foreign powers

It was a time of constantly shifting alliances and governments rising and falling in the space of weeks.

The Prince

Why did Machiavelli write The Prince?

– Bitter about invasion by foreigners

– Disliked turmoil caused by Spanish and French invasions

The Question

What question did Machiavelli try to answer?

– Why did some rulers succeed and others fail?

– How can a ruler gain power and keep it despite his enemies?

Strategies

What kinds of strategies did Machiavelli offer rulers?– Be as strong as a lion to fight enemies– Be as shrewd as a fox to outwit enemies– A prince might have to trick his enemies and

even his own people for the good of the state. What phrase is Machiavelli associated

with?– The ends justify the means

Machiavelli’s Legacy

What has Machiavelli’s name come to stand for?– Trickery and double-dealing

What was Machiavelli like himself?– Upright, honest and religious

Like Machiavelli and Castiglione, Dante Was an

Important Renaissance Writer…

Dante’s Divine Comedy was very influential during the Renaissance

In The Divine Comedy Dante describes adventures in three different settings:

–Paradise

–Purgatory

– Inferno

In the story, Dante is accompanied on his trip by Bernard of Clairvaux (1090-53) and Virgil (70 B.C-19 B.C).– Both of these men are classical writers

How does this story reflect the Values of the Renaissance?

Dante uses vernacular for the first time

What is vernacular?– Vernacular is the

language commonly used by average people

– Before the Divine Comedy, poets wrote in a style which was not accessible to “regular” people.

How would using vernacular encourage the spread of Renaissance ideas?

Objectives

Explain how the Renaissance spread.

Compare & contrast the It. Ren. w/the N. Ren.

Where it all began Flanders

Not this Flanders BUT……. This Flanders

Johann Gutenberg

Printing Press Produce books 500x

faster Books were cheaper Non-religious books

were printed

Vernacular

Everyday language of the people in a country or region, as distinct from official or formal language

Trade

Pop. begins to increase = Trade increases Diffusion of Culture

Ideas spread

Writers of the Northern Renaissance

By 1500s, Renaissance ideas began to spread throughout Europe

In the Northern Renaissance, writers focused more on ethics than they did in Italy

Writers of the Northern Renaissance

Thomas More (1478-1535) Wrote Utopia Wrote about Ideal society

Ideal society was classless, all things were owned by everyone

Writers of the Northern Renaissance

Erasmus (1466-1536)• Wrote Praise of Folly

• Satirized human stupidity, greed and intolerance

• Made fun of the teachings of the church

• Satire: use of irony and sarcasm to make fun of the world

Writers of the Northern Renaissance

William Shakespeare (1564-1616) 1 of the greatest playwrights of all

time

An influence on the language of Eng.

Invented words like amazement dislocated lackluster premeditated

Renaissance Art in Northern Europe

Italy change inspired by humanism emphasis on revival of the values of classic Greece &

Rome.

No. Europe change driven by religious reform return to Christian values Interest in landscapes. emphasis on middle-class/peasant life.

Jan van Eyck

Jan van Eyck created realistic

images Very detailed Used subtle colors

Giovanni Arnolfini and His

Wife

(Wedding Portrait)

Jan Van

Eyck

1434

Jan van Eyck - Giovanni Arnolfini & His Wife (details)

Massys’ The Moneylender & His Wife, 1514

Hans Holbein, the Younger (1497-1543)

One of the great German artists

Henry VIII was his patron

Great portraitist noted for: Doesn’t conceal the

weaknesses of his subjects.

Hans Holbein the Younger

• Paintings of the British royal family in almost photographic detail.

• The Tudors (British Royal Family)

Jane Seymour

Henry VIII

Pieter Bruegel the Elder (1525-1569)

A master of landscapes; not a portraitist. People in his works often have

round, blank, faces. They are expressionless,

mindless, and sometimes malicious.

They are types, rather than individuals.

Their purpose is to convey a message.

Bruegel’s, Tower of Babel, 1563

Bruegel’s, Mad Meg, 1562