9/14/15  

1  

The  Renaissance  The  Rela1vely  Quick,  Hopefully  

Painless  Version  

What  is  the  Renaissance?  

•  How  did  the  people  involved  feel  about  this  period?  

•  Periodiza1on  of    history  

What  Historians  are  Saying  

•  The  term  Renaissance  was  created  about  300  years  later  

•  But  ins1tu1ons  that  were  vital  for  the  “Renaissance”  that  came  out  of  the  High  Middle  Ages  

All  that  being  said…  •  There  were  s1ll  significant  changes  that  came  out  of  the  “Renaissance”  which  started  in  about  1400s  

•  Happened  all  over  Europe  but  Italy  becomes  the  focal  point    •  Specifically  Northern  and  Central  Italy  

Why  Italy?  

•  There  are  a  few  reasons  why  Italy  became  such  a  focal  point:  

1.  Natural  gateway:  you  have  to  go  past  Italy  in  order  to  get  to  the  rest  of  Europe    

2.  City-­‐States:  the  trading  power  of  Italy  led  to  these  large  city-­‐states  which  are  always  good  places  for  intellectual  pursuits  (universi1es,  libraries)  

 

Why  Italy  con’t  3.    Merchants  and  the  

 Medici:  Merchants    dominated  poli1cs  in    these  city-­‐states  because    they  became  extremely    wealthy  from  the  trade  •  Most  famous  of  these  families  was  the  Medici  family  out  of  Florence    –  They  were  a  banking  family  that  had  branches  throughout  Italy  and  the  rest  of  Europe  

–  They  were  huge  supporters  of  the  Renaissance  ar1sts,  including  Michelangelo  and  Donatello  

9/14/15  

2  

Italy  pt.  3  4.    Heritage  of  Rome  (and          

 Greece):  the  ruins  of  Rome    were  s1ll  very  visible  in  these    places    •  The  aqueducts  were  s1ll  being  used  by  most  of  these  places  

•  The  roads  that  the  Romans  had  constructed  for  trading  were  s1ll  in  use  

•  Also  Constan1nople  fell  in  1453  which  forced  many  scholars  out  of  the  city  and  many  brought  the  Greek  and  Roman  “classics”  with  them  

Classical  and  Worldly  Values  •  Secularism  in  the  Renaissance?  –  Non-­‐religious  feelings  –  Focus  on  the  worldly  stuff  

•  Humanism  –  the  study  of  the  La1n  and  Greek  classics  and  of  the  Church  Fathers  for  their  own  sake  –  And  you  had  to  read  these  works  in  the  original  language  or  you  weren’t  doing  it  right  

Patrons  of  the  Arts  •  With  all  the  wealth  that  is  being  built  up  in  Italy,  the  leaders  of  the  city-­‐states  are  looking  for  something  to  do  with  it  so  they  start  suppor1ng  ar1sts  –  Some  of  this  is  city-­‐states  compe1ng  with  each  other    

•  Church  leaders  did  the  same  thing    –  St.  Peter’s  Basilica  

The  Ideal  Man  and  Woman    

•  Ideal  man:  –  Strove  to  master  almost  every  area  of  study  

–  Baldassare  Cas1glione  –  The  Cour)er  (1528)  

•  Ideal  Woman:  –  Should  know  the  classics  and  be  charming  but  not  seek  fame  

–  They  were  expected  to  inspire  art  but  not  create  it  

–  Excep1ons:  •  Isabella  d’Este    

– Married  the  leader  of  Mantua  where  she  patronized  many  Renaissance  ar1sts  and  built  a  famous  art  collec1on    

9/14/15  

3  

Revolu1ons  in  Art  •  Donatello  –  Carved  his  statues  in  natural  poses,  that  had  expression  and  personality  

–  The  David  is  his  most  famous  piece  

•  Leonardo  di  Vinci  –  Painter,  sculptor,  inventor,  scien1st    

– Mona  Lisa  is  one  of  his  most  famous  works  but  he  also  painted  the  Last  Supper  

•  Michelangelo  –  Painter,  sculptor,  inventor,  scien1st    

– Heavily  influenced  by  classical  art  and  created  figures  that  are  heroic  and  powerful  looking  

–  Sis1ne  Chapel  is  one  of  his  most  famous  works  

•  Raphael  – Madonna  and  Child  was  one  of  his  favorite  topics    

–  The  School  of  Athens  is  one  of  his  most  famous  

•  Sofonisba  Anguissola  – One  of  the  few  woman  to  gain  prominence    

– Known  for  pain1ng  portraits  of  her  sisters  and  King  Philip  II  of  Spain  

•  Artemisia  Gen1leschi  – Painted  strong  heroic  women    

– worked  with  her  father,  who  was  also  her  teacher  

Changes  in  Literature  •  Wri1ng  in  the  vernacular  –  na1ve  language  –  Petrarch:  

•  One  of  the  most  influen1al  humanists    •  “Father  of  the  Renaissance”  •  Wrote  sonnets  about  a  mysterious  woman    

–  Boccaccio:  •  Wrote  the  Decameron  which  was  a  collec1on  of  off  color-­‐stories  

•  Presents  quite  a  lot  of  personality  and  flaws  – Machiavelli:  

•  Wrote  The  Prince  which  was  a  way  for  him  to  gain  favor  with  the  Medici’s  aier  they  had  run  him  out  of  Florence    

•  “The  ends  jus1fy  the  means”  •  “Its  beker  to  be  feared  than  loved”  

–  Vikoria  Colonna  •  She  wrote  to  Michelangelo,  exchanging  sonnets  •  Helped  Cas1glione  publish  his  The  Cour)er  

The  Northern  Renaissance  •  Spread  of  Ar1s1c  Ideas  – Dürer  (German)  •  Famous  for  woodcuts  and  engravings  

–  Jan  van  Eyck  (Flemish)  •  One  of  the  first  to  use  the  newly  developed  oil  based  paints  with  techniques  that  painters  today  s1ll  use  

•  Pain1ngs  display  unusually  realis1c  details  and  reveal  the  personali1es  of  his  subjects  

– Peter  Bruegel  (Flemish)  •  Skillful  at  portraying  large  groups  of  people  •  Used  scenes  from  everyday  life  like  weddings,  dances,  and  harvests  

•  Bright  colors,  vivid  details,  and  balanced  space  

9/14/15  

4  

Northern  Writers  •  One  of  the  most  famous  is  Erasmus  from  the  Holy  Roman  Empire  (Germany)  – He  translated  the  New  Testament  from  Greek    

– He  taught  at  Cambridge  where  he  wrote  The  Praise  of  Folly,  a  sa1rical  examina1on  of  society  in  general  and  the  various  abuses  of  the  Church  

– Hugely  important  for  the  Reforma1on  even  though  he  never  rejected  the  Catholic  Church  

Northern  Writers    •  Chris1ne  de  Pizan  

–  First  woman  to  ever  earn  a  living  as  a  writer  

–  One  of  the  first  Europeans  to  ques1on  the  different  treatment  of  boys  and  girls  in  The  Book  of  the  City  of  Ladies  

•  Thomas  More  –  Tried  to  model  a  beker  society  using  a  term  called  “utopia”  which  by  the  way  is  taken  from  Plato  (a  Greek  thinker)  •  Wanted  policies  governed  by  reason  

–  Canonized  as  a  Catholic  saint  aier  he  was  killed  by  Henry  VIII  

•  Shakespeare  –  Loved  using  the  classics  in  his  plays    –  Many  of  his  plays  exam  human  flaws  

The  Inven1on  of  the  Prin1ng  Press  

•  Johann  Gutenberg  – Never  actually  made  any  money  off  his  prin1ng  press  because  he  decided  to  print  a  bible    

– However,  this  becomes  amazingly  important  in  history,  especially  for  the  Reforma1on  and  Scien1fic  Revolu1on  

Legacy  of  the  Renaissance  •  Changes  in  the  Arts  – Drew  on  techniques  and  styles  of  classical  Greece  and  Rome  –  Pain1ngs  and  sculptures  portrayed  individuals  and  nature  in  more  realis1c  and  lifelike  ways  

–  Focus  on  classical  literature  and  its  imita1on  

•  Changes  in  Society  –  Prin1ng  Press!  –  People  began  to  ques1on  poli1cal  structures  and  religious  prac1ces    

–  Sets  the  stage  for  the  Reforma1on    –  Changes  the  way  people  related  to  each  other  literarily  with  the  availability  of  vernacular  works