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What was the Renaissance?
• The “rebirth” of learning that took place after the Middle Ages (aka the Dark Ages)
• Many great works of art, literature and philosophy were created
• This ends up leading to important changes in religion as well (the Reformation)
Why do we study the Renaissance?
• Art & Architecture of the time is still admired and copied today.
• People still argue about the best ways to get and keep power – a topic of Machiavelli’s The Prince
• Shakespeare’s plays are still as popular today as they were when he wrote them
• Mass production of books was created during this time• Christianity radically changed setting off tensions between
many Christian groups that still exist today
1. Thriving Cities
• Trade created by the crusades led to growth for Italian cities
• They are the easiest place to share/spread ideas
2. Wealthy Merchant Class
• Trade=wealth=rich merchants=political power
• Believed they deserved power because of their individual merit – not who their ancestors were.
• Most famous – Medici Family of Florence.
Focus of Renaissance: Humanism
• Individual worth• Importance of human achievement• Importance of the human experience
• Not anti-religious, but less based on religion as a philosophy
Humanism’s Effects on Art
Led to: • Realism• Focus on the human form• Emotion• Unique representations of
human faces
Humanism’s Effects on Politics
• Emphasized independent states instead of a community of Christendom
• Led to progress – change seen as driven by people, not God
Humanism’s Effects on Knowledge
• Led to increased education
• More reading and literature
• Scientific Advancements
Medieval Art
• Religious subjects
• Important figures larger than those around them
• Lack of realism• Faces show no
emotion• Scenes
composed, not real
Renaissance Art
• In Renaissance Art we begin to see:– Perspective– Return to nude figures,
naturalism– Realism (proportion &
balance)– Nature– Non-religious subjects