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+ The Renaissance
+
The Renaissance
+ The Renaissance: 5 W’s
Who: Europeans
What: The term Renaissance literally means “rebirth” in
Italian
Where: Began in Italy, but spread throughout Europe over
time
When: 1350-1600
Why: People became more educated and more interested in
the world around them, as well as previous civilizations
+ Why Italy? Why Then?
Italy was a very urban area
No feudalism
City-States
On the Mediterranean
Middle Class merchants
Urbanization began as
more and more people
wanted to live in the cities
An urban society allowed
for the spread of ideas
+ Why Italy? Why Then?
After the Crusades and the Plague that tore
Europe apart, Italian people became
interested in:
How to solve the problems of the Plague
Their own past
Roman Empire
+ So what was the Renaissance a
rebirth of?
Classical cultures and values
Independent thinking
A secular viewpoint of the world
+ Reborn: Classical Cultures
Greek and Roman ideas about
Art
Less emphasis on religion and
more on people’s everyday lives
Education
Important to the Greeks and
Romans, everyone should be
taught to think
Government
Everyone should be involved, not
just a king and his nobles
+ Reborn: Independent Thinking
People began to challenge
the traditions and teachings
of the Church!
As people learned more
and more about classical
culture and classical values,
the values of the time
began to change
+ Reborn: Secular Views
Secular: non-religious
A more worldly viewpoint,
rather than a religious one
Enjoyment of material
things, not just focusing on
the after life
+ And so it begins…
Began in Italian
cities and spread to
other parts of
Europe
This did NOT
happen overnight!
1300-1600
Changes were very
slow and gradual
+ Changes: Humanism
A strong interest in classical
writings
Promoted ideas such as:
Individualism and self-worth
Fulfillment in life on earth
Developing the “ideal” person
+ Humanism in Action
Humanist authors wrote in Italian instead of
Latin! (gasp!)
Humanist authors wrote about the daily
lives and feelings of regular people
Francesco Petrarca wrote 366 sonnets for the
woman he loved
Humanist authors wrote about political
science/government
Niccolo Machiavelli wrote The Prince, which
analyzed the politics of Italy
+ Renaissance Religion
The Vatican (head of the
Church) was the most
powerful social class before
the Renaissance
Ornate churches and
palaces were built in the
Vatican City
The roles of the popes were
more focused on politics
than their religious duties
+ Renaissance Popes
Had very expensive tastes
Spent Church money on
forms of entertainment
Pope Alexander VI was elected
to office by bribing the
College of Cardinals
Pope Leo X had his palace
stocked with exotic animals so
he could entertain hunters
