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Renatio The Renaissance 1375-1527 (give or take a few years). AP European. When did it begin? . Literary beginnings: death of Petrarch (1374) and Boccaccio (1375) extension of Middle Ages? or break from Middle Ages? . Who is Jakob Burkhardt? And why do we care?.
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Renatio The Renaissance1375-1527 (give or take a few years) AP European
When did it begin? • Literary beginnings: death of Petrarch (1374) and Boccaccio (1375) • extension of Middle Ages? or break from Middle Ages? Who is Jakob Burkhardt? And why do we care?
What do historians think today? • not only interested in High Culture, e.g. humanist though, reformation theology, scientific discovery, and exploration • also concerned with material condition, medieval continuities, and popular belief • magic/witchcraft, vagrancy, disease, and decimation of colonial populations
Why in Italy? • Politics • Economics • Religion • Society • Intellectual • Artistic
Middles Ages: Ambassador = servant to all Christendom “An ambassador is sacred because he acts for the general welfare…the business of an ambassador is peace.” Renaissance: Resident ambassador “The first duty of an ambassador is exactly the same as that of any other servant of government, that is, to do, say, advise, and think whatever may best serve the preservation and aggrandizement of his own state.” Birth of modern diplomacy New Diplomacy in the Italian Renaissance
Renatio The Renaissance • renatio: Latin, ‘rebirth’; from Greek palingenesis, ‘spiritual rebirth /resurrection from the dead’ • “The essence of the Renaissance lay not in any sudden rediscovery of classical civilization but rather in the use which was made of classical models to test the authority underlying conventional taste and wisdom.” Davies: Europe: A History. Oxford University Press: 1996. 471
Whom did it involve? • small intellectual elite (Examples??) • some politicians _______________ • artists/authors ________________ • religious reformers _____________ • large sectors of Europe remain untouched (such as??)
Humanism, Secularism, Rationalism = Reforms in Education • Latin term humanitas, meaning human virtue • philosophical movement that began in Italy in the 15th century • rejected ideas of supernatural supremacy over the reasoning capacity of human beings. • Pietro Paolo Vergerio (1370-1444) freedom = development of full potential • emphasized classical studies (called humanities), which included rhetoric, poetry, and philosophy, and it continues to influence education and philosophical thinking today.
The Individual – Center of Humanism • God-given ingenuity could/should unravel the secrets of God’s universe • Man’s fate could be controlled and improved • Sense of liberation due to awareness of human potential Wisdom + Virtue = Humanism • Virtú = man (vir) • self-sufficient • self-confident • takes advantage of opportunities How does Machiavelli describe a person of virtú? (U1.2 #27)
Neoplatonism (U1.2 #2, 3) • Neoplatonism • Florentine Platonic Academy (Cosimo de’ Medici) • Plato traslated by Marisilio Ficino • What is neoplatonism? • Fusion of Christianity & Platonism • Great Chain of Being Plants (material) ←MAN GOD (spiritual)
Giovanni Pico della Mirandola (1462-1494) (U1.2 #4 Why?) • Read exerpt pg. 292 • Oration on the Dignity of Man • new emphasis on free will (divine, not downfall) • Our desire / ability to study and understand nature, gives us the potential to become sages / magi.
Lorenzo Valla • Ad fontes– return to the source • In what way(s) did Valla’s strong belief in good scholarly research end up causing the Catholic Church additional problems in the mid-15th century?
Civic Humanism • Cultivation of authors, such as Cicero, Homer, Virgil BUT ALSO new local histories (Bruni’s History of the Florentine People) • Leonardo Bruni, The New Cicero – glorification of Cicero as politician + author; life of participation and activity • Purpose of historical writing is to teach a lesson (learn from the past) • “civic humanist” = wise man who can govern • Ethics independent of Christianity – moral greatness of individual and one’s ability to discover truth & wisdom
l’uomo universale universal man (Renaissance man) • “independence of mind” • master of all branches of art and thought • no dependence on outside authorities for formation of knowledge, tastes & beliefs