Desiderius Erasmus's Accomplishments During The Renaissance

The Renaissance, or the reawakening, was the burst of sudden interest in Greek and Roman culture. Artists like Michelangelo, and writers like Shakespeare, were popularised. The Renaissance’s base lied on humanism, or the idea that individuals should pursue their own interests. However, humanism was not exclusive to the Renaissance. Humanism impacted the Renaissance, Scientific Revolution, and Protestant Reformation by encouraging individual thought, causing people to learn from each other, and pressing people to criticise traditions, and authority.

The Renaissance was a period in history that began in Italy dating back to around the 1300s. It followed The Middle Ages and was considered a time of “rebirth”. The people of Europe increased much interest in learning, in the arts and in literature. It also provided the world with a big advancement in science and technology. People questioned old beliefs and were able to turn their miseries into optimism. The Renaissance changed man’s view of man in at least four areas: art, literature, astronomy, and anatomy.

Humanism was a very key and important part of the Renaissance outlook on education because it led to a further study of Greek and Roman culture. Humanism led to many Greek and Roman influences on the Renaissance period.

The Renaissance was the period of advances in the fields of arts, culture, philosophy, humanism, science and economy. The invention of the printing press helped spread literacy and made ancient texts, which were previously only available in Latin or Greek, that the common person didn’t know, available in languages that people could understand. The Renaissance’s Humanism ideas made everybody question previously accepted knowledge which eventually lead to the scientific revolution.

Humanism was the study of Greek and Roman language and literature to educate one’s self and improve one’s reasoning. During the Middle Ages the church was looked upon as the absolute power, and many felt as if it was the end all be all in terms of God and salvation. Because of its high status, not many people questioned the Church. However, this all changed during the Renaissance. As discussed in document 5, the church basically only existed for money. They did this by selling indulgences and collecting money from the wealthy. People saw the corruption within the church and many were not happy. Martin Luther, a German monk and religious reformer, is thought to have started the Protestant Reformation. One of Luther’s boldest acts against the Church was translating the Bible into German. He did this so people did not have to rely on the Church’s interpretation of the Bible. This meant people could listen to God’s word and form their own opinions, something not previously possible during the Middle Ages. Document 2 provides a clear view to the difference of the Middle Ages and the Renaissance. Jacob Burchhardt compared the distinctness of the Renaissance to how Greeks were distinct from barbarians. The Humanism Reformation clearly separates the Renaissance and the Middle Ages, as does the revival of learning and scientific

The Renaissance period was impacted by humanism strongly because people were now starting to realize, they weren’t just peasants that worked for a lord but they too were people that could make their own decisions. People valued their self-worth now, and they wanted to learn about reading, writing, and the

The Renaissance The Renaissance was a time of Humanists who focused Art, Architecture, Politics, Science, and Literature. Many considered it to be a time of reviving classic Greek and Roman texts and ways. All of this brought about a new wave of thought processes and cultural changes. Humanists believed that man should focus his attention towards all things mortal, and not be constrained or moved by dreams of immortal futures.

A new way of thinking derived during the Renaissance, and this was known as Humanism. This belief stated that the only way to better society was to first better people as humans. Humanists shied away from the dogmatic practices of the Catholic Church, and focused on improving morals. Erasmus carried a large influence on this belief system. He stated that humans

Erasmus started school at the age of 4 at a school in Gouda.When he was 9 years of age,he was sent to a latin school by his father,were eventually his academic abilities shined.After the death of his parents in 1483,from the plague,he was sent to a home of guardians (basically foster care now a days)who believed the best plan was for him to become a monk.He began a personal relationship with god,but soon realized he didn’t like the harsh guidelines and rules of the religious teachers.

“True, we love life, not because we are used to living, but because we are used to loving. There is always some madness in love, but there is also always some reason in madness.” This was a famous quote from the legendary philosopher, writer, poet, and scholar named Petrarch. Also known as the father of Humanism. He believed in new beginnings and getting away from the old traditional ways. Petrarch sparked the Renaissance by his founding of Humanism, publishing his work, and the changing of traditional ways.

Let’s start with Leonardo da Vinci. He is known as the “Renaissance Man” for being skillful at everything and a very good individual. His interests were inventing, painting, sculpting, architecture, science, music, mathematics, engineering, literature, anatomy, geology, astronomy, botany, writing, history, and cartography. He was a determined young man in his many fields of study. He was also one of the most famous painters in the renaissance time.

The gigantic effect that education had on Renaissance society was greatly stimulated by the new development of humanism. Humanism was responsible for the curiosity of many intellects during the Renaissance, which ultimately led to the discoveries and developments that made the Renaissance such a remarkable time. It proposed a different way of thinking, unprecedented by scholars. Without humanism and the educational interest that it brought about, the Renaissance would not be known as the explosion of culture that it is considered today.

In the discussion of humanism on page 396, your text lists the educational goals of scholars who studied and taught the classics. They steeped themselves in Latin grammar and rhetoric; the latter was "a rigorous discipline in all the stylistic devices used by classical authors" (397). In other words, they taught classical literature for the same reasons that I use a College Writing text entitled From Idea to Essay with sample selections of literature. Those essays supposedly serve as models to help the freshmen write their six essays during the semester. Most literary scholars would rank the literature from the Renaissance as some of the best in the English language. If you believe that

Humanism allowed people to realize that everyone’s mind and thoughts were endless; the only constraint being the imagination. During the Renaissance the aspect of a human’s education was equally important in the creation of well rounded individuals.

Erasmus believes in the need of a universal language, both in verse and prose. He was well versed in Latin and in Greek. Erasmus and Thomas More were both staunch Catholics, opposed the reformation  as proposed by Martin Luther but thought the church needed 'adjustments'.  Erasmus differed from some of More's ideas, for instance he believed in free will of the individual,  whereas More did not. They all advocated social reform and were interested in improvement for society. Erasmus thought science unworthy of a gentleman. "Erasmus appeared as a responsible and constructive critic of society. He attacked the superstition and formalism of late medieval religion, offering in their place a simple piety that could appeal to all levels of society."(Wilcox)