Petrarch's Letter Petrarch

Francesco Petrarch (1304-1374) was an Italian scholar, poet, and early humanist during the reformation of the Renaissance period. He was one of the greatest poets of the 14th-16th century, and is regarded as the father of the humanist movement. Petrarch was a prolific writer. Not only was he known for poetry in Italian and Latin, but also hundreds of letters, essays and histories. Like Dante, a generation before Petrarch wrote in a vernacular style to bring Italian a literary language.

When historians use the term “Renaissance humanism” they are talking about the revival of the “worldly spirit of the ancient Greeks and Romans, which [the humanists] believed had been lost in the Middle Ages.” Humanists liked ancient writings and looked for “guidelines for living life well in this world,” as well as models and styles to follow for their own books and other written works. The humanists thought that the ancient Greeks and Romans had written beautifully and were extremely intelligent, so they wanted to copy their ancient styles and learn about them. Some humanists also began focusing on things that were happening in the world, and ways to enjoy life more on this planet. They stopped looking at religion so much and started focusing

Burchardt’s ideas fall into the lap of Petrarch. (Doc. 4) Petrarch believed that there was a new era; he said this by stating that presently people believed again in salvation in the afterlife. Many writers, Petrarch and Erasmus, show evidence of a new era which support my hypothesis stated in my thesis.

Humanism played a huge role in the Italian Renaissance as it changed the landscape of the Italians. The definition of Humanism is “an outlook or system of thought attaching prime importance to human rather than divine or supernatural matters. Humanist beliefs stress the potential value and goodness of human beings, emphasize common human needs, and seek solely rational ways of solving human problems.” It relation to the Italian humanism It’s the influence of behavior that relate to the goodness of humanity as all humans are good. The Italians were influenced by the romans because the romans have done great things even though in the views of Christian they deserved to go to hell.

Education is a life-altering event that involves becoming more open- minded. When one’s horizons are expanded they begin to understand and view more. The process of becoming knowledgeable through education can differ from the individual or situation. The overall experience as well can change the perception. Two passages, “Learning to Read” by Malcom X and “The Allegory of the Cave” by Plato both contain an individual who goes through the path of gaining wisdom. Although both passages contain similarities involving one going through an experience resulting in the enlightenment of education, there are several differences in how the acknowledgement is approached and the type of predicament the individual is in.

One of the main ideas that developed in the Italian Renaissance was Humanism. Humanism started in Italy because the Father of Humanism named Petrarch lived in Italy. Humanism is the idea that humans can attain happiness and should individually strive for achievement in life. A key characteristic of humanism includes a belief in the worth of individual life. Humanistic scholars studied philosophy, literature, and history of classical civilizations.

From art brought on by the Medici family, to literature produced by some of the most well-known and renowned authors, concepts of humanism emerged. This then resulted in a more positive outlook on life during the Italian Renaissance. Moreover, Francesco Petrarch, the “Father of Humanism,” paved the way for successful eras in Florence, the epicenter of the Renaissance. The conditions of Rome as described by both Baldassare Castiglione and Dante Alighieri crucially inspired the artistic and literary Renaissance of Italy. Reviving Rome lead to a faith in humans, allowing revolutions to build off of the past, as opposed to starting from the beginning. Obviously key factors as demonstrated by the infamous writers Baldassare Castiglione and Dante Alighieri forever and crucially impacted western

The 1400’s was a time of the Renaissance, which was a change or rebirth in the Italian culture of art, politics and philosophy. Petrarch created a universal concept that changed the way people thought which was called humanism. Humanism is when people start to focus on the values and interests of humans. This idea started to spread with the help of the printing press which was a machine that made printing literature easier. Writers and artists were able to spread their ideas of humanism across Europe during the Renaissance through this machine. Artists like Raphael showed humanism with his painting of “The School of Athens”, Michelangelo’s sculpture of “David” and Leonardo Da Vinci’s “Vitruvian Man”.

I grew silent, wondering about the life around me… Could I ever learn about life and people? To me, with my vast ignorance…it seemed a task impossible of achievement…I had learned to live with hate. But to feel that there were feelings denied me, that the very breath of life itself was beyond my reach, that more than anything else hurt, wounded me…I felt trapped and occasionally, for a few days, I would stop reading. But a vague hunger would come over me for books, books that opened up new avenues of feeling and seeing… Again I would read and wonder as only the naïve and unlettered can read and wonder." (250-252)

“Desiderius Eramus of the Netherlands was the most prominent of the Christian humanist” (“Humanism” 1). Eramus was famous and known as the prince of Humanist. He wrote the New Testament in both Greek editions and Latin editions (“Renaissance Humanism”3). “Eramus became famous all over Europe, living mostly in Holland, England, and Italy. While being compassionate to Martin Luther’s criticism of the Catholic Church, Eramus never forsaken Catholicism (“Renaissance Humanism”3). “Eramus refused the educational methods of the University of Paris as well as worked for the enhancement of modern-day civilization by means of criticizing the troubles of the day judged next to Christian knowledge” (“Humanism” 1). Eramus was born in Rotterdam Netherlands, in 1466. At nine years old he went to school at Deventar ran by a humanist named Hegius. Eramus went there and studied theology. Eramus first major was called “Enchiridian Militis Christian”, which came out in 1502. This book was about true religion and piety, while throwing some criticism at the church. To pursue his studies, Eramus was spurred by poverty to enter a monastic order in 1486 (Melton 1). Eramus tried to fight for his rights with the churches. Ermaus argued for reformation, that wouldn’t bother the leader of the church. He disagreed with Luther’s excommunication, but Eramus

All humanists made an alliance with power by acting as spokespeople for the patrician class. Their writings were effusive towards the everyone and everything inside of the cities they lived in. All of their works were written to favor the aristocrats. Leonardo Bruni was an Italian Humanist during the Renaissance. In his Panegyric to the City of Florence, Bruni illustrates his version of what Florence was like for the purpose of inspiring his and future generations of what an ideal city-state should embody.

The Renaissance began in Florence, Italy around the 1500’s to about the 1700’s. Florence, Italy was the mecca of this rebirth because at the time Florence was extremely wealthy and the people of the city had political freedom and those new ideals of the Renaissance were not being condemned in Florence as they were other cities. This was a time where the arts and the logic of one’s own mind was valued rather than criticized, the antiquated medieval ideals no longer matched the needs of those who were living during the early Renaissance. Eventually, a term for this way of thinking arose and was called Humanism, and what humanism is, is an ideology where humans can lead themselves to create a prosperous life and instead of leaning on supernatural forces for answers. Humanists believe that humans have enough logic to create conclusions themselves. This brand-new way of thinking caused a lot of controversy because it did question God’s ability and the church’s power, but the ideas behind it are still heavily used today, even in the 21st century. Humanism in the early Renaissance is important because it called for thinking with reason, it allowed an appreciation for human body and mind, inspired authors and caused a shift in power.

That being said, one of the earliest and most influential humanist writers was Francesco Petrarch, who also held the title as the founder of humanism. On April 6, 1341, Petrarch was crowned Poet Laureate in the Capitol of Rome, and many historians argue this day as the true beginning of the Renaissance. Petrarch believed that eloquence, ethics, and wisdom were lost during the Middle Ages and was adamant about expressing his hatred for the corruption caused by the people of that period. Petrarch took inspiration from the writings of the ancients, especially Virgil and Cicero. He is a prime example in showing that although humanists still maintained their faith and believed in an afterlife, they felt that their lives on Earth should be rich

At the core of the humanist agenda was the idea of virtue, or behavior with a great moral standard. A man named Francesco Petrarch helped to found these beliefs, by studying classic Roman sources such as the scholar Cicero. Petrarch believed that these classics works could teach someone to be wise and virtuous (class notes). He helped to make Humanism a popular movement among intellectuals of the time and cement the idea that the classical works could help guide humans to live a virtuous and wise

The philosophy of humanism exerted a new viewpoint on the educational system. The idea that true happiness is the result of eternal salvation was introduced by humanist teachers. The Italian poet Petrarch, delighted in studying the works of Cicero, explained that “when we come to think or speak of religion, that it, of supreme truth and true happiness, and of eternal salvation, then I am certainly not a Ciceronian… but a Christian” (doc.5). Education was important in the creation of well rounded individuals, but humanists believed that religion is the key to true happiness. In addition to their beliefs about the effects of religion on society, humanists promoted the study of language and literature to develop strong social skills. This ultimately broadened every aspect of Renaissance society. Establishing social skills can reward a person with “... the personal satisfaction he will take in this, in this way he will never want for pleasant entertainment with the ladies who are usually fond of such things” (doc.4). Although social transformation