Renaissance Individualism

The developments in art, as well as anatomy during the time in the Renaissance heavily changed the way that individual identity was perceived not only at the time, but also in present day. During the Middle Ages, spanning about 800 years, the development of any type of culture differing from that of the Roman Catholic church was nonexistent. The majority of the books manufactured were confined inside the church’s walls, and consequently, illiteracy was widespread in the general population. Art and literature were intensely focused on Jesus Christ and the idea of the afterlife, with the subjects of said paintings displaying little or no emotion at all. There was an extreme divide in the distribution of wealth, as more than 85 percent of the population was little more than a slave, then commonly known as a serf. Both serfs and their masters referred to the teachings of the Church to make sense of the world around them. However, around 1300, the methods used to farm began to improve, which helped the serfs become more independent from their masters. The church’s stronghold on culture began to slip, as the mechanization of printing allowed new ideas and philosophies to spread. Catholicism was called into crisis as a new ideology called humanism pressed its way to the forefront, which called into question the teachings of the church, instead focusing on the beauty and power of the individual. Suddenly, the way that people viewed themselves seemed to be rapidly changing in a small amount of time.

During the shift from the middle ages into the Renaissance period new conceptions of the individual and the human mind quickly came to light. Although art in the Middle Ages was centered predominantly on religion and faith, the incoming art of the Renaissance underwent a drastic change. A vast amount of these changes mainly focused on individualism, secularism, and humanism. Following the collapse of the feudal system, thoughts of individualism quickly rose when people realized that they didn’t have to adhere to a specific group.Throughout the beginning of the Renaissance, religious figures and the Catholic Church began to lose authority which conducted in new ideas of secularism. Comparably, humanistic art and notions became preeminent when individuals focused on glorifying the human body, learning more about it and inclined more towards realistic art.

The Crusades or Holy Wars for Jerusalem marked a shift from the Middle Ages to an era of creativity and reasoning. Originating in Florence, Italy, this era, known as the Renaissance, was a time of rebirth in the arts and minds of Europeans. Art, literature, while keeping a religious subject, gained perspective and was created for the pleasure of the public, rather than the necessity of the Church. Although the Church was a significant patron of both art and literature during the Renaissance, its influence in daily life and government decreased as men and women began to focus on the development of the individual through the ideal of humanism; this allowed Renaissance humanists

Rhiana Bishop CHY4U Mrs.Ritsma September 15th, 2017 Humanism and the Italian Renaissance Many people today do not know what humanism is. Even if they don't what it is, many people in this world are humanist. Humanism is the idea behind humanism is the life on earth can be filled with the value not just items, but abilities and individual worth, as well as that humans, can achieve great things. The humanist movement started with a man named Martin Luther. Luther was a German monk who posted what is now known as the 95 Theses on the door of Wittenberg’s Castle (Newman 50). These theses are what started the Reformation and the Renaissance. In the Renaissance was very influenced by the Martin Luther and humanism. The art the writer and the architecture were all majorly influenced by humanism. This is because that it is more acceptable to have beautiful paintings, awe-inspiring novels, and amazing buildings created not just for religious use but for enjoyment. Leonardo DA Vinci (1452-1519), Michelangelo Buonarroti (1475-1564), Donato Donatello (1386-1466), Sofonisba Anguissola (c.1532-1625) these are some of the prodigious artist known all over the world. Every one of these artists started in the Renaissance era of art. Each one of these artists created art that still inspires artist today. Before the reformation and humanism came into the picture almost all became famous for the works that they did in the Renaissance. The reason these artists became more famous is the art that is much more lifelike and that captures more detail than the art that came before the Renaissance. Some of the art done in the Renaissance that is still based on belief.in many paintings, in the Medieval era, there were paintings of Mother Mary and baby Jesus they were portrayed as gods. But as they were painted in the Renaissance era, they were painted as average people from that time. Every artist famous or not became very popular with the growing support of humanism. Niccolò Machiavelli, Edmund Spenser, Desiderius Erasmus and Thomas More. theses are a few of the famous writers in the Renaissance. The most well known are Thomas More was a well-known humanist at the time. More was trained as a lawyer and he dedicated to the classic learning

Individualism and Secularism were ideas that were introduced in the Renaissance and became fairly popular with the citizens who had experienced this time period. Secularism and Individualism though separate terms have a lot in common. They both have to do with separation of church from daily life. Secularism separating the government, and individualism pushing people to look less at what the Bible said and more at what was relative to their day to day lives. The emphasis on these two ideas during the Renaissance affected the way people wrote, drew, and created architecture, by pushing them away from religion and focusing more on day to day life and the people involved with it. So, the ideas of secularism and individualism had affected the

The Italian Renaissance had two distinct periods during its lifetime. The first being the “Early Renaissance”, which took place between the late 13th and the early 14th centuries. The second period was known as the “High Renaissance”, which took place during the 15th and 16th centuries. These two periods had very distinct foundations and styles behind the art and architecture of their respective periods. The Early Renaissance revived many old themes which later became the foundations for the High Renaissance. While the High Renaissance strayed from previous traditions and had its own form of art and essentially perfected early themes and styles of art and included more scientific/mathematic components.

Arguably the greatest and longest impacting movement brought about by the forward thinkers of the Renaissance was humanism. Humanism was a cultural and intellectual movement that emphasized the human potential to attain excellence through direct study of the literature, art, and civilization of the classical Greek and Roman societies (Merriam-Webster). The scholars and believers in humanism sought to change the course of society away from the narrow pedantry of medieval scholasticism and utilitarianism. Humanism was a basic desire for every citizen to be able to speak with eloquence and read and write with clarity, so that common citizens were capable of engaging in the civic life of their communities (Gray). The movement also emphasized the value of a human being as well as the importance of rational thought rather than blind faith in spiritualism or superstition. It also pushed people to explore human desires and pleasures while also enriching their minds. The influential nature of humanism was far reaching and most notable for its effects on Renaissance art, literature, and philosophy.

The Italian Renaissance was a time for great cultural change and achievements, which began in Italy approximately during the 13th century and lasted up until the 16th century. It marked the transition between the Dark Ages and Early Modern Europe. The European Renaissance originated in Central Italy, and centered in the city of Florence.i The distinctive characteristics of northern Italian states such as art, literature, philosophy, and culture produced an atmosphere of learning and artistic expression.

“How and to what extent did the methods and ideals of Renaissance humanism contribute to the Protestant Reformation?”

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.

The Italian Renaissance was one of the most colorful, vital, and exciting times in history. Renaissance eventually comes from the French word "Renaistre," meaning "to be born again." The Renaissance was a revival or a rebirth of cultural awareness and learning among art, law, language, literature, philosophy, science, and mathematics. This period took place between the fourteenth and sixteenth centuries. The Renaissance in Italy flourished in the 15th century and spread throughout most of Europe in the 16th century.

Would it not be nice if we could go back in time to experience the Renaissance for ourselves? Being able to walk down the streets of Florence, Italy and experience this time period that not only gave rebirth to old values and artistic ways of statement, but also were a period of great individualism. (make this into a sentence…add a subject and a verb to make it flow). Indeed, Renaissance was a period of great individualism based on old traditional values.

During the 1400s and 1500s in mainly Italy there was a major change that took place in all aspects of life. This was called the Renaissance and was a movement that helped give rebirth to culture and the arts. This movement went away from the medieval times that had forced a feudalist system on its people. The Medieval times were a dark period in European history that saw a major decline in arts and government. This declining can be attributed to a number of different reasons. One of which was the Bubonic Plague that spread throughout Europe and Asia and killed millions of its inhabitants. This was the final nail in the medieval coffin. Throughout these times the major focus for government and the arts were all religion oriented. The Black

Many diverse ideas flourished during the European Renaissance which had a lasting impact on the world. Humanism is a worldview and a moral philosophy that considers humans to be of primary importance. The aspect of humanism first thrived in 14th century Italy, and later spread north in the 15th century. Initially humanistic ideas about education were quickly adopted by the Italian upper class. The Italian ideas and attitudes towards life and learning impacted nobility in other parts of Europe. They were able to accept and adapt to this new lifestyle. Humanism during the Renaissance helped to spread ideas about the basic nature of human beings, how people should be educated to become well rounded individuals, and how education impacts an

You may wonder about, "The Renaissance" and its relationship to another term, "humanism" which fits into the same time period. If you check the dictionary, you will find that both terms can be used in a broad sense or more specifically. Humanism refers generally to a "devotion to the humanities: literary culture." (My definitions come from Webster's Ninth New Collegiate Dictionary). According to that definition we should all be humanists.