The Relationship Between Renaissance Reformation And Exploration

The printing press and the mass production of books forever changed the way society receives communication. The ability to produce books in a person’s native language allowed average people the ability to read and interpret the bible on their own. It allowed scientists around the world to study theories and experiments of scientists working in the same field and helped them build upon the work of others. Additionally, the printing press led to the dissemination

In the novel, 1493: Uncovering the New World Columbus Created, Charles C. Mann enlightens and captures how Columbus’s expeditions united the lands of Eurasia and America. It is a well-written and informational book that successfully displays much of the development and foundation of our present all from the European discovery of the new world. Charles C. Mann’s main objective with this book was to extend on the geographer, Alfred W Crosby’s explanation of “Ecological Imperialism.”

In 1493, Columbus wrote a letter on his voyage back to Europe, describing the newfound continent as “many islands inhabited by men without number”. The letter was published throughout Europe, thus spreading the discovery of America quickly. According to the map in document D, the letter originated in Lisbon on March 14, 1493. Within the year, it traveled to eight major cities across Western Europe, published in over five different languages. Without the printing press, the news would have taken years to circulate Europe, as information often did before the invention. Due to the rapid communication of the news, the Waldseemuller’s world map from 1507 included America and other major geographical discoveries. It was “the first known map to record the existence of the American continent”. The Waldseemuller illustrates a diffusion of information because the publication of Columbus’s letter allowed the cartographers to incorporate America on their maps. Thus, the printing press had a major effect on discoveries in the 15th century. The discovery’s publication on the map inspired other aspiring explorers. Ultimately, exploration clearly represents Renaissance worldviews, as Columbus’s discovery is a prime example of its relevance during the era. These major discoveries symbolize the passion for exploration and curiosity many Europeans

By the sixteenth century, the trials of the medieval world had faded. Western Europe was in the middle of what is deemed the Renaissance, a time of philosophical and theological regeneration. The invention of the printing press in 1450 by Johann Gutenburg allowed knowledge to be spread and read quickly and easily. Literacy rates increased, and soon after, many began to question the Roman Catholic church’s positions and stances on theology. The first to question was Desiderius Erasmus, who wished

During the Renaissance in Europe, many new inventions were created. Among these inventions where items like the printing press. The printing press allowed for fast reproduction of text. No longer did books and papers need to be transcribed by hand. Now they could be produced at a greater rate by the printing press.

The time period Europeans started to develop officially began in the 15th century and lasted through the 16th century. This period of time symbolizes the time of exploration when Europeans started to explore around the world by land in search of new trading routes, wealth, and knowledge. Many nations were in search of goods, however, the spark for exploration was the curiosity of the new routes for spice and silk exchanges. The impact of the Europeans development would affect the society permanently in the future. Therefore, religion was not the most important factor leading Europe to explore in the 15th and 16th centuries. Instead economics was the most important reason followed by religion and technological advances.

Since the invention of the printing press the world has advanced in a myriad of ways. The most important consequence of the printing press was reformation. The printing press was one of the first machines to print books. “In 1455 Gutenberg printed 180 bibles, each of them over 1800 pages long”. (Background essay). It allowed more books to be made and more people to learn how to read and write. As stated in the background essay “his invention came as a milestone event in the evolution of human communication”. The printing press influenced many time periods in its time, but the most important was its effect on the reformation of the Renaissance.

Although some think that the printing press had a bigger impact on the Reformation, for it was influential in spreading religion, the mass distribution of Columbus’s letter verifies the influence of the printing press on exploration. When looking at Martin Waldseemuller’s World Map of 1507 and comparing it to a map published earlier, Henricus Martellus’s World Map of 1489, one can see that America has been added. This addition was made from the information in Columbus’s letter. Without the printing press, Columbus’s letter wouldn’t have been mass produced and the information couldn’t have reached the mapmaker, who would not have been able to include the Americas in his improved map. Europeans wouldn’t even have known that America, the place where millions of people live today, actually existed. Without the printing press, the existence of the Americas wouldn’t have been confirmed. Explorers might have found the Americas at a later date than they actually did, which would’ve altered the course of America’s history. This proves that exploration was the more important consequence of the printing

The printing press helped a lot through the renaissance time and even after that. Gutenberg helped spread the word of Martin Luther and his ideas and the knowledge of the world

People began to feel a consciousness of their past, they no longer settled for the status quo. As a result, there was a desire to rediscover knowledge in various disciplines, and to expand on them. The renaissance was a period of broadening knowledge. It was a time of rebirth in human existence, a time of new discoveries. It was an era in which the feudal system declined, invention and application of: paper, printing, the mariner’s compass, and gunpowder began. The Renaissance was a revival of classical art.

On the other side he discovered a vast body of water that he named "South

Christopher Columbus’s life was filled with adventures and new beginnings that would leave a remarkable impression throughout history. Born in 1451 in Genoa, Columbus from an early age would become well acclimated to sailing as he began his career aboard a merchant ship and later study mathematics, astronomy, cartography, and navigation. Growing up and experiencing new thing Columbus began to come up with a plan different from all others to set sail across the Atlantic instead of going around the African continent. With his ideas being turned away from both Portugal and England it was Ferdinand and Isabella who took sympathy upon him and financial back his voyage as they both had hopes of gaining fame and fortune. In 1942, Columbus began his voyages and would carefully document each experience in the form of letters that would have a lasting impact on the world. I believe with the dramatic change in tones we see between the first and fourth letters it gives us the reader a true insight into Columbus’s mental and physical emotions over the years. Furthermore, these letters allow us to explore a part of history that is considered monumental while gaining information of what took place over a ten-year journey.

Revolution and reformation; these are two words that are often identified with war, disagreement, and regional effects. While these things do indeed come along with a revolution or reformation, they heed an array of positive and secular outcomes as well. In addition, a revolution can, and usually will, cause a reformation. Conversely, a reformation can cause a revolution. This can happen despite the two things involved with the change or disagreement being seemingly unrelated. The world is connected and affected in ways that we cannot comprehend until we look at our world’s history and see how every small occurrence leads to a landslide of repercussions. The Renaissance is a prime example of this interconnectedness, as it was a time of rebirth, revolution and reformation. During the Renaissance, many changes ensued as a result of scientists, scholars and humanists who realized that they weren 't being taught or treated properly. This idea of unsatisfactory treatment as a result of the humanist spirit of the Renaissance led to the Scientific Revolution and The Protestant Reformation, movements that occurred during the Renaissance that changed life in Western Europe, and eventually the whole world, forever.

The renaissance and the reformation were two of the most significant changes in history that has shaped our world today. Both of these great time periods are strikingly similar in some ways and totally different in others. This is because the renaissance was a change from religion to humanism whether it is in art or literature; it is where the individual began to matter. However, the reformation was,” in a nutshell,” a way to reform the church and even more so to form the way our society is today. The first half of this paper will view the drop in faith, the economic powers, and the artistic and literary changes during the renaissance, while the second half will view the progresses and changes the church makes during the reformation.

Johannes Gutenberg invented the first movable-printing press in the fifteenth century. The printing press affected Europe’s political, cultural, economic, and social development in the centuries that followed. According to Reader, “The eighteenth century saw a rapid expansion in the publication of books, periodicals, and pamphlets, which allowed wide dissemination of these new ideas, and with that, the early stages of public opinion” (24). The availability of paper and spreading of books, allowed various classes of people, many of whom had not previously been exposed to books, to read and interpret different ideas and publication. Access to different points of views caused tension between those in power and the lower classes. One specific example was the access to the Bible, which led to the lower classes questioning the foundations of the Church. In addition, the spread of ideas and power to publish their individual thoughts led to Enlightenment thinking and increased individualism. The idea that people should learn from their own experiences and learn to challenge what they are taught and search for real facts, made living in Europe with an educated, self-governing public possible.