Overview
“Rebirth.” Europe woke up. They rediscovered Greek and Roman art, invented the printing press, and started sailing around the world.
Core Idea
Humanism: A shift in focus from God and the afterlife to Human potential and the here-and-now. “Man is the measure of all things.”
Formal Definition (if applicable)
Perspective: An artistic technique to create the illusion of 3D depth on a 2D surface. (Medieval art looked flat; Renaissance art looked like a window).
Intuition
Imagine finding a cache of advanced technology from a lost civilization. That’s what rediscovering Plato and Cicero felt like to Italians in the 1400s.
Examples
- Leonardo da Vinci: The ultimate “Renaissance Man” (Painter, Engineer, Scientist).
- Gutenberg: The Printing Press (1440) made books cheap. Information could no longer be controlled by the Church.
- Machiavelli: The Prince. Realpolitik. “It is better to be feared than loved.”
Common Misconceptions
- “It happened overnight.” (It was a slow process starting in Italy and spreading North.)
- “Everyone was enlightened.” (Witch hunts and religious wars actually increased during this time.)
Related Concepts
- The Reformation: Martin Luther challenging the Pope (made possible by the printing press).
- The Age of Exploration: Columbus, Da Gama, Magellan.
- Scientific Revolution: Copernicus saying the Earth goes around the Sun.
Applications
- Art: The Mona Lisa, The David, The Sistine Chapel.
- Education: The liberal arts curriculum.
Criticism / Limitations
It was an elite movement. For the average peasant, life didn’t change much.
Further Reading
- Burckhardt, The Civilization of the Renaissance in Italy
- Greenblatt, The Swerve