The Italian Renaissance

-Key Concepts-
I. Why in Italy at this Time?
n Revival of Commerce
and Town Building
was more intense in
Italy
n Feudalism had less of
a grip on Italy
n Two competing lords
for control of Italy
were losing influence
n Presence of antiquity
was stronger in Italy
than elsewhere in
II. European Economic
Recovery
n Dramatic recovery of
European commerce
n Important industries
flourish in Northern
Italy
n The significance of
printing and mining as
new industries
n The fifteenth-century
banking empire of the
Medici family in
III. Renaissance Economics
n Profit-making became
more important than
Church doctrine
n To overcome guilt,
profit-makers indulge
in philanthropy
n Influence of guilds
declining
n High profits led to
economic
diversification
III. Renaissance Economics
(cont)
n “Cottage Industry”
n Art became the
way to advertise
economic success
n Intensified
commercial
competition
created the need
to be efficient
IV. Renaissance Society
n Renaissance is an
elitist historical
phenomenon
n Northern Italy was
urban and commercial
while Southern Italy
mostly was not
n Very family-oriented
society
n Marriages were
frequently arranged to
strengthen business
IV. Renaissance Society
(cont)
n Father’s authority over
his family
n Some wealthy women
played an important
role in Italian city-
states
--Isabella d’Este of
Mantua
n Concentration of
wealth among great
families
IV. Renaissance Society
(cont)
n Extreme social
stratification divided
into factions around
the wealthiest families
n Poor increasingly
attempting to improve
their social status
--The Ciompi Revolt
(1378)
-- “populo minuto”
n “The Cult of the
Individual”
IV. Renaissance Society
(cont)
n Number of portraits
painted during this era
illustrates focus on the
individual
n A true nobleman
n Growing humanism
and secularism in a
Christian context
n Focus on man’s free
will
n Rewards for living
excellently came in
this life
V. Renaissance Politics
n Same pattern and
problems as those of
the Greek city-states
n Inter-city warfare led
to new advances in
diplomacy
-- “balance of
power”
n Northern Italian
“communes”
n The Peace of Lodi
V. Renaissance Politics
(cont)
n Rome, Venice, Milan,
Florence, and the
Kingdom of Naples
n Renaissance Venice
n Renaissance Florence
--Lorenzo the
Magnificent (1449-
1492)
n 1300’s republicanism
became 1400’s
despotism—with the
exception of Venice
V. Renaissance Politics
(cont)
n Niccolo Machiavelli
(1469-1527)
-- “The Prince”
n The goal of the prince
must be power
n Cynical view of human
nature
n Fear is a better
motivator than
affection
n Politics as the art of
deception
V. Renaissance Politics
(cont)
n Ancient and
contemporary
examples of effective
political leaders
--Cesare Borgia
n A new realism in
political thought
n 1400’s “Civic”
humanism
n Leonardo Bruni’s The
New Cicero
n Henry VIII as a
Renaissance prince
VI. Renaissance Art and
Architecture
n The proliferation of
portraiture and its
significance
n The depiction of nudes
n Nudity in medieval art
n Imitation of nature
was a primary goal
n Pagan scenes and
myths were popular
subjects with no
apologies to the
Church
VI. Renaissance Art and
Architecture (cont)
n Boticelli’s “Birth of
Venus”
n Giotto’s admiration for
Saint Francis
n Status of artist is
elevated to cultural
hero
n Renaissance art
stressed proportion,
balance and harmony
—and was not
otherworldly
n Artistic problems of
VI. Renaissance Art and
Architecture (cont)
n These problems were
solved by emphasizing
the mathematical side
of painting
--Brunelleschi’s
“linear perspective”
n Innovations in
Renaissance painting
-- “chiaroscuro”
-- “sfumato”
VI. Renaissance Art and
Architecture (cont)
n Differences between
Italian and Northern
European painting
--Italian frescoes
vs. Northern European
altar pieces
n Van Eyck’s oil
paintings
n Rome became the
center of the High
Renaissance (1480-
VI. Renaissance Art and
Architecture (cont)
n Raphael (1483-
1520)
n Man of great
sensitivity and
kindness
n Died at the age of
37
n “The School of
Athens”
n Famous for
VI. Renaissance Art and
Architecture (cont)
n Leonardo Da Vinci
(1452-1519)
n True Renaissance
Man
n Scientist, inventor,
engineer and
naturalist
n Dissected Corpses
n Short attention
span
VI. Renaissance Art and
Architecture (cont)
n Michelangelo
n Neo-Platonist
n Ceiling of the
Sistine Chapel
n Conflict with Pope
Julius II
n Incredible energy
and endurance
n “Mannerism”
VI. Renaissance Art and
Architecture (cont)
n Mannerism’s
greatest
representative: El
Greco (1541-1614)
n Romanesque
architecture was
revived in
Renaissance
building projects
n Brunelleschi’s
Church of San
VII. Renaissance Education
and Philosophy
n Humanistic age
n Various types of
humanism
n Great fervor displayed
in finding and
collecting old
documents
n Leads to critical
examination of
documents
--Lorenzo Valla
n Education produces
moral uplift
VII. Renaissance Education
and Philosophy (cont)
n A true liberal
education
n Humanist education
for women
n Love for the study of
history most of all
n A Greek language fad
after 1454
n Petrarch (1304-1374):
the Father of Italian
Renaissance
humanism
n Focus on the
VII. Renaissance Education
and Philosophy (cont)
n First influenced
secondary education
n Extreme vanity of
Renaissance scholars
n The importance of law
and rhetoric in
Renaissance
education
n Classical political
ideals were cultivated
n Knowledge needed to
be useful
VII. Renaissance Philosophy
(cont)
n Renaissance
philosophy flourishes
during Greek revival
after 1450
n Marsilio Ficino (1433-
1499)
n The teachings of
Hermeticism
n Giovanni Pico
Mirandola (1463-1494)
--Oration on the
Dignity of Man
VIII. The Renaissance
Papacy
n Loss of influence over
European nation-
states
n Decline in moral
prestige and
leadership
n Pope Julius II (1503-
1513)
n Popes as patrons of
Renaissance art
--Leo X (1513-
1521)
IX. Spread of Humanism to the
Rest of Europe
n The significance of
Gutenberg’s printing
press
n Explosion of printed
materials
--By 1500, 40,000
titles printed and
between 8-10 million
copies
n The impact of
movable-type printing
presses: research and
IX. Spread of Humanism to the
Rest of Europe (cont)
n Popular
publications in the
early days of the
printing press
n Thomas More
--Utopia
--Executed by
Henry VIII in 1535
n Erasmus—Dutch
Christian Humanist
IX. Spread of Humanism to the
Rest of Europe (cont)
n William Shakespeare
(1564-1616)
--Globe Theater
n Shakespeare returns
to classical subjects
and genres
n His history plays were
the most popular at
the time
n Macbeth: ambition
n Hamlet: individualism
n Keen sensitivity to
sounds and meanings