Humanism

The European Renaissance began in the northern city-states of Italy during the early 14th century and gradually spread its’ roots over Western Europe in 15th and 16th century. The origin of il Rinascimento, literally meaning ‘The Renaissance’ can traced back to the well-known and wealthy Italian cities of Genoa, Florence, and Venice. Since much of the inspiration behind the cultural changes during this era was drawn from the legacies of classical European societies such as Ancient Rome, and…

Art Nouveau Art Nouveau, or the French term for “New Art,” is a colorful movement in the arts that attracted Europe during the process of change from the 19th century to the 20th century. Art Nouveau had other names, “Stile Liberty” in Italy and “youth style” in German. Right before art lovers would begin riding in motor cars, watching moving pictures, and refreshing for the First World War, they would flip through bright international philosophy and style of art magazines. This cultural…

The pivotal effect of modernity spans from everything to a new and skeptical perception on things to an increasing role of science and technology. Modernity is essentially the antithesis of its predecessor; pre-modernity. While pre-modernity values the divine over the individual, modernity values the individual and reason. Modernity is often perceived as the promise of human progress through solely reason and knowledge. Michael Allen Gillespie in ‘The Theological Origins of Modernity’…

The classical and the medieval period were distinct in various ways and were characterized by major developments in the economy as well as social values. The classical period stretched between the years 1775 and 1825 (Mainzer 10). This period had major development on arts, music and literature. It is considered as the period of enlightenment because there were major improvements on the philosophical perspective. The major developments in this period led to the name classical period. The medieval…

As the renaissance artist, sculptor and anatomist Leonardo da Vinci said, “A beautiful body perishes, but a work of art dies not.” This maxim, though easily comprehensible, epitomizes the perfection of the human form that fifteenth century artists sought to immortalize. Driven by common humanist beliefs, sculpting a lifelike physique demanded knowledge and comprehension of anatomy beyond the barrier of human skin. Leonardo da Vinci along with many other artists used their fascination with…

The Early Modern Period, also known as the English Renaissance period, symbolizes the rebirth of classical learning, and the refocus of ancient Greek and Roman intelligence. The Renaissance movement initiated in Italy and found its way to England in the 1500’s and lasted until the 1700’s. It was a period where king’s had godly rights to rule, many scientific investigations were being held, and many scholars were pursing the understanding of ancient Greece and Rome. Literature of the Renaissance…

The Renaissance era can be defined by its anthropocentrism; that is, the circumscribed belief that human exceptionalism is what separates human from beasts. In Boehrer's analysis of the literary and philosophical landscape of the Early Modern Renaissance writers, he posited the principles that guided this belief: "humans are radically different from all other life, this difference renders humans as superior to the rest of earthly creation and that this superiority designates the natural world…

1. What was the attitude of the “Men of the Renaissance” toward their own place in history? The “Men of the Renaissance” considered their place history incredibly important. Bruni, along with many others, believed that “they were bringing a whole new culture to new birth” and that the accomplishments of their “generation marked an epoch in intellectual history”. The early humanists longed for the revival of the classical world. They wanted to distance themselves, and society, from the Middle…

looking at my own pedagogy around the theoretical beliefs, that I lean more towards the humanism theory at the core of my theoretical circle. Humanism in the classroom teaches thinking and feelings skills and communication alongside respect for their needs and talents.…

The Renaissance was a period which marked the rebirth of classical antiquity with the transition in the Italian world from Scholasticism to Humanism. After the Great Schism which lasted from 1378-1417, and the Bubonic plague in 1438, the European feudal system collapsed. Not only, but also, the reputation of the Church was put under considerable scrutiny, weakening the influence of the Papal states of Christendom. Furthermore, the omnipresence of death brought by the plague in 1438 caused high…