An Overview of the Italian Renaissance

             Renaissance is the Italian word meaning "rebirth." It was an era between 1350 and 1550 and it occurred in three distinct phases. The first was characterized by a declining population, the uncovering of classical texts, and experimentation in a variety of art forms. The second phase was distinguished by the creation of a set of cultural values and artistic and literary achievements that defined Renaissance style. The large Italian city states developed stable and coherent forms of government, and warfare between them gradually ended. In the final period invasions form France and Spain transformed Italian political life and the ideas and techniques of Italian writers and artists radiated to all points of the continent. Renaissance ideas and achievements spread throughout Europe and were particularly important in Holland.
             The Italian Peninsula was very urban which allowed trading to blossom and allowed for specialization in agricultural and industrial life that increased productivity and wages. Between 1350 and 1450 one in every six years had a high mortality rate. Overproduction became a problem. Orphans wre very common especially females. Dowry was used to wed the daughters. The Church remained the center of people's lives. A growing sense of civic pride and individual accomplishment were underlying characteristics of the Italian Renaissance. Michelangelo was extremely important in Renaissance art and sculpture. Art reflected both it's concrete achievements and it's visionary ideals.
             They were scholars and philosophers. Humanism developed in reaction to an intellectual world that was centered on the Church and dominated by otherworldly concerns. Hamanism was secular in outlook though by no means was it antireligious. Humanists celebrated worldly achievements. They studied and taught the humanities----skills of disciplines such as philology, the art of language, and rhetoric, the art of expression. Lorenzo
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An Overview of the Italian Renaissance. (1969, December 31). In MegaEssays.com. Retrieved 09:48, March 29, 2024, from https://www.megaessays.com/viewpaper/80962.html