World Studies September 22 The Renaissance World Studies September 22

I. Attitudes before the Renaissance It was not common to recognize individual accomplishments Artists/writers often did not put their names on their work Nobles inherited wealth and power, could not be earned Under the feudal system, most people worked for someone else’s benefit No motivation to work harder or develop talents

II. The Renaissance began in Italy Began around 1300 Did not happen overnight; took 250 years to spread across all of Europe Italy had 2 characteristics that led to this beginning Urban centers: Northern Italy had 3 cities with populations of over 100,000 Florence, Genoa and Venice

Power of the merchants Neither kings nor the Church had very much control in Italy Merchants had their wealth (and power) because of their individual accomplishments Used art as a status symbol Acted as patrons – gave financial support to artists Italy had both the population and desire to leave the “Dark Ages”

III. The Renaissance was a rebirth Scholars studied Greek and Roman art Felt like all of the work from the Middle Ages was barbaric The Greco-Roman attitudes and fashions were “reborn”

IV. Enjoyment of Worldly Pleasures During the Middle Ages people focused on living simple lives Believed they would be rewarded in the afterlife The new wealthy wanted to enjoy this life Wore fancy clothes, ate fancy food, decorated their homes Most were still religious

V. Interest in the Individual Renaissance thinkers explored the richness and variety of human experience - Humanism focused on world subjects rather than on religious issues Encouraged education and exploration Writers began to write in a vernacular or everyday language of the people

VI. Renaissance Ideals Castiglione wrote The Courtier explaining how men and women should act Men should be: Educated in the Greco-Roman classics Polite and clever Able to dance and play music Strong and skilled in athletics A “Renaissance Man”

Women should be: Educated in the Greco-Roman classics A charming conversationalist Able to dance and sing Muses: they should inspire men to create great things For the first time people had portraits painted Felt their individual lives were worth recording

VII. The Renaissance Spread Kings invited Italian artists to their courts Foreign artists visited Italy to study By 1550 all of Europe had been exposed