1. The Renaissance
English 12
Mrs. Teeter

2. The Renaissance Means “re-birth” Began in the late 1400s-1600s
Didn’t believe in feudalism/hierarchy
Saw the rise of the middle class
Became cultured through education, art, literature, music, etc.
Exploration became important for commerce and the arts.

3. Key Ideas
Humanism :
Focused on return to “classic” knowledge in arts, literature, & architecture (think Greeks and Romans)
Individual persons are important and significant
People sought to understand (and achieve) what it was to be fully human

4. Important Humanist Sir Thomas Moore
Writer, lawyer and King Henry VIII’s
most trusted advisor.
Wrote Utopia
Meaning “no place”
Book was about teaching a king how to govern “free men”
Helped shape European thought & history
Beheaded for not supporting Henry’s petition for divorce.

5. Middle Ages vs. Renaissance
Before:
Focus on after life
Individuals not important
Little focus on learning and art
“dark” ages
Age of “faith”
After:
Focus on life on earth
Individuals are important
Learn the “classics” to inspire learning and art
Re-Birth
Age of Reason

6. The Reformation
People began to reject the authority of the Pope and Italian churchmen.
Feelings of a national identity made the English people resent the financial burdens imposed on them by the Vatican.
Martin Luther, a Christian monk, founded a Christianity based on his personal knowledge of The Bible, not on what the pope said.
People thought priests only cared about personal wealth & loose living.

7. Important people of the Renaissance:
King Henry VIII:
Created the Royal Navy, which put a stop to foreign invaders. Allowed England to spread its power, language, and culture around the world.
Was a “renaissance man”, meaning he wrote poetry, was a great athlete, hunter, played instruments, etc.
Was a womanizer that had six wives (two of which he had beheaded)
Survived by 3 kids: Mary, Elizabeth, and Edward

8. Mary, Princess of Spain, or “Bloody Mary”
Devout Catholic that married Phillip of Spain
Ruled England after brother Edward died
She wanted to rid her country of Protestants and had many of them killed.
Queen Elizabeth I, “The Virgin Queen”
When she took rule she needed to restore order to England.
Reestablished the Church of England
Never married (politically savvy move)
Defeated the Spanish Armada
Inspired many writers/artists

9. Renaissance led to a re-birth of art & literature
Leonardo da Vinci
Michelangelo
Shakespeare

10. Leonardo Da Vinci What did he create/investigate? painting
Science/anatomy
For what change was he responsible?
The true “Renaissance Man”
Epitomizes the liberal arts

11. His works: The Last Supper Leda and the Swan Mona Lisa
The Virtuvian Man

12. Renaissance Man
“The ideal Renaissance man was a master of art and literature, a scholar and inventor, as well as physically graceful and talented in all the social arts —he strove for perfection in man.” (Duffy)

13. Michelangelo What did he create/investigate? Painting Sculpture
Architecture
For what change was he responsible?
Focus on beauty of the human form

14. His works:
The David
The Sistine Chapel

15. William Shakespeare What did he create/investigate? Poetry/literature
Drama
For what change was he responsible?
Changed the Italian Petrarchan sonnet form to fit the English style of writing.