1. The Renaissance
Chapter 12

2. The Italian Renaissance
Renaissance means “rebirth”
People believed they had witnessed a rebirth of the ancient Greek and Roman worlds.
Three major traits of the Renaissance
Renaissance Italy was largely an urban society – meaning powerful city-states became the centers of Italian political, economic, and social life.
Renaissance was also an age of recovery from the disasters of the 14th century – the plague, political instability, and a decline in church power.
A new view of human beings emerged as people in the Italian Renaissance emphasized individual ability.

3. Universal man – a well-rounded person could achieve much in many areas.
Leonardo da Vinci was the example of an Universal man – he was a painter, sculptor, architect, inventor, and mathematician.

4. Machiavelli
Niccolo Machiavelli wrote The Prince- one of the most influential works on political power in the Western world.
Main theme in his book was how to acquire and keep political power.
Machiavelli believed that morality had little to do with politics
His point of view was that a Prince’s attitude toward power must be based on the understanding of human nature, which he believed was self- centered.
Machiavelli believes a prince acts on behalf of the state and for the state’s sake, he must let his conscience sleep.
His views had a profound influence on political leaders who followed

6. Ideas of the Renaissance
Humanism – based on the study of the classic literary works of ancient Greece and Rome.
Humanists studied grammar, rhetoric, poetry, moral philosophy, and history – called humanities now.
Renaissance writers began to write literature in their vernacular languages
Italian author Dante wrote his masterpiece the Divine Comedy in Italian vernacular.
Story of the souls journey to salvation. A lengthy poem consisting of 3 sections, Hell, Purgatory, and Heaven
English author Geoffrey Chaucer wrote his masterpiece The Canterbury Tales in the English vernacular
Collection of stories told by a group of 29 pilgrims travelling to the tomb of Saint Thomas a Becket.

7. New Techniques in Painting
Frescoes are the first masterpieces of the Early Renaissance
Fresco is a painting done on fresh, wet plaster with water-based paints
Medieval painting the figures look flat and not to scale
The use of perspective leads to a new realistic style
The realistic portrayal of the individual became one of the chief aims of the Italian Renaissance

8. Artists of the Renaissance
Donatello studied statues of Greeks and Romans and created a realistic, free standing figure of Saint George
Leonardo da Vinci mastered the art of realistic painting – Mona Lisa, The Last Supper,
Raphael achieved an ideal of beauty far surpassing human standards – known for his frescos in the Vatican Palace, School of Athens painting
Michelangelo was a painter, sculptor, and architect. Known for his painting on the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel.