The Renaissance Was A Thing

Art, religious and otherwise, is the most common thought that comes to mind when people begin to talk about the Renaissance. While it is true that many great artists can be traced back to the Renaissance period, that is certainly not the only thing that occurred during this time of European “rebirth.”

While many argue that the Renaissance began in the early 1400’s and lasted until the 1600’s.  Some time around 1453, is the starting date that most scholars agree on. The Renaissance can be more simply summed up as revival of Greek and Roman literature and thought. Many scholars believe this revival was spawned in part by the arrival of the Black Death in Messina, Italy in 1347. The black death killed more than 20 million people, a third of Europe's population, which left many positions open, from clergy to blacksmiths. The plague spread most rapidly through the larger cities where heavier populations were concentrated. As a result the wealthy fled the city--which led to an economic depression. However, as incidences of the plague decreased, populations began to increase again, which led to an increase in a demand for goods and services, which in turn led to a wealthier middle class, a return of wealthier citizens to the cities, and an increase in wealth overall for the city. This is part where the Renaissance, in fact, did begin to happen.

Printing Press Example

John Greene advises that the Renaissance did not happen because, “most people in Europe were totally unaware of the Renaissance, because it's art and learning affected a tiny sliver of the European population.” However, this reasoning alone does not suffice. If an event is happening, even to a small population as Greene argues, that does not negate the fact that the event is indeed happening; and I believe the survivors of the Black Death knew exactly what was going on around them.  So much like Amor Sciendi states, being aware of a cultural movement as it is happening is not a prerequisite for the movement to occur. Greene does make a good point about the Renaissance being more of a cultural and intellectual movement versus a period of time, but again, that does not negate the fact that it happened. Furthermore, the fruits of the Renaissance actually did reach more than just a tiny portion of Europe's population, thanks to Johannes Gutenberg and his invention of the printing press in 1440.

There were many remarkable occurrences that occurred during the Renaissance.

 Great literary works such as Utopia by Sir Thomas Moore in 1516, The Praise of Folly by Desiderius Erasmus in 1511, and The Prince by Niccolo Machiavelli in 1532, among others, were written. Scientific discoveries and inventions were created, often times by the very artists that make the Renaissance ‘famous’. For example, Leonardo da Vinci invented many inventions ahead of this time (though he never fully created them), like the helicopter, parachute, the crossbow, scuba gear, a submarine, and even a triple barrel cannon. Architectural achievements were made by architects such as Brunelleschi, Alberti, and Palladio. They were responsible for creations such as the dome on the Florence Cathedral, the columns on the Church of Sant’Andrea, and the San Giorgio Maggiore church in Venice. Through these architectural feats, the Roman influence is obvious, in fact these particular architects purposely based their works upon Roman designs.

All of these great advancements, inventions, and artistic achievements might not have been made if it were not for 1) the black death wiping out a third of Europe and 2) the rise of Humanism. Humanism “was a revival of the ancient learning from the Greco-Roman period” (Feagin). They focused on eloquence in writing and speaking, the study of the Latin and Greek languages, the study of classical Greek and Roman texts concerning government and morality, they held education in the highest esteem, and they held a deep appreciation for history, all thanks to this Greek and Roman revival.

However, to agree with John Greene, all of this Greco-Roman revival would not have been possible without Islamic traders, more specifically the Ottomans. When the Ottomans conquered Constantinople in 1453, they sent the many Greek scholars that lived there, such as Plato and Aristotle, heading for Italy for safety. When they arrived, they brought with them a plethora of knowledge, language, and philosophy that sparked the already growing interest in Humanism. The fleeing Greeks were not the only ones to bring back the Greek and Roman culture back with them, the Crusaders did as well, “Islamic countries kept many classical Greek and Roman texts that had been lost in Europe, and they were reintroduced through returning crusaders.”  The increased interest and growth of Humanism led to to a rise in Secularism, which focused heavily upon the material world rather than the world of spirits. Secularism and it’s love of pleasure touched everyone from the average citizen, to the wealthy, and even the clergy. Which consequently, led to the Roman Catholic church selling of “indulgences” which provided forgiveness of sins, in order for people to indulge in such pleasures, and even the sale for church positions was not off the table.

Thanks to Erasmus and his Praise of Folly which mocked the Catholic church, for what was considered extremely immoral and blasphemous behaviour, a new movement was set in motion--that of the establishment of a new church that was separate from the Catholic church. This movement was led by Martin Luther in 1517 when he posted his work Ninety-Five Theses on the Power of Indulgences in direct opposition to the Church’s practices. Through this defiance, Martin Luther began the Lutheran Church and his church and teachings spread throughout Europe. Effectively leading to divisions among churches, clergy, and people. From then on there were Protestants (which Lutheranism fell into) and Catholicism, and each held fast to their beliefs.

Throughout this time period of the Renaissance there are clear indications of a change in thought, even if it was simply a revival of the older Greek and Roman thoughts, for the people in Italy it was a great movement and that is clearly evidenced by the drastic changes in art, invention, science, and religion. To echo what Amor Sciendi said, “Just because there was no Hiroshima moment that began the Renaissance doesn’t mean that it didn’t happen” and to agree with Sciendi even further, “one has to believe in separating history into periods” because if we did not, then everything throughout time would simply morph and meld into each other. For me, the Renaissance happened just as clearly as the Industrial Revolution happened. Sure, it lasted well over 200 years, but then again there are many things throughout history that lasted over 200 years.

Works Cited

Department of European Paintings. "Architecture in Renaissance Italy." The Met's Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History. 2000. Accessed February 03, 2017. http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/itar/hd_itar.htm.

Annenberg Foundation. "Renaissance -- Out of the Middle Ages." Renaissance -- Out of the Middle Ages. 2016. Accessed February 03, 2017. http://www.learner.org/interactives/renaissance/middleages.html

Greene, John. "The Renaissance: Was It a Thing?" Khan Academy. Accessed February 03, 2017. https://www.khanacademy.org/humanities/world-history/renaissance-and-reformation/when-people-do-great-and-really-terrible-things-2/v/crash-course-world-history-22

History.com Staff. "Black Death." History.com. 2010. Accessed February 03, 2017. http://www.history.com/topics/black-death

InventHelp. "Famous Inventions of Leonardo Da Vinci." 2008. Accessed February 03, 2017. http://www.da-vinci-inventions.com/davinci-inventions.aspx

Pettinger, Tevjan. "Famous People of the Renaissance." Biography Online. 2004. Accessed February 2, 2017. http://www.biographyonline.net/people/famous/renaissance.html.

Szalay, Jessie. "The Renaissance: The 'Rebirth' of Science & Culture." LiveScience. June 29, 2016. Accessed February 03, 2017. http://www.livescience.com/55230-renaissance.html

The Renaissance Was a Thing: A Reply to Crash Course. Performed by Amor Sciendi. November 26, 2012. Accessed January 30, 2017. https://youtu.be/XFfkl5iCM9I.