Chapter 10 Questions 1. What was Jacob Burckhardts interpretation of the Renaissance?

What criticisms have been leveled against it? What did the term mean in the context of fifteenth and sixteenth-century Italy? a. Jacob Burckhardts interpretation of the Renaissance was that giving restoration to the ancient idea of new learning would make way for new secular and scientific values; or the birth of modernity. This way of thinking gave rise to the phrase full, whole nature of man. Scholars believe that Jacob was exaggerating and overlooking the continuity of the Renaissance and the Middle ages. The term of Renaissance in fifteenth and sixteenth-century Italy meant re-birth 2. How would you define Renaissance humanism? In what ways was the Renaissance a break with the Middle Ages and in what ways did it owe its existence to medieval civilization? a. I would define Renaissance humanism as the focusing on the individual and learning. Before the Renaissance, people of Europe focused on the city-states and the knowledge they had attained before not worrying what new knowledge was out there. Then came the Renaissance and brought focus to those things. The Renaissance was a break from the Middle Ages because it brought new ideas and new ways of thinking into society, but without the Middle Ages, the Renaissance wouldnt have been necessary. The Middle Ages had the same ways of thinking and the people didnt question anything. The Renaissance changed all of that. 3. Who were some of the famous literary and artistic figures of the Italian Renaissance? What did they have common that might be describes as the spirit of the Renaissance? a. Some of the many famous literary and artistic figures of the Italian Renaissance include Thomas More, who wrote Utopia, Erasmus, Castiglione, Michelangelo, da Vinci, Raphael and many more. The ideas that they had in common were that they all had a way of creating one thing, something that told one story, when they were conveying something different. They also were not afraid to think outside the box and create whatever they wanted. 4. Why did the French invade Italy in 1494? How did this event trigger Italys political decline? How did the actions of Pope Julius II and the ideas of Niccolo Machiavelli signify a new era in Italian civilization? a. The French invaded Italy as means of backup for Naples. The Treaty of Lodi was falling apart and the rulers of Naples went to France for their back-up. This event tore up the peace that the Treaty of Lodi had created by creating the cooperation of all the internal city-states. The actions of Pope Julius II and the ideas of Machiavelli signify a new era in Italian civilization because they both went about saving (I use that term lightly in lack of a better word) Italy the non-kosher way. 5. A common assumption is that creative work precedes best in periods of calm and peace. Given the combination of political instability and cultural productivity in renaissance Italy, do you think the assumption is valid?

a. I do not think that the assumption is valid because da Vinci and Michelangelo thrived in this period of time. All the commotion around them, all the instability of the political figures, the invasions, and the crumbling of countries all inspired them to make something better out of it. They gave people something to get their mind off of the craziness going on around them. Although the renaissance Italy was a crazy disaster at some points in time, the artists made it peaceful and calm. They made it be something that at times seemed impossible. 6. How did the Renaissance in the north differ from the Italian Renaissance? In what ways was Erasmus the embodiment of the northern Renaissance? a. The Northern Renaissance focused more on the middle class and detail. The Italian Renaissance focused on the patrons and the idea of linear perspective. The Northern Renaissance focused on the time in their paintings, in all their biblical paintings, the figures were dressed in renaissance clothing. Erasmus embodies the Northern Renaissance because he was skilled in many different things. 7. What factors led to the voyages of discovery? Why were the Portuguese interested in finding a route to the East? Why did Columbus sail west across the Atlantic in 1492? a. The factors that led to the voyages of discovery were the conquering of the African city of Ceuta. Portugal then sailed to Africa in search of gold and slaves, latter for spices. After they had figured this was getting harder to ship to Asia, they were looking for a route around Africa to Asias spice port. The Portuguese were so determined to find that sea-route because they wanted to cut out the middle man, the Venetians. Columbus sailed west across the Atlantic in 1492 because they believed that would be the shortest and fastest way to reach the East Indies. They believed that the world was flat and going across the Atlantic would put them in Asia. When Columbus hit the Bahamas, they were soon to find out that it wasnt.