...New Art Forms of the High Middle Ages Throughout history Europe has experienced countless changes in culture and other aspects. The Middle Ages, or Medieval Period, lasted from around 800 into the 1400’s (349). This period can be subdivided into three categories: early, high, and late. The Middle Ages brought about changes in religion, law, and daily life. Changes also occurred in the arts with the introduction of Gothic architecture and troubadour poetry. Although the Middle Ages began as a time of violence, the emergence of Gothic architecture and troubadour poetry are examples of devotion and expression. During the tenth and eleventh centuries cathedrals were constructed (367). The style of the cathedrals resembled Roman architecture, which was the preceding time period. (367). Features of Roman architecture included “massive walls, rounded stones arches, and small windows” (367). By the twelfth century, this new style gained the name “Gothic.” The Gothic style introduced new engineering improvements and emphasized more emotional expression. The structures of Gothic architecture consisted of pointed arches, high ceilings, and flying buttresses (367). A flying buttress carried the weight of the roof. “Midieval Archtechture” states: “The walls of Gothic buildings could be thinner than previous styles of architecture because the weight of the roof was supported by the arches rather than by the walls. The pointed Gothic arch provided greater flexibility could also span...
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...The Italian Renaissance was a cultural movement that revived an interest in learning and promoted humanism roughly from the 14th to 17th century, strongly encouraging the education for all men, including women. Yet while it is generally accepted that women had wider access to education as humanists valued the education of all people, the majority of women who received an education in the Italian Renaissance were still largely of nobility; the primary goals of which were still related to domestic purposes and did not, in any way, attempt to change their social position. Since the Middle Ages, a typical father did not desire a learned daughter as it threatened the order of the household, engendering lax housekeeping and marital discord. The Italian humanist Lucrezia Marinelli further explained this with the theory that male hostility to female learning was because they feared to lose their dominion over women. The popular belief about the life of a Renaissance woman was that her role was one of “subjugation; she should have no control over her life.” With pedagogical theorists believing that a woman should acquire learning appropriate to her expected role as an adult, there was a new granting of permission of women to be educated. In 16th century Italy, approximately 33% of Venetian boys aged six through fifteen and I2 to 13% of Venetian girls were literate in 1587-88. While the percentage for literate women may appear disappointing, comparative figures...
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...Renaissance men and women were those that excelled in many different fields. A wonderful example of a Renaissance man is Leonardo da Vinci. This essay will discuss why it is hard to find an example of a Renaissance man or woman in today's society. One of the main reasons that make it troublesome to find a true Renaissance man in today's society is that the study fields that Renaissance men studied between 1300 and 1600 were much more underdeveloped than they are today. Today, if a person wanted to excel in even one field, it would require endless work. For example, if a person wanted to study astronomy in today's society, he would first have decided upon which section of astronomy to study in. Then, he would have to spend half a lifetime to...
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...Shandrika Shreves Professor Alexandra Hill HUM 2232 16 October 2012 Renaissance Besides the horrific natural disasters of the plague, the signs of intense human creativity flourished in all the arts. The deep-rooted scholastic approach to learning increased interest in Classical literature. Therefore, people began incorporating new ideas to political systems, economics, and trade. The ideal Renaissance man and woman wanted a better understanding of life. The passion for enlightenment changed the culture and scholasticism of this period. Francis Petrarch, Christine de Pisan, and Lavinia Fontana contributions to the Renaissance are the signs of intense human creativity, and created a new perspective on life. Men during the Renaissance controlled of everything. They had a voice in the political and social systems. Social categorizing of the Renaissance people depended on a person classification of wealth. Men were supposed to be loyal to their king and the Church. Learning from outside sources other than the Church became popular. They did not reject the church, but people started to question the traditional history and teachings. In this era, people started to focus back on their history and began to have a strong passion for investigating and learning more about their past. Education became paramount. The more educated, the more a person understood about life as a whole; it became a necessity to become well rounded and successful. Social status played a huge role during...
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...Britsh Literature SparkNotes Editors. “SparkNote on Italian Renaissance (1330-1550).” SparkNotes.com. SparkNotes LLC. n.d.. Web. 12 Dec. 2015. The women of the Renaissance era, like the women of the middle Ages in there time, were denied all political rights and considered legally subject to their husbands. Women of all classes were expected to perform, first and foremost, the duties of housewife. Peasant women worked in the field alongside their husbands and ran the home. The Italian renaissance article shows how the wives of middle class shop owners and merchants often helped run their husbands' businesses as well. Even women of the highest class, though attended by servants, most often engaged in the tasks of the household, sewing, cooking, and entertaining, among others. Women who did not marry were not permitted to live independently. Instead, they lived in the households of their male relatives or, more often, joined a convent. From this article I collected a good bit of information on how and why Lady Macbeth acted the way she did back in the renaissance era BeyondJane , The role of women during the renaissance era , May 20, 2010 Women were often placed in arranged agreements to marry as early as the age of eight years old. A woman in the Renaissance usually got married somewhere between the ages of sixteen and twenty years old. Marriages were arranged not for reasons of romantic love, but for business reasons, in the interest of trade relations, and...
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...What kind of hierarchies do we encounter in the study of art from 1400-1600? Ideas of the Renaissance The hierarchical phenomenon operating between the years 1400-1600 shaped and organised Renaissance society, heavily defining codes of conduct and correct communal correlations. What’s more, it was a comprehensive and widespread concept that manifested from various angles in Italian Renaissance art. Hierarchical influence can be encountered when considering the contention between several aspects of Renaissance art, and the bearing this classification and ranking process had on the canon of art history was considerable given the periods place in it. Specifically, this ladder of position operated within the competitive frameworks between the liberal and mechanical arts, Early Renaissance and High Renaissance artists, male and female artists, patrons and their employees in the practice of patronage, genres of art works, and painters and sculptors. When trying to understand how a period is structured and works as a whole, consideration of the hierarchies operating within it reveal some clear points of focus. Societies generally work on a ‘pyramid of prestige’, and Renaissance Italy followed this rule. Each societal member had a place, and was expected to fully understand the boundaries this position placed upon them. Societal roles were clear, and every person was conscious of their social standing, whether it be that they were higher or lower than the next person...
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...Often when thinking of the Renaissance, the flourishing arts, influential families, and in particular powerful men come to mind. In Italy during the fourteenth century, women did not seem to hold power, and were often seen as inferior, stuck to labor within the household, and holding few rights. However, while women were treated as inferior to men during the age of the Italian Renaissance, woman exerted some power. Through a reflection of Renaissance art, one can not only see the historical subjugation of women but also the hidden power that women held. Women during this time in Italy were essentially controlled by men, who determined what they could do, where they could go, and even who they could marry. Women’s roles were limited since they were denied political rights and left with little autonomy. Within a marriage, often arranged without her consent...
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...In the study of English literature, the medieval period and the Renaissance represent two distinctly different eras. Not only did the language itself change between the two periods, but the scope and subject of literature changed. Broadly speaking, medieval literature revolved around Christianity and chivalry, while Renaissance literature focused on man himself, the progress of arts and sciences, and the emergence of humanism. Medieval and Renaissance literature were influenced by two completely different eras in human history. During the Middle Ages, (A.D. 1066- 1500) the toils of daily life affected the mindset of those at this time. As a result, these ideas found its way into the making of Medieval literature. However, after the great rediscovery of the classical civilizations during A.D. 1500- 1660, men began creating what is now looked upon as Renaissance literature. Though they are both forms of writing, their history as a part of society greatly differed from contrasting philosophies of life, leading to two different personalities. Medieval Literature During the Middle Ages, a great emphasis was placed on the blend of fantasy and reality. Though characters were given human characteristics, their personalities transcended to those of fictitious figures (God, Saints, and revered leaders). Additionally, these stories incorporated the codes of romance and honor, reliving the ideals of chivalry in writing. Furthermore, there was a religious overtone hidden in these...
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...is very different than the Renaissance people. In Medieval period the amount of money invested on Art& Architecture was much less than Renaissance people invested. During Medieval period, all art was portrait of patron, and religious celebrations, they have not used oil paints during the architecture, and also there were no nude pictures as well. But in contrast to Renaissance period it was non-religious artwork; many different painting techniques, people became very interested in realism and accuracy so they have portrayed human anatomy in nude paintings and structure, and it involved more emotion in the art. For example, “The Birth of Venus,” is one of the well-known portrays from Renaissance...
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...meaning it is that they themselves believe and can often be the foundation of confusion. Modern humanism can vary from the renaissance humanism in many ways, because generations have changed and different problems arose through the time periods. Modern humanism depends on reason and human life itself, it rejects all sense of supernaturalism and has a dual origin. While renaissance humanism directly focuses on the arts, culture, and rhetorical traditions. In this generation the infatuation with humans and life itself describes differences that these three readings have. However, the author’s opinions on humanism connects the similarities that they share. In Margaret L. King’s Renaissance Humanism, the different essays cover the opinions of humanism which ties to the papal court and all medieval traditions . In each essay the topic is focused on literary and religious magnitudes as well as the idea of classical learning. The beliefs and aspirations of the people were centered on God and saints as well as some scholars becoming more interested in the sciences and arts . During the timeframe of these writings women who practiced humanism were often looked upon as problematic. They were typically more intelligent and willingly tried to step out of the typical function allowed to them by men and the society of this era. But as often as not these same women would end up falling back into the role expected of them, be it marriage and motherhood or perhaps becoming nuns . It would...
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...Medieval and Renaissance point of view toward the human body. For the Medieval view of the Christian body, we will use the Coffin Lid of Francisco De La Sarra. During the Medieval times, the lives of the Christians were ruled by the Pope and God. The art was meant to let all Christians understand that by living a good life they will be rewarded in the afterlife...
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...History 103g Did Women Have An Early Modern Europe During the emergence of the Early Modern Europe, nations were known to have developed both intellectually and culturally. Movements such as the Renaissance, Reformation, religious wars, scientific revolution, industrialization, Enlightenment, and French Revolution had brought about the nations’ development in terms of thoughts, expressions, and societal and political issues that characterized the Early Modern Europe. New knowledge was increasingly acquired. New thoughts on religion, natural, and political philosophy were increasingly developed. New instruments and machines were increasingly invented. Yet, only the males contributed to most of these tremendous developments, questioning whether or not women have an Early Modern Europe. Thus, to conclude whether women did experience an Early Modern Europe, women’s role on the movements that characterized the Early Modern Europe would have to be assessed. The period of the Renaissance was characterized by the emergence of a cultural movement, ‘humanism’, and classical art and architecture that are naturalistic, realistic, and humanistic. During this period, classical ideas were reintroduced in the increasing works of humanists and artists. Such include Petrarch’s ‘Rules for the Successful Ruler’, Machiavelli’s ‘From the Discourses on Livy’, Leonardo da Vinci’s ‘Vitruvian Man’, and Dürer’s ‘Adam and Eve’. These primary sources are all the works of male humanists and artists...
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...Kady Franklin Final Paper Shakespeare I Viola: A Pure Heart Disguised in Drab Clothes In a time when women were not even allowed to portray themselves on stage, Shakespeare often incorporates female characters that cross-dress as men into his comedies. These women disguise themselves as men in order to deceive other characters and accomplish their own tasks, yet this act was a serious crime during the time period and was socially unacceptable. The character of Viola in Shakespeare’s comedy Twelfth Night serves as an ideological tool to question the cultural discourse and contempt for women that cross-dressed in the Renaissance time period. As is the norm with most of Shakespeare’s heroines, Viola is a nearly faultless character that is very likable throughout the entire play. While the audience may be confused or turned off by her decision to dress as a man, it is easy to write-off because it is the basis for the entire plot of the play. After being shipwrecked and separated from her twin brother, Viola decides that she wants to serve the Countess Olivia, but finds it impossible. Instead, she decides to serve the Duke Orsino, and she must disguise herself as a boy in order to do this. Thus begins Viola’s second life as a young servant named Cesario. However, it should not be so easy to write-off this decision to cross-dress, and if the reader looks deeper into the implications behind this then they might be able to understand the cultural discourse of the times a little...
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...known as the renaissance of culture commerce and learning. It was in this period that the Italy states started establishing banking and trading which helped in the stabilization of the economy throughout Europe. Q.2 One of the most thriving sectors of business during this period was the textile industry. New materials as well as innovative techniques in sewing and cutting transformed tailoring of clothes. The merchants who used to trade clothes influence the textile industry by expanding the markets of clothes that were manufactured in Italy. Moreover, they introduced new designs from different parts of the World such as the Middle East, Rome, and Turkey: the new designs had a significant impact on the textile industry in Italy. The trade activities by the Venetian merchants led to intercultural interactions between Italy and Middle East. Q.3 Some of the major sources of information about the Italian costumes of the in the Renaissance period were primary sources such as paintings, actual garments, and paintings by painters such as Memling Durer, Cranach and Davinci. Secondary sources included the art of the Renaissance in the North Europe and Renaissance humanism. Some of the disadvantages of these sources were that they easily available to every Hence most of the tailors found themselves manufacturing clothes of similar designs Q.4 The trendsetters of women clothes in were referred to as Venetian courtesans. They played the role of artfully differentiating women clothes by creating...
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...The Church was a powerful institution for the community and leaders of Renaissance Florence in numerous ways. Unifying the community in times of prosperity as well as in times of need. Respected by the people of Florence, the Church was able to use their support. Using examples from The Chronicle of Giovanni Villani, I will show how the Church was prominent in the life of the people of fourteenth century Renaissance Florence. The Church was a valuable component in bringing the community together. For example, as Giovanni Villani writes in his chronicle,“... The citizens agreed to renew their leading church, which was a rude affair and small for such a municipality.” (36). The Cathedral was important for the people of Florence. They had just...
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