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The Big PictureThe Middle Ages in Europe had been a time of uncertainty, in which rival lords competed for power against one another, foreign armies periodically invaded and raided, and the sole unifying force was the Catholic Church. It wasn't such a great time to be around, but such is life. So people struggled to survive in the face of complete chaos. By the 14th century, however, there were signs that things were improving (except for the brief but terrible onset of the Black Plague).
Beginning in the city-state of Florence, on the Italian peninsula, a new intellectual movement began. It became known as humanism, and it would eventually change the way Europeans viewed themselves and the world around them. They would rediscover the writings of classical Greece and Rome, discover new ways to represent reality through painting and sculpture, and reinvent man's meaning for existence. |
A new emphasis on learning and inquiry would flourish during this Renaissance and would continue to grow, despite periodic efforts by the Catholic Church to stifle it. The invention of the printing press allowed for cheaper and easier publication of books, pamphlets, and (probably most importantly) the Bible. During the 16th century, science would increasingly challenge the Church and long-held beliefs about the way the universe worked. Spurred on by scientists such as Galileo and Newton, this Scientific Revolution would reshape the way people viewed knowledge. Now empirical proof and experimentation would begin to supplant faith in knowledge passed down from the ancients.
This, then, is the story of a sea change in the European worldview. It represents a time when knowledge was seen as the gateway to a better understanding of the world and a happier existence in that world. It is the story of men and women who challenged every bit of knowledge they were handed by others and sought to find truth in the existence of humanity and the functioning of the universe.
This, then, is the story of a sea change in the European worldview. It represents a time when knowledge was seen as the gateway to a better understanding of the world and a happier existence in that world. It is the story of men and women who challenged every bit of knowledge they were handed by others and sought to find truth in the existence of humanity and the functioning of the universe.
My Videos
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The Renaissance
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Renaissance Humanism
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Secular Humanism
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Civic Humanism
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The Printing Press
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Renaissance Art
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Michelangelo
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Renaissance Naturalism
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Renaissance in Perspective
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Mannerism
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Documents
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Homework Assignments
Assignment 1: The Renaissance
Assignment 2: Renaissance Humanism
Assignment 3: Civic and Secular Humanism
Assignment 4: Renaissance Art and Architecture
Assignment 5: Mannerist and Baroque Art
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Assignment 6: Astronomical Science
Assignment 7: Anatomical and Medical Science
Assignment 8: The Scientific Method and Superstition
Assignment 9: Studying for the test
Primary Sources
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