Renaissance__Continuity_or_Change_

Beginning in the early fourteenth century and continuing for over three hundred years, the Renaissance was a cultural liberation for the people of Europe. Everything from the arts to the way people thought about life and death, the Renaissance played an important part in the development of various technologies and ideas. However ,while it is seen as a revolution by the majority of people, some believe that the Renaissance was merely an advancement in the chronological order of time. This essay will look at the Renaissance from multiple angles and examine whether it was just an advancement of time or if it was a complete revolution of ideas. There are many different theories that historians have decided on that could be an explanation of how the Renaissance began; the bubonic plague, cultural conditions of Florence and its people, and political and social structures all played various roles int the development of of the Renaissance. Italy as a whole was not a unified country under on capital as it is today. Instead, it was divided into several city states; each with its on army, boundaries, but most importantly, political ideologies. One historian, Quentin Skinner, pointed out in his records that a German bishop visiting northern Italy noticed that feudalism was not the driving political idea. Instead, the bishop, Otto of Freising saw that the society of Italy was now more based around trading and merchants. Skinner also stated that the Italian city states seemed to be more focused on liberty and equality of the citizens, instead of the norm of Europe where the church and empire like powers influenced everything. The Renaissance, while still influenced by the catholic church and its teachings, was less focused on God himself, but more focused on viewing God on a human level. Now while much of the art created in this period was still in recognition of the church and its complexes, a more modern idea of theology began to form in which citizens viewed the relationship between God and themselves differently. This became most visual at the very beginning of the Renaissance, when much of Europe was questioning the church's authority and whether they could trust what the papacy preached to them. Beginning with the western schism, distrust with the papacy continued to grow until Martin Luther the 95 Theses which eventually led to the reformation and creation of an early Protestant religion which seeked to completely separate itself from the roman catholic church. While one hundred years prior to this event, Martin Luther and any followers would have been claimed a heretic, now with the political reformation along with people beginning to view their relationship with God differently, no one even questioned this act. Before the beginning of the Renaissance, many artists were unable to add any sense of depth to their work. This changed when artists took inspiration and design ideas from people like Filippo Brunelleschi (an architect) and various others about how they could incorporate perspective into their artwork. Some great examples of this are noticeable in works like Creation of Adam by Michelangelo, Jan van Eyck's Giovanni Arnolfini and His Bride, and Raphael's The School of Athens. Each of these paintings showed an advancement in the ability of these artists to make their works more dimensional; from the detail in the figures of Michelangelo, to the three dimensional look of The School of Athens. While much of the early Renaissance art still held strong influence with the church, artists such as Pieter Bruegel the Elder began to to create pieces of art that focused more on the daily life of townsfolk and scenery. While the Renaissance arts were dominantly focused on paintings or writings and the such, the Renaissance also ushered in a new age of architecture. However, instead of constructing new designs all together, many Italian architects looked at the structures used in the middle ages such as: archways, pillars, columns, and the aesthetic design of ancient building. The first architect to take inspiration from the classical age of architecture was Filippo Brunelleschi who is complimented with being the father of Renaissance style. The crowning achievement of the Renaissance/Classical design would be the reconstruction of St. Peters Basilica. As the Renaissance continued, more detailed architecture ideas began to form and eventually, more “modernized” structures appeared throughout Europe. The early middle ages also saw a new wave of science that was the influence of many different artworks. A perfect example of this would be in Leonardo Da Vinci's Vitruvian Man and the countless other studies of human anatomy. A two thousand seven study done by Fritjof Capra found that Da Vinci was not only a brilliant artist, but also a great scientific mind. Capra found that much of Leonardo's scientific studies of human anatomy, aerodynamics, and water flow formed the basis for today's scientific method. Along with Da Vinci, many other great thinkers developed technologies that became some of what we today use on a daily basis. Everything from Galileo Galilee creating the first telescope and studying Jupiter and her moons, to the printing press allowing for common-folk to become more literate by driving book prices down. Other inventions such as the dry dock, allowed for larger ships to begin to be built, which allowed explorers such as Columbus and Darwin to sail to what is now the Americas. Although the Renaissance began in Florence, it quickly spread its ideas and designs throughout the rest of Europe. Spreading out through Spain, France, Germany, and much of mainland Europe, the Renaissance spread its influence quickly and eventually made its way into Russia and England. Due to expansion of towns and the need for gold to expand further many countries thought to look for an easier way to reach traders in the the East. The invention of ship yards and the dry dock during the middle of the Renaissance allowed for countries to begin looking for alternative trade routes across the oceans to India and the Middle East. Because of this, many explorers offered to commandeer the voyages in hopes of becoming a legacy in their home country. However, as it became apparent that there was no route directly across the ocean, many people decided to leave Europe and start a new life in the new found Americas. As these immigrants settled down, they were unable to build such lavish structures due to the lack of available materials and manpower. Lasting for over three hundred years, the Renaissance created the basis for much of today's modernized way of life. However, although there were many outstanding accomplishments throughout its span, the Renaissance was quite an achievement which was a radical change of the ways things were during the middle ages. Starting with different views on theology and the relationships between man and God, and ending with expansion and both military and common inventions, the Renaissance sparked a change in the way people felt, thought, and acted in their lives. Without such an advancement in time and technology, Europe would have never expanded to the Americas and the world would have been much different (for better and worse) had it not happened.