Download To what extent was the Italian Renaissance a break from the Middle

MODEL ESSAY
Mr. Ippolito as revised by Mr. Collins
To what extent was the Italian Renaissance a break from the Middle Ages?
After the fall of the Roman Empire in A.D. 476, a new era of European civilization began, known as the
Middle Ages. During this thousand-year period of transformation, Europe experienced the rise of towns and
trade, the development of feudalism and, most importantly, the growing power of the Catholic Church.
However, it was not until the Italian Renaissance of the 14th century that Europe entered fully into the Modern
Era. The Renaissance signaled a major break from the Middle Ages through its emphasis on humanism which
highlighted human potential and secularism as seen in the paintings of Raphael. Secularism allowed writers to
focus on worldly over religious themes as witnessed in Boccaccio’s Decameron. Both of these values helped reshape the nature of political thought in Machiavelli’s The Prince. The Italian Renaissance represented a break
from the Middle Ages with new approaches to visual arts, literature, and political thinking.
Many Italians looked down on the arts of the Middle Ages and wanted to return to the styles of the
Greeks and Romans. Through their study of ancient culture, people of the Renaissance developed humanism, a
new philosophy emphasizing human potential and achievements. Humanism influenced both the form and
content of Renaissance painting and sculpture. In his Marriage of the Virgin, Raphael employed the
rediscovered technique of perspective, which creates the appearance of three dimensions. Classical artists used
perspective, but medieval artists abandoned the technique. Renaissance artists also moved away from the
religious content of the Middle Ages and focused more on Greco-Roman themes. For example, Botticelli’s
Primavera and Birth of Venus were vivid depictions of Greek mythology. Humanism also influenced sculpture,
as shown in one of the most famous works of the Italian Renaissance, Michelangelo’s David. This statue
imagined the biblical king as a Greek Olympian and expressed the ancient values of balance, order, and
proportion in celebration of the human form. The transformation from lifeless one dimensional art to more
realistic forms represents a true break from the Middle Ages.
In addition to humanism, secularism helped writers during the Italian Renaissance break from the
Middle Ages by emphasizing worldly over religious concerns. Rather than praising the Church or focusing on
the afterlife, Renaissance writers valued self-expression and the individuality of their subjects. Two of the most
famous writers were Petrarch and Boccaccio. In his elegant sonnets, Petrarch celebrated his love for a
mysterious woman named Laura. In the Decameron, Boccaccio told a series of humorous stories through a
group of sarcastic and worldly young people. Both works would have been scandalous during the more pious
Middle Ages. The philosophy of secularism during the Italian Renaissance helped writers of the Renaissance
begin trends that modern writers still follow.
One of the clearest ways in which the Middle Ages and Renaissance differed was the nature of political
thought. Piety and humility characterized the political philosophy of the Middle Ages, while humanism and
secularism defined the Renaissance. In his 12th-century treatise, The Nature of a True Prince, John of Salisbury
explained the medieval view of power: “The power which the prince has is therefore from God, for the power of
God is never lost, nor severed from Him, but He merely exercises it through a subordinate hand, making all
things teach His mercy or justice.” This religious idealism was replaced by a more secular realism with the
publication of The Prince in 1513 by Niccolo Machiavelli. In his political guidebook, Machiavelli broke from
the medieval model by divorcing politics from morality: “Those princes who have done great things have held
good faith of little account, and have known how to circumvent the intellect of men by craft, and in the end
have overcome those who have relied on their word.” In other words, political effectiveness replaces political
virtue during the Italian Renaissance which is a significant change from the Middle Ages.
New approaches to art, literature and political thinking during the Italian Renaissance created a
fundamental break from the Middle Ages. Raphael’s Marriage of the Virgin helped changed art forever.
Petrarch’s love for his muse Laura could not have been more worldly. The Nature of the True Prince seems so
naive compared to his Renaissance counter-part. Through humanism and secularism, the Italian Renaissance
effectuated a decisive break from the Middle Ages. It also accelerated changes in society in many ways, none
more important than the Age of Enlightenment which allowed men to raise the freedom to experiment and
question and have the decisive voice in the very structures and leaders that govern them.