Download Renaissance/Reformation Review Sheet

Renaissance/Reformation Review Sheet
Mr. Kramer
Terms:
Humanism – Philosophical belief that focuses on human values and concerns. It is the
exploration of non-religious topics, and promoted the idea of not learning primarily about
religion.
Medicis - A wealthy banking family from Florence, Italy. The Medicis were a political
dynasty; many were patrons of the arts, and commissioned many famous Renaissance
works. In addition, they funded numerous art schools for young artists, and were the main
promoters of the importance of art.
Perspective –Artistic technique that showed depth through a central point (using lines
from the central point).
Patron – Someone who commissioned artists to create a painting/building/sculpture/etc.
“Renaissance Man” – A polymath; someone who is skilled in multiple fields. This is
relevant to the Renaissance because one of the beliefs is that one should be
knowledgeable in all fields, and to the fullest capacity.
People:
Leonardo da Vinci – Born in 1452 in Vinci, Tuscany. Da Vinci was a painter, sculptor,
architect, inventor, and much more. His most famous works were the Madonna and Child
with Saint Anne, the Madonna of the Rocks, The Last Supper, and the Mona Lisa. He
also invented early models of the helicopter, machine gun, and parachute. He used
perspective in many of his paintings, most notably The Last Supper and the placement of
Jesus in the painting. He was significant to the Renaissance because he displayed many
different skills (was a polymath) and utilized Renaissance ideals such as perspective. He
also depicted biblical scenes but focused on the art instead of the accuracy. Finally, Da
Vinci fused art with science, and made the paintings attractive to all people/social classes.
Michelangelo – Born in 1475 in Arezzo, Tuscany. Michelangelo was both a sculptor and
a painter, his most famous works being The David and The Pieta (statues) and the Ceiling
of the Sistine Chapel (painting). He was significant to the Renaissance because his works
focused on the ideas of humanism and human glorification, and the ideal human body
instead of the actual form. Also, even though he depicted biblical works, he focused on
the art instead of accurately telling the stories.
Albrecht Durer – Born in 1471 in Germany. Durer was a painter, his paintings being oil
and watercolor, but he also used copper engraving and wood block cuttings. Some of his
most famous works were the Madonna and Child with a Multitude of Animals, The Four
Horsemen of the Apocalypse, and the Four Apostles. He was significant to the
Renaissance because he was one of the first European landscape artists, and focused on
the ideals of perspective, precision, and detail.
Nicholas Copernicus – Born in 1473 in Poland. Copernicus was an astronomer, and
redefined the astronomical world. He took Aristarchus’ works and disproved the
geocentric model (everything revolves around the Earth) and reintroduced the
heliocentric model (everything revolves around the sun). He was significant to the
Renaissance because he revived Greek and Roman ideals (Aristarchus’ works). He also
went against the Church’s beliefs (geocentric vs. heliocentric). He also used math and
physics to support his scientific beliefs, and is viewed by many as the initiator for the
Scientific Revolution.
Desiderius Erasmus – Born in 1466 in Netherlands. Erasmus was known for the creation
of his 2 novels Handbook of the Christian Knight and In Praise of Folly that criticized,
attacked, and made fun of the Church and its priests. He was significant to the
Renaissance because he defied the Church and mocked them through his novels. In
addition, he promoted the ideas of humanism.
Andrea Palladio – Born in 1508 in Venice, Italy. Palladio was a Mannerist architect (an
architect who based his designs off of Greek and Roman architecture). His form of
architecture influenced many people around Europe and the US (ex: Thomas Jefferson –
Monticello, William Kent, etc.). He was significant to the Renaissance because his work
reflected Roman and Greek cultures.
Niccolo Machiavelli – Born in 1469 in Florence, Italy. Machiavelli wrote The Prince,
and proposed the idea that “the ends justify the means.” Machiavelli supported the idea
that one should do whatever it takes to maintain political power (even if it’s violent) as
long as order is maintained. Machiavelli focused on human achievement on Earth, and
believed that it was ok to act immorally, politically, if it were good for the people. It was
for the good of the people because when there is less change in the daily lives of people
when there is power changing hands in a state, the people will not rebel, there will be a
smooth adjustment to their new leader and it will ultimately create a safer and more
efficient environment. He was significant to the Renaissance because he shed light on
human nature, and went against the teachings of the Church (morality) and showed the
difference between political realism and political idealism.
Brueghel – Born circa 1525 in Netherlands. Brueghel was an artist, and drew many
famous paintings such as the Peasant Wedding, the Fall of Icarus, and the Triumph of
Death. His paintings disregarded social class, and utilized the ideas of perspective in art.
In the Peasant Wedding, he gives the painting a sense of space and shows perspective. In
the Fall of Icarus, he depicts Icarus, but it is difficult to find him. He focuses more on the
landscape and the art instead of telling the story. He is significant to the Renaissance
because he introduced new artistic ideas, along with focusing on the art instead of the
story.
Petrarch – Born in 1304 in Florence, Italy. Petrarch scholar, poet, and one of the earliest
Renaissance humanists. He was best known for his assembly of Greek and Roman
manuscripts in monasteries and churches. His efforts to maintain and save these works
allowed for the redistribution of the works of the Greeks and Romans in Western Europe.
He was significant to the Renaissance because he revived Greek and Roman teachings
and spread them throughout the public.
Vesalius – Born in 1514 in Netherlands. Vesalius was an anatomist, and focused on the
anatomy of the human. All anatomical information was based off of Galen’s research
with gorillas during Roman times. However, Vesalius’s experiments were done entirely
with human bodies that he dug up and worked on. His research on the human body
disproved Galen’s prior information about the anatomy of a human, and revolutionized
the anatomical world. He wrote many books, including a medical textbook discussing his
findings in detail. He is significant to the Renaissance because he took Greek and Roman
ideas and worked on them. He also defied the Church (working on humans) for the sake
of science.
Brunelleschi – Born in 1377 in Florence, Italy. Brunelleschi was an architect, and
revived Roman architecture in Italy. He created the Duomo’s dome, making it the highest
point of Florence. He invented perspective along with several other techniques that
helped build the Duomo. He is considered to be the first Renaissance engineer. He is
significant to the Renaissance because he revived Greek and Roman architect and values,
and also characterized a new outlook and innovation.
Donatello – Born in 1386 in Florence. Donatello created a statue of a soldier on a horse
out of bronze. He was the first sculptor to do so since ancient times, and the usage of
bronze was an Ancient Greek technique. Donatello was significant to the Renaissance
because he revived ancient Greek and Roman knowledge and techniques. He also created
the first nude statue of the Renaissance, which paved the way for many more statues
similar to him (i.e: the David). The nudity also exemplified the ideal human body and
went against the Church’s belief that there should be no nudity in the arts
Miguel de Cervantes – Born in 1547 in Spain. Cervantes served in the Spanish navy and
wrote Don Quixote, the first modern Spanish novel. The novel mocked Middle Age
beliefs about chivalry and knighthood through the main character’s silly and pointless
journeys (ex: Quixote battles a windmill, mocks Knight fighting a “monster”). He is
significant to the Renaissance because he commented on past ideas.
William Shakespeare – Born in 1564 in England. Shakespeare helped build the Globe
Theatre, and published the Sonnets of Shakespeare in 1609. Wrote over 30 plays, varying
into multiple genres, including comedies (Measure for Measure), tragedies (Hamlet), and
histories (Julius Caesar). Contributed to the English language by developing thousands of
words/phrases in his plays (combined French, Latin, and English). He is significant to the
Renaissance because he wrote some of his plays based off of history, including Greek
and Roman history. He also deviated from plays about religion and focused more on
humanity and more relatable topics.
Sir Thomas More – Born in 1478 in London, England. More wrote Utopia, a book that
described a utopian society and its political system. This society included religious
tolerance and sexual equality. The book was used as a method to criticize English politics
and social beliefs, and to point out the flaws in England’s government. More was
executed, but people later realized that he was innocent of his charges. He was significant
to the Renaissance because he criticized society, and also promoted the ideals of
humanism.
Baldassare Castiglione – Born in 1478 in France. Castiglione was a Renaissance author
and wrote a handbook entitled The Book of the Courtier, in which he described the
manners, skills, learning, and virtues that one in the Court should have. He described the
ideal courtier as a well-educated, well-mannered aristocrat who was a polymath. He
described the ideal man as perfectly balanced in all fields, while the ideal woman was a
balanced to men. Castiglione that outer beauty represented inner beauty. He was
significant to the Renaissance because he supported idealism, and depicted the ideal man,
woman, and courtier. In addition, he believed that outer beauty was just as important as
inner beauty, and that they were both reflective of the other.
Francois Rabelais – Born circa 1494 in France. Rabelais was a humanist, and spent his
life as a monk, physician, Greek scholar, and author. Rabelais wrote the novel Gargantua
and Pantagruel, in which he offers his opinions on religion, education, and other serious
subjects through his characters. He was significant to the Renaissance because despite his
deep faith, he questioned the beliefs of the Church, and criticized them through his
works. He also promoted the ideals of humanism.
Raphael – Born in 1483 in Italy. Raphael was a talented artist, best known for creating
The School of Athens and his depictions of Madonna, Jesus’ mother. He was significant
to the Renaissance because he fused both Christian and classical styles to develop his
own artistic style. Also, in his most famous work The School of Athens, he depicted
Greek and Roman thinkers together, introducing Greek and Roman culture.
Johann Gutenburg – Born in 1392 in Germany. Gutenburg was an inventor who
introduced the modern printing method. In 1455, he printed the first copy of the Bible
and revolutionized the production of books. Suddenly, much more books were being
created, and more people were learning how to read due to the accessibility of these
books. He was significant to the Renaissance because he started the Printing Revolution,
which made it much easier for books to be created and distributed throughout the
civilizations. He also made it much easier for people to learn how to read, which allowed
the readers to gain a broad range of knowledge, and it exposed Europeans to new ideas
and new places.
Concepts:
1. Where had the Greek and Roman knowledge been preserved? Why did the
Renaissance begin in Italy?
Greek and Roman knowledge had been preserved in written documents and the creations
of the Greeks and Romans that were left behind for the future generations. The beginning
of the Renaissance took place in Italy because of the wealth that Italy gained from the
Crusades. In addition, the Medicis, who were proponents of the arts, lived in Florence,
and commissioned the production of numerous works of art. Finally, all of the scholars
from Constantinople fled to Italy following the invasion of the Turks.
2. What were the ideals of the Renaissance?
Some of the ideals of the Renaissance included:
-Classical beauty/idealism: the artist’s interpretation of the ideal human from their
studies, the artist’s ambitions, or their developing skills
-Naturalism/realism: treating the subject of the work, through volume and detail, a
representation of natural appearances. Perspective was a byproduct of naturalism,
and the utilization of perspective supported naturalism.
-Humanism: the exploration of secular subjects, the idea that man is competent
and can understand the universe, and that awaiting salvation should not be the
only goal. It promoted living your life on Earth and not living to go to heaven.
-Revival of Greek and Roman works
-To use logic and reason to discover and question what is deemed correct
-To live your life on Earth and not live your life to get accepted into heaven
3. What was some of the differences between the Italian and Northern
Renaissances?
The Northern Renaissance was more religious than the Italian Renaissance. In addition,
the northern Renaissance included Christian humanism, and rarely showed nude figures.
Finally, they did not support the ideals of classical beauty and idealism as much as the
Italian Renaissance.