Humanism Existed During the Renaissance Period, Essay Example

Humanism refers to the most significant  literary movement associated with the Renaissance, and it was a form of culture and education predicated on studying the classics from antiquity. It transcended philosophical confines and developed into an educational program that centered on the so-called liberal arts that germinated during antiquity: rhetoric, grammar, moral philosophy, poetry, ethics, and history. Literary fascination in Renaissance humanism was of paramount importance, which the status of humanists reflects. The majority of humanists were pedagogues who taught the liberal arts in universities and secondary schools where they delivered series of lectures on rhetoric itself (Levack et al., 2011. p. 383). Other humanists worked as secretaries and officials in princely courts or city-state governments. As such, humanists occupied highly secular positions, meaning that laymen and not members of clergy embraced this sweeping movement during the Renaissance. Scholars pinpoint Petrarch has the father of Italian Renaissance humanism and made invaluable contributions to the development of Renaissance during the fourteenth century (Levack et al., 2011, p. 376). He was the first intellectual to render the Middle Ages as an epoch of darkness, thereby propagating the fallacious perception that medieval culture remained ignorant of the classics and antiquity. Moreover, he decried scholasticism–a type of philosophy popularized during the Middle Ages–because he viewed it as a barbarous use of Latin and for invoking logic instead of rhetoric to bring faith and reason into harmony. Because he viewed philosophy as an art of virtuous living rather than a science, Petrarch exhibited an ardor for recovering forgotten Latin works and manuscripts and gleaning information from their secular content (Levack at al., 2011, p. 377).

During the fifteenth century, various paradigm shifts took place in the humanist movement because humanism was intrinsically tied to civic pride and spirit. As such, the germination of civic humanism emerged, which led to intellectuals adopting a new perception of themselves within the secular world (Levack et al., 2011, p. 393). While Petrarch and other fourteenth century humanisms rendered intellectual life as one of loneliness and solitude, fifteenth century humanists waxed enthusiasm about fusing intellectual life and political action. Cicero, a classical intellectual, emerged as a paragon for humanists to emulate because he was both a philosopher and a statesman. Leonardo Bruni was a fifteenth century humanist who lived in Florence, Italy and embodies the fifteenth century humanist movement (Levack et al., 2011, p. 376). Cicero served as a model and inspiration for the Renaissance ideal that it was the obligation of intellectuals to actively serve their state. Intellectual growth and maturity can only take place if an individual participates in the quotidian affairs of his state. Civic humanism thus conveyed the values that pervaded urban life in Italy. Another facet of fifteenth century humanism was a burgeoning interest in the Greek language. Leonardo Bruni represents one of the first humanists who gained trenchant knowledge of Greek by studying the works of Plato in addition to those penned by Greek dramatists, poets, orators, and historians such as Euripedes and Thucydides (Levack at al., 2011, p. 376). As a humanist consciousness continued to develop as a secular identity, proponents nonetheless believed that studying the classics was compatible with Christianity.

Humanism significantly affected education during the Renaissance because humanists opined that individuals can be immensely changed and improved through education. Humanist schools sought to fully develop the human personality and stressed the burgeoning social ideal that all people should strive to be: the Renaissance man. As such, rather than aiming to create citizens who were great scholars, humanists wanted to produce well-rounded citizens who were informed and could actively participate in civic life at the micro and macro levels. Humanism unequivocally impacted the artistic movements during the Renaissance, as many painters chose scenes from Greek mythology to depict. Sandro Boticelli’s Primavera is a prime example of an artist’s interest in classical antiquity. Art the center of the composition is the goddess of love Venus, and to her right the Roman goddess of fertility and flowers, Flora, stands. In the left hand portion of the composition stand the Three Graces who are playing with one another while Venus’ son, Cupid, positions his arrows towards the Three Graces from above. Mercury, the messenger of the gods, stands on the left.

References

Levack, B., Muir, E., & Veldman, M. (2011). The west: Encounters & transformations, vol I (Rev: 3). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Longman.