1. The Renaissance
Chapter 5 Section 1-2

2. Middle Ages
Time of Feudalism: Kings, Lords, Knights, Vassals and Serfs!
Roman Catholic Church is all powerful.
Education is very limited: People learned only what the Church wanted them to know, which was very little!
Time of great warfare and unrest.
Quality of life is poor: Lifespan only 40!

3. What was the Renaissance?
A time of creativity and great interest in (new) political, social, economic, and cultural ideas
Renaissance means “rebirth” in Latin
Defines how people viewed the new interest in classical learning (such as math, science, history, etc.)
After the strict Middle Ages, people were ready to branch out and learn!

4. How did the Renaissance start?
It began in Italy--the home of the ancient Roman Empire.
Many Italian cities were trading centers where many cultures mixed
This created an air of curiosity in which people wanted to learn new things!
Johannes Gutenberg of Germany invented the printing press
Gave people access to books and knowledge.

5. What brought on the Renaissance?
1. The Crusades
Mixing of cultures
Raised interest in the world and its different people and cultures
2. The Printing Press
Made reading possible for poor people
Allowed people to learn for themselves and check information they had been taught

6. Art in the Renaissance
Art became realistic & focused on nature & human beings (Human-centered world)
Art expressed movement & even portrayed nudity!
Art also expressed perspective & proportion by using geometry to make 3-dimensional images

7. Humanism!
Humanism: A movement that focused on worldly subjects and classical learning rather than the religious teachings that characterized the Middle Ages.
Humanists believed learning should use a person’s creative powers. Humanists created many new inventions!
Grammar, rhetoric, poetry, and history based on Greek and Roman texts was stressed.
Greek and Roman texts – the classics

8. Important Humanist Figures
Petrarch
Leonardo da Vinci
Dante
Geoffrey Chaucer
Michelangelo
Machiavelli
Erasmus
Sir Thomas More