In 1368 Petrarch wrote De sui ipsius et multorum ignorantia (On his own ignorance and that of many others), which became a significant example of the contrast of humanism of the Renaissance to scholasticism of the Middle Ages. ... Petrarch urged others to awaken from the darkness "of the Middle Ages and move forward out of "the slumber of forgetfulness into the pure radiance of the past" (Humanism 1). ... They thought of themselves as "apostles of a new golden age that would usher in the rinascita " or rebirth of all societies with the resurgence of classical literature and art (Humanism" 1). ...

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• Approx Pages: 9
• Grade Level: Undergraduate

These new thoughts greatly differed from the ones of the Middle Ages and the pattern of human thought was reformed. ... He would need a taste in art and literature, but he would also be a skilled fighter and a man of strength. ... The Middle Ages was a time of toil and hardship, it was a constant uphill battle and life was one of servitude. ... Whatever someone did, they did in the name of the Lord and not for their own good, but for the love of God and the blessing of the Church. ... This parallels the contrasting attitudes between life in the Middle Ages and life in the Renaissance. ...

• Word Count: 598
• Approx Pages: 2
• Grade Level: High School

1.The Italian Renaissance followed on the heels of the Middle Ages, and was spawned by the birth of the philosophy of humanism, which emphasized the importance of individual achievement in a wide range of fields. ... Under the influence of the humanists, literature and the arts climbed to new levels of importance. 2. ... However, this much is clear about the text: Machiavelli genuinely believed that a ruler fit to unite the city-states of Italy must be feared, as opposed to loved. ... The Renaissance also saw the invention of printing in Europe and the rise of literature as an import...

• Word Count: 455
• Approx Pages: 2
• Grade Level: Undergraduate

The Italians, through organization and cleverness exploited their advantages, and by the high Middle Ages strong, wealthy and independent city-states, unlike the manors of Europe, had evolved. ... He is seen as the writer who most clearly had one foot in the Middle Ages and the other in the Renaissance. ... His imitation of Virgil's Aeneid shows the degree to which he relied on Classical literature as a source and guide. ... Literary historian Eugenio Donadoni states that Petrarch was "a precursor of the humanists of the fifteenth century for whom the literature of antiquity was a cult...

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• Grade Level: High School

Humanism and Renaissance Europe: A Transition into the Self Throughout The Middle Ages, European society gradually progressed with minor advancements and various developments in religion, while simultaneously experiencing a number of international calamites. ... For if you can love only what is evident to the eyes, you love the body. ... And you have fallen into great disasters because of this love Do you remember your boyhood, your love of God, your meditations on death, your religious feeling, your love of virtue? ... Love has made you wretched; that's what I began by saying. .....

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q=humanism "A cultural and intellectual movement of the Renaissance that emphasized secular concerns as a result of the rediscovery and study of the literature, art, and civilization of ancient Greece and Rome." - Individualism - http://www.dictionary.com/search?... This showed us the power and influence the Church had during this era, although it had much less power than it did in the Middle Ages. ... From an early age, he began to paint (under the guidance of Verrochio). ... Many say that Leonardo was the greatest individual of the Renaissance, for although he did not clearly represe...

• Word Count: 1530
• Approx Pages: 6
• Grade Level: High School