The Renaissance: Its Impact and Legacy

Objectives

• Explain the political, intellectual, artistic, economic, and religious impact of the Renaissance.

Political Impact

• Exploration of the New World
  • Development of colonies
  • Creation of new markets for trade
  • Emergence of powerful nation-states in Western Europe
    • Examples: Spain, Portugal, France, England, Netherlands

Intellectual Impact

• Humanism
  • Focus on human potential and achievements
  • Revival of Greek and Roman art and literature
  • Shift from church-centric to human-centric achievements
• Secularism
  • Less focus on religion
  • Emphasis on the here and now
  • Belief that man can achieve perfection on Earth
• Invention of the Printing Press
  • Faster dissemination of new ideas
  • Reduced need for manual copying

Artistic Impact

• New Techniques in Art
  • Use of perspective for 3D effect
  • Focus on realism
• Famous Artists and Sculptors
  • Donatello, Leonardo da Vinci, Michelangelo, Raphael
• Literature
  • Writing in vernacular languages instead of Latin or Greek

Economic Impact

• Rise of the Merchant Class
  • Gained power through trade and banking
  • Italian city-states dominated by merchants
• Growth of Wealth in Nations with Colonies
  • Due to raw materials
• Early Stages of Mercantilism

Religious Impact

• Christian Humanists
  • Writers: Erasmus, Sir Thomas More, Rabelais
  • Focus on improving society with Christian motives, less religious ceremony
• Corruption in the Catholic Church
  • Sale of indulgences
  • Worldly lifestyles of clergy
  • Led to the Reformation (to be discussed later)