Renaissance Validation

The Medieval time period, termed by scholars in the 15th century, was the years between the downfall of the classical world and its rediscovery, the Renaissance (Annenberg Media, 2007). The Bubonic Plague caused famine among the public and depleted population because it was a pandemic meaning it affected a whole continent. Many people decided it was pointless to continue working because there were no consumers. These people felt like nothing could be certain and the whole world was doomed, but there was hope ( Chambers, 1999).

The word renaissance may be defined as a revival or rebirth. The Renaissance era, exemplified a revival of classical learning, and exuted growing equivalence for individuals, family relations, and gender. To scholars of the time, it was a time of learning about antiquity after a long period of cultural decline, during the Middle Ages. The term Renaissance is valid for the time period, in which modern European history is named because it brought great developments in economics, redefined individuality, and restructured scholarship.

The economy began to bask in a period of financial growth during the Renaissance. Europe has cleansed itself of the plague and the population began to increasing immensely. This created a fresh demand for goods and services. Thus it opened up many options and opportunities for employment (Burckhardt,1878). To overcome this demand the people of the Renaissance innovated various tools and materials that had originated in the Middle Ages. Ship-building also improved drastically during the period of revival because it was a need. With the ever increasing demands for goods and exports it was necessary to have these types of improvements. This all resulted in a huge boost to the economy (Annenberg Media,2007).

The changes to the economy were not even the drastic differences the Renaissance contained. It was because that it was a more individualistic society that separates it from the past. Individuals known as humanists were emerging and were discussing the works of ancient writers. This dated back to antiquity and following those ways. During the Medieval days, the people were guided by what the church preached, and were only concerned with actions that would lead them to heaven. The humanists on the other hand were more interested in rediscovering the past, subsequently they learned to read Greek and Latin to accomplish this feat (Annenberg Media,2007). These men found manuscripts on scientific matters, government, philosophy, and also the art world, which had not been disturbed for almost 2,000 years. They became influenced by what the read and stated to live their lives by what these ancient civilizations accomplished. This is how the emphasis was placed on man, his intellect, and his life on Earth. These men renewed the aspects of life that existed years priors and lived by them (Burckhardt,1878).

The humanist coined the idea of a secular lifestyle, meaning that the church should not rule public affairs. They believed that the church should only be a guide for spiritual matters. This was a huge renovation from the lifestyles that existed in the Middle Ages. The church lived by a life that prosperous by scripture, but the humanists were dedicated to the idea that wealth came with noble deeds. The humanist of the Renaissance brought any idea of something being part of a hierarchy down to a worldly view. They saw everything as being equal and this was a rebirth of the equality that once existed between the people (Burkhardt, 1878).

The time period also brought about a true rebirth of classical studies. This advocates renaissance as a legitimate term for the period. Petrarch was one of the most famous men to bring about an influence from classical literature (Burckhardt, 1878). He indulged in the works of Cicero and Virgil, who both in their own right was a great writer in Roman times. He began to model his own works by what these two men had accomplished. He would even write in Latin just to be more alike Cicero's