Renaissance
The renaissance first appeared in the
Italian city states because of the
similarity between their language and the
Latin language. Humanism used
classical works to improve speaking and writing
skills; therefore the Italians
had a great advantage. More manuscripts were
made available for the Italians,
which led to the production of more
intellectual leaders. The writing and
speaking skills of humanism was soon
demanded at the princely courts. Humanism
transformed art, literature and
political and social values. Eastern scholars
were invited by the Italians to
join the West, to bring more Greek manuscripts
and to help regain command of
the Greek language. The Italian states differed
from other states in that
they were the leaders of the renaissance, with the
chancellor of Florence,
Coluccio Salutati, and a group of humanists Italy
collected the ancient
manuscripts. They were called the civic humanists, since
they felt that an
active life was essential for full development. Two scholars
from Italy,
Guarino de Verona and Vittorino de Feltre transformed education.
They
used the ideas of humanism to establish a curriculum that spread to
Europe.
The Florentine Neoplatonists led the way towards a new
exploration of grand
ideals of truth and perfection. Ficino and Pico were
both gifted Neoplatonists,
and with their philosophy they had a major
influence on artists and thinkers for
the next two centuries. The Italian
humanism left a deep imprint on European
thought and education. The Italian
city states stimulated the development of the
Renaissance, since the
movement first took place in Florence. Another advantage
was that Florence
was famous for its art, since the greatest artists of the
1200s and
1300s, Giotto and Cimabue, were identified with the city. The
Florentine
citizens were wealthy and ready to patronize art and the city had
an
excellent design of luxury goods, such as silk and gold. Humanist
ideas
eventually spread to Northern Europe because of the need for better
educated
laity and the tension and violence in the society. Writers and
artists were also
seemed to have little grasp on reality and displayed deep
emotional instability.
The knights were becoming less important in battle
and despite this the nobles
pretended to act as if the knights were more
important. There was also the
instability of the religions, with the interest
in death and trial of witches.
Printing aided the spread of humanism.