Response to discussion

The Renaissance period from 1300-1600  was a period of change for socialism and the Institute of Industrialism. The rebirth of man and civilization during the period was astonishing. One of the most significant changes was the antiquity of painting. Before the Renaissance, portraits, and paintings were flat with thick outlines, which made the subject unrealistic.

During the Renaissance, Italian-born Leonardo di Ser Piero da Vinci (1452 – 1519).was considered the polymath of his time. His activities in science, engineering, sculpting, and painting were at the high point of his life. Leonardo was tasked with painting a portrait of a Florentine merchant named Francesco Del Gioconda. Francesco wanted a painting of his wife done by da Vinci. The `portrait painted is now referred to as the Mona Lisa. It took Leonardo three years to complete this painting. It was one of the first paintings done in a three-dimensional form with a natural backdrop.

The Golden Era was one of excitement for literary writers. The writing of poems and entertaining plays brought on the publishing of books to be read by the noble and commoner. William Shakespeare (1564-1616). Was a poet and considered a genius of his time. England was under the rule of Queen Elizabeth I (1533-1603). Shakespeare produced Tragedies, comedies, romances, poems, and historical plays. His works are considered one of the most significant writings in English literature. We now see the change from ancient Rome, where the only writers were Scholars and those with minimal education were allowed to take any notation of any recording. The real significant change for the Renaissance was that it was no longer required to document laws and theological decrees as written by a group ofdecemvirs established in 451 BCE.

The creation of the printing press in Europe by Johannes Gutenberg from Mainz, Germany, in 1455 encouraged authors to write in their local vernacular rather than in Greek or Latin classical languages, widening the reading audience and promoting the spread of Renaissance ideas. Gutenberg printed the Gutenberg Bible. It is believed his actions of empowerment promoted literacy to the people of Europe. Literature should no longer be only read by kings, counts, and nobles. The era of the open mindset and wisdom has evolved.

During this period, a social reform of weaponry was introduced to the Europeans—the art of developing gunpowder from the Chinese through the trading of goods by the Muslims—in the suggested period of 1320 CE. Cannons became relatively common among the armies. The active spears and swords no longer met the need for military dominance. This advancement of warfare through cannons has taken its place.

Another rebirth came to light with the demise of feudalism. Peasants revolted in 1381, led by Wat Tyler of England. This uprising involved peasant farmers revolting and rebelling against the landowners and inducing fear in them, thus establishing a relationship that ended the feudal order under the reign of England’s King Richard II. The same actions took place in France in the 14th century. French peasants also engaged in an uprising known as Jacques. The protesters killed hundreds of noblemen under the reign of the French King John II. After two months, the revolt was suppressed. King Richard (1137-1453), at the age of fifteen, introduced the Magna Carta. The Canterbury Archbishop  Stephen Langton drafted this act to acquire peace between the rebel groups. Neither side honored the treaty, and it ended up being annulled by Pope Innocent III in 1213.

The 14th century also brought on the Bubonic plague. During the period of 1347, a third to a half of the population was killed by this disease. Another name given to the plague was the Black Death. (1347-1894). Originating in China, it was spread through the Mongol tribes into Europe by fleas on black rats on commercial ships. These ships supplied goods for trade in many Mediterranean ports.

Under these circumstances, with all the deaths of many people, the demand for laborers was needed. This opened—the door for peasants and landowners to negotiate higher wages for farmers that were met through supply and demand.

Bradon Larson 

The Renaissance was a time period that would revolutionize to the modern world from the medieval times from approximately 1300-1600. “It  marks  the  revival  of  Greco-Roman  culture,  a  movement  that  spread  from  its  birthplace  in  Florence,  Italy,  to  all  parts  of  the  European  West.” (Fiero, 2021, p 177). Although the start of the Renaissance had an imaginable future, it started off with warfare and devastating plagues. The beginning of the Renaissance came the rise of the middle class. A new ideal that would be the foundation of new products, expert labor, and increased trade. Not only did the Renaissance the change the social normalities but also create a new style of art and music. “Imagination and diversity characterized fourteenth-century mu-sic, which composers of that era self-consciously labeled the ars nova (“new art”). (Fiero, 2021, p 184). Although the creation of new art came in the Renaissance, they never changed what art is, rather they created new techniques and discovered new ideas. Although this re-birth in society brought a new structure to social normalities they based it off of the classic Greek and Latin ideals. “Renaissance humanists advocated the recovery and uncensored study of the entire body of Greek and Latin manuscripts and the  self-conscious imitation of Classical art and architecture. They regarded Classical authority not exclusively as a means of clarifying Christian truths, but as the basis for a new appraisal of the role of the individual in the world order.” (Fiero, 2021, p 187). All in all the Renaissance was a time period that revolutionized the world and created the foundation for the modern world, using new and old philosophy while creating a new world.