Did the Renaissance change man’s view of man?
The Renaissance is the period in time which occurred in Europe right after the dark Middle Ages between the 14th and 17th century. The Renaissance (French) or rebirth translated to English started due to the rebirth or people rediscovering the Greek and roman culture. People discovered new art styles primarily visual using paintings and sculptures but also literary and performing arts such as poems, plays, and books. Renaissance art mainly focused on the human body and all its shapes and forms, which was also the style and topic of art found in ancient Rome and Greece. Greek and Roman architecture was also made a lot during the renaissance. Many buildings include Greek style pillars and triangular shapes and roman domes and arches; some people even believe that renaissance buildings were actually from Greece or Rome. During the Renaissance many discoveries were found as well, such as new continents, islands, inventions like the printing press or paper, new art forms and styles were made, clothing styles were improved on, astronomy and space was further developed, the human anatomy was looked further into due to the interest of artists, religions became a big part of people’s daily lives, and the feudal system became a big part of society. However in this essay my main focus will be on the question; did the Renaissance changed mans view of man? This is a question that can have a lot answers with a large variety and in this essay I will discuss some of the most important points in my opinion. The points will be about art, science, humanism and astronomy, mans inner nature and details looking into these topics.
Art changed mans view of man due to artists wanting their paintings and artwork to look more realistic and due to the new style of art. During the Middle Ages, art was mainly used as a form of representing religions and Christ. Artists painted paintings of Jesus, Maria, god, other religious scenes, people, and symbols. In the middle Ages art wasn’t as advanced as it is today or as it was during the Renaissance. Lots of paintings weren’t realistic such as in the painting Maesta from Duccio. This painting was painted in Italy during 1308-1311 for the Siena Cathedral located in Italy. This painting was painted right at the start of the Renaissance and end of the Middle Ages period so the change in art style had barely changed. When looking at the painting you can see that the Middle Ages style is still very clear. The main points of this style are that people looked very pale. The color of their skin is almost grey or yellow. Another clear difference between the style of the Middle Ages and Renaissance was that the proportions of the bodies of the people were very abnormal. In the Maesta, Madonna is way bigger than any of the angels, even though the angels are standing right next to her. I also spotted that Madonna’s face looks a bit unnatural because her head is looking down however her eyes are looking towards you. This makes Madonna’s face look a bit out of original form. However I have seen that Madonna and the angel’s clothes look very realistic. During the Renaissance artists made clothing look a lot more realistic by shading in more places and improving any effects on clothing and architecture. The draping effect on drapes looked more realistic as well. I spotted this effect in the Maesta painting and I think that this was the time when artist starting experimenting more and trying to make it look as realistic as possible. I think this was also the time in which artists re-discovered the Greek and roman styles. During the middle ages most paintings had little or no background because artists didn’t think it was needed or that it was a necessity. In the Maesta by Duccio, Duccio did make a background with angels and other priests and people looking down at Madonna. I believe that during this time period when Duccio created the Maesta, artists started their long journey on making their paintings more intricate and detailed. This point links to my research question very well because due to artists experimenting with their painting style they looked closer at people and their proportions, skin color, and just in general how their body was shaped. This led to artists looking at people with a different perspective and changed their view of man. This perspective was that artists looked closer at the human body and how it moved, the colors and skin tone, and how it was formed.
Art and artists view of the human body changed and was focused on more during the renaissance after artists wanted to make their paintings to look more accurate and detailed and artists became more fascinated about the human body. Artists used to skin real human bodies to look at the different systems such as the muscle system and the body’s bones. Artists such as Leonardo Da Vinci did long studies on the human muscles and bones to improve his work and the quality/detail of it. Antonio Pollaiuolo (1432–1498) was the “first master/artist to skin many human bodies in order to investigate the muscles, bones and understand the nude body in a more modern way.” This quotation shows that many artists during the Renaissance went into a lot of detail when it came to making life like sculptures, paintings, and any other form of visual arts. A good example of this is the sculpture of David by Donatello. This sculpture shows detailed knowledge of the human anatomy and the underlying mysteries of the human body such as the muscles in a nude form. This was very difficult during the Renaissance as people didn’t usually make nude sculpture as their knowledge about the human anatomy and its detail was very vague. To artists making a detailed, accurate piece of art was very important so the interest in the human anatomy and what was under our skin became a huge interest. Another great and well-known example of the accomplishment of a more realistic painting was the Mona Lisa by Leonardo Da Vinci. Da Vinci painted the Mona Lisa during the 1500 (1503-1506), which was during the renaissance period. The Mona Lisa is well known because Da Vinci presented a beautiful piece of art showing a stunning woman painted with exceptional detail. By painting such extraordinary paintings, artists could express their religions and beliefs to their communities or world and they could visibly portray the beauty of man in the view of the fact that the man is a beautiful and mysterious being. This changed mans view of the human body because people looked at the human body as a piece of art and had a completely different perspective than people had during the Middle Ages. Some artist knew so much about the human anatomy, sometimes even more than doctors who studied in universities. The perspective that artists had on the human body was that artist thought of the human body as a majestic being with a lot of undetected mysteries and secrets.
The renaissance completely changed mans view of where they were in the universe and space. Before the renaissance people, especially people from the Catholic Church, believed that earth and we were the center of the whole universe. They thought that everything revolved around us and that we were the most important thing in the universe. People from the church believed that god had made us first and then built everything around us. Anyone who dared to argue against the church got punished because it was considered a crime. The first thought of the heliocentric solar system (sun centered) according to NASA was a Greek scientist named Aristarchus of Samos. Samos was one of the only Greeks to believe in the heliocentric model. During the Middle Ages astronomy wasn’t a huge part of science as a result of the fall of the Roman Empire. After the fall of the Roman Empire in the 3rd-5th AD, a lot of the Ancient Greek and Roman scientific discoveries were lost to Europe. The Islamic world was the only region to maintain the ‘modern science’ and further develop it. At the end of the middle ages scientist discovered all the new discoveries and started researching into further depth about the heliocentric theory. In the 12th century when the Catholic Church wasn’t on the verge of extinction anymore scientist began to explore science from where the Greeks and Romans had left off. Ptolemy, a Greek astronomer, developed the idea of the geocentric universe. This geocentric theory was believed to be true for over a thousand years. In 1543, Nicolaus Copernicus published years of research with the idea of a heliocentric system, much like the idea of Aristarchus of Samos 2,000 years previous. Copernicus’s idea was also not a great success. A few years later Johannes Kepler and his mentor Tycho Brahe made an amazing discovery based on observations Brahe had seen. They found/realized that planets moved around the sun in ellipses (oval shaped orbits) unlike Copernicus who had said they were circular. This then resulted in people believing the heliocentric theory. Due to scientists and astronomers discovering that we weren’t the center of the universe, people learnt that they weren’t the most important things in the universe. This resulted in men opening their eyes and looking and thinking beyond themselves. It also helped teach us to think outside the Catholic teachings and think outside the box
The renaissance changed mans view of their inner nature and own well being, by changing mans view of the world, and, allowed them to look and think outside of the thoughts and views of the Catholic Church. During the middle ages people weren’t as focused on their personal growth and accomplishments. They lived to please and worship god. Everyone had the same goal, worship god and get/make it to heaven, which resulted in everyone being the same and not unique. Anyone who did something that wasn’t requested by god was considered a sinner. Most of the books, poems, and arts were based around god. When the Renaissance spread people discovered how unique, mysterious and complicated they all were. They saw that they were all different people who have different goals other than pleasing god. People discovered how they were all a work of art and their own beautiful creature. During the renaissance some writings were even written against god and the Catholic Church which would have never been possible during the middle ages. An example of this is the writing written by Erasmus, a famous humanist during the renaissance published in June 1511. The purpose of this book was to criticize the Roman Catholic Church. However, Erasmus did remain part of the Catholic Church. His writings encouraged people to think outside of the Catholic Church and be the real person they were. He wanted people to be their own self and not the person that the catholic church or god wanted them to be. This, in my opinion, is one of the most important links to how the renaissances changed mans view of man as it really opened each person’s eyes and it changed their perspective on the world. Their new perspective was seeing mankind as beautiful creatures and wonderful beings who were all unique and their own person.
In conclusion I believe that the Renaissance is indeed responsible for changing mans view of man in many ways. Art changed mans view of man due to artists researching the human body in many ways. They discovered new visual art styles which resulted in their work looking modern and similar to the art style used and performed during the ancient Roman and Greek times. Artists also researched deeper into the human body and looked at the different systems, forms and underlying tissues by looking deeper under the skin. Scientists and astronomers changed the view of the church by proving that we revolved around the sun. This allowed people to think more for themselves and look beyond the view of the Catholic Church. They saw the world and its human beings in a completely new perspective. They saw that people were beautiful creatures with their own personalities and unique selves. I believe that the renaissance had a huge impact on our view of man not only a long time ago but also today. However I do have a questioning statement. Did the renaissance actually end? This is a question I have thought a lot about while writing this essay. The renaissance was a time period where new styles and arts were created and even re discovered from the Greek and roman times but did this actually end. I believe that even today we are still discovering new ways of doing things that are changing our everyday lives, which were developed/found during the ancient roman and Greek times. This is a very broad question with a lot of counter arguments but I do believe that the renaissance is still around today and has been around for many centuries already. As a sum up I have confidence in the fact that the renaissance has changed mans view of man in many ways possible; however I am under impression of the fact of; Did the renaissance end at all?
Nine Westendorp MYP3