Why is the Renaissance called "Renaissance"? Is it to restore the culture that has been created before?

Renaissance is an ideological and cultural movement that rose in Europe from14th century to16th century. It brought a period of scientific and artistic revolution and opened the curtain of modern European history. It is considered as the dividing line between the Middle Ages and the modern times. Marxist historians believe that it is the dividing line between feudalism and capitalism.

It is generally believed that the Renaissance originated in Italy in the14th century (the word Renaissance comes from the Italian word Rinascimento, which means regeneration or revival), and then spread to western European countries, reaching its peak in the16th century. 1550, vasari officially took it as the name of the new culture in the biography of the celebrity of the Art Garden. This word is transliterated as Renaissance in French, and is widely used in European countries after17th century. 19th century, western historians further regarded it as the floorboard of western European culture from 14 to16th century. Western historians once thought that this was the revival of culture and art in ancient Greece and the Roman Empire.

/kloc-in the 0/4th century, with the development of workshop handicraft industry and commodity economy, the capitalist relationship gradually formed within the European feudal system; Politically, the feudal regime caused widespread dissatisfaction, the national consciousness began to awaken, and the masses of European countries showed a strong desire for national unity. As a result, a new era reflecting the interests and demands of emerging capitalist forces began to appear in culture and art. The emerging bourgeoisie thought that medieval culture was a retrogression, while Greek and Roman classical culture was a bright and developed model, and they tried to revive classical culture-and the so-called "revival" was actually an unprecedented liberation and creation of knowledge and spirit.

At that time, Italy was in a multi-city state, and each city was an independent or semi-independent country. /kloc-After 0/4th century, cities gradually moved from * * * harmony to dictatorship. Dictators indulge in pleasure and believe in neo-Platonism, hoping to get rid of the shackles of religious asceticism and vigorously protect artists' descriptions of secular life. At the same time, the religious radicalism of Franciscans tried to abandon the scholasticism of orthodox religion and praise the beauty of nature and the spiritual value of human beings. The Vatican is also moving towards corruption. The pope's enjoyment is more severe than that of secular dictators. They are also protecting artists and allowing art to deviate from orthodox religious dogma. Philosophy and science are gradually developing in a relatively relaxed atmosphere, and are also brewing the prelude to the religious reform.

The Renaissance originated in northern Italy. It is generally believed that Dante was the first representative, and his masterpiece was The Divine Comedy. His works criticized and exposed the corruption and stupidity of medieval religious rule in an implicit way for the first time, and were written in local dialect instead of Latin, the official literary language of medieval Europe.

Another representative figure is Petrarch, who believes that ancient Greece and Rome were the most perfect times of human nature, and it was against nature to suppress human nature in the Middle Ages. Although he studied Latin literature deeply and extensively, he wrote a large number of lyric poems in the form of sonnets in Italian dialect, which were warmly welcomed by the rulers of various cities and countries.

Another important reason for the Renaissance was 1453, when the Ottoman Turkish Empire captured Constantinople and the Eastern Roman Empire perished. Influenced by oriental culture, a large number of talents who still retained the spirit of the Roman Empire fled to Italy, brought back many fresh ideas and arts, and set up schools in Rome to teach Greek, which promoted the formation of the Renaissance.

Thought of Renaissance Works

Renaissance works embody humanism: advocating individual liberation and opposing asceticism and religious views in the Middle Ages; Advocate scientific culture, oppose obscurantism, and get rid of the shackles of the church on people's thoughts; Affirm human rights, oppose theocracy, and abandon all authority and traditional dogma as the basis of theology and scholasticism; Supporting centralization and opposing feudal separatism are the main ideas of humanism. The representative works include Dante's Divine Comedy, Boccaccio's decameron, Machiavelli's The Prince, and rabelais's Biography of the Giant.

Renaissance art praised the beauty of the human body, claiming that the proportion of the human body is the most harmonious in the world, and applied it to architecture. Although a series of paintings and sculptures still focus on religious stories, they all show the scenes of ordinary people and pull God to the ground.

Humanists began to study the Bible by studying classical literature and translated it into the national language, which led to the rise of the Reformation.

Humanism praises the secular and despises the heaven, flaunts rationality rather than the revelation of God, affirms that "man" is the creator and enjoyer of secular life, requires literature and art to express people's thoughts and feelings, scientifically seeks for the welfare of people, educates and develops people's personality, and requires people's thoughts, feelings and wisdom to be liberated from the shackles of theology. Advocating individual freedom has played a great role in historical development.

Different types of Renaissance:

Natural science:

astronomy

1543, the polish astronomer Copernicus published the theory of celestial bodies, in which he proposed a Heliocentrism system different from Ptolemaic geocentric theory. Bruno, an Italian thinker, declared in his works "On Infinity, Universe and All Worlds" and "On Cause, Origin and Unity" that the universe is infinite in space and time, and the sun is only the solar system, not the center of the universe. Galileo invented the astronomical telescope in 1609, published the Star Messenger in 16 10, and published the Dialogue between Ptolemy and Copernicus in 1632. Kepler, a German astronomer, put forward three laws of planetary motion in New Astronomy (1609) and Harmony of the World (16 19) by studying the observation data of Tycho, a Danish astronomer, and determined that the planetary motion around the sun along an elliptical orbit is not constant.

mathematics

Algebra made great progress in the Renaissance, and the solutions of cubic and quartic equations were found. Cardano, an Italian, published a formula for finding the roots of cubic equation in his book Great Skills, but the discovery of this formula should be attributed to another scholar, tartaglia. The solution of the quartic equation was discovered by Ferrari, a student in cardano, and also recorded in The Great Book. Bombelli expounded the irreducibility of cubic equations in his works, used imaginary numbers, and improved the popular algebraic symbols at that time. Symbolic algebra was founded by the French mathematician Veda in the16th century. He published "Introduction to Analytical Methods" at 159 1, systematically arranged algebra, and for the first time consciously used letters to represent unknowns and known numbers. In his other book, On the Identification and Correction of Equations, David improved the solutions of cubic and quartic equations, and established the relationship between the roots and coefficients of quadratic and cubic equations, which is known as Vieta's theorem in modern times. Trigonometry also made great progress during the Renaissance. On Triangle, written by German mathematician Reggio Montanus, is the first trigonometry work independent of astronomy in Europe. The book systematically expounds the plane triangle and spherical triangle, as well as a very accurate trigonometric function table. On the basis of redefining trigonometric function, Rhaticus, a student of Copernicus, made a more accurate trigonometric function table.

physics

In physics, Galileo discovered the three laws of falling body, parabola and shaking through many experiments, which made people have a new understanding of the universe. His student Torricelli proved the air pressure through experiments and invented the mercury barometer. Pascal, a French scientist, discovered the law of pressure propagation in liquids and gases. British scientist Boyle discovered the law of gas pressure.

Physiology and medicine

Belgian doctor Vesaliua Uss published the book Human Body Structure, which challenged Galen's "Trinity" theory. Spanish doctor Servit discovered the small circulation system of blood, which proved that blood flows from the right ventricle to the lungs and reaches the left ventricle through a tortuous route. Harvey, a British anatomist, published the theory of heart-blood movement through a large number of animal anatomy experiments, which systematically explained the law of blood movement and the working principle of the heart. He pointed out that the heart is the center of blood movement and the source of strength. This great discovery made him the founder of modern physiology.

"great geographical discovery"

There has been a revolutionary leap in navigation technology, and explorers from Portugal, Spain and Italy have started a series of long-distance navigation activities. The geographical discoveries of Columbus and Magellan provide strong evidence for the theory of the earth circle.

The rediscovery of printing in Europe and the spread of papermaking, compass and gunpowder (the four great inventions of China) from the East promoted the rapid spread of scientific ideas.

literature

Writers all over the world began to use their own dialects instead of Latin for literary creation, which promoted the development of popular literature and injected a large number of literary works into various languages, including novels, poems, essays, folk songs, plays and so on.

In Italy, there were "three outstanding literary figures" in the early Renaissance. Dante wrote many academic works and poems in his life, among which the famous ones are "New Life" and "Divine Comedy". Petrarch is the originator of humanism and is known as the "father of humanism". He was the first to call for the revival of classical culture and put forward the idea that "humanism" opposed "theology". Petrarch mainly wrote many beautiful poems, among which the representative work is Lyric Sonnets. Boccaccio is the founder of Italian national literature, and decameron, a collection of short stories, is his masterpiece.

In France, the Renaissance obviously formed two factions, one is optimates represented by Seven Star Poetry Society, and the other is Democrats represented by rabelais. The Seven Star Poetry Society, represented by Longsha and Du Beilai, has made outstanding contributions to language and poetry theory. They first put forward the idea of unifying national languages, which promoted the development of French national languages and national literature. But they rejected folk poetry and only served a few nobles. Rabelais is an outstanding humanist writer after Boccaccio and a representative of the French Renaissance Democrats. The Biography of the Giant, which he created in 20 years, is a realistic work interwoven with reality and fantasy, and occupies an important position in the history of European literature and education.

In Britain, the representatives are Thomas Moore and Shakespeare. Thomas Moore is a famous humanist thinker and the founder of utopian socialism. 15 16 Utopia, which he wrote in Latin, is the first work of utopian socialism. Shakespeare is a gifted playwright and poet. He, together with Homer, Dante and Goethe, is called the four great European writers. His works have complete structure, vivid plot, rich and refined language and outstanding personality, which represent the highest achievement of European Renaissance literature and have a far-reaching impact on the development of European realistic literature.

In Spain, the most outstanding representatives are Cervantes and Vega. Cervantes is a realistic writer, dramatist and poet. He wrote a large number of poems, plays and novels, of which Don Quixote, a long satirical novel, was the most famous, which had a great influence on the development of European literature. Vega is a dramatist, novelist and poet, the founder of Spanish national drama, and is known as the "father of Spanish drama". He is one of the few prolific writers in the world. He wrote more than 2,000 plays in his life, and more than 600 have been handed down to this day. There are religious drama, historical drama, divine drama, robe and sword drama, pastoral drama and other forms, which deeply reflect the social reality of Spain and are deeply loved by the masses. The most outstanding representative work is Yangquan Village.

Renaissance architecture is an architectural style that was born in Italy in the14th century with the cultural movement of Renaissance. Based on the criticism of the supremacy of theocracy in the Middle Ages and the affirmation of humanitarianism, architects hope to reshape the harmonious order of the ideal classical society with the help of classical proportions. Therefore, generally speaking, Renaissance architecture pays attention to order and proportion, with strict facade and plane composition and column system inherited from classical architecture.

trait

There is a strong pursuit of building proportion, for example, it must be a multiple of 3 and 2.

Use a symmetrical shape, centered.

Restore "nature", draw with straightedge and ruler, mainly with circles and squares.

Oppose gothic architecture

Italy and its representatives

Florence, Italy, as the birthplace of the Renaissance, has made outstanding achievements in poetry, painting, sculpture, architecture and music.

The famous medici family in Florence was the most important patron of art at that time.

Three famous Renaissance heroes were all born in Italy.

On behalf of:

Poets: Dante, Petrarch;

Writers: Boccaccio, Machiavelli;

Painters: Giotto, Botticelli, Da Vinci, Raphael, Titian;

Sculptor: Michelangelo; Architect: Filippo Brwnelle-Schi;

Musicians: Palestrina, Lasso, etc.

Spain and its representatives

The Spanish Renaissance entered the "golden age" in the second half of16th century and the beginning of17th century, and made remarkable achievements in novels and dramas.

Representative figures: writer Cervantes and dramatist Lope de Vega.

Germany and its representative figures

In Germany: the main achievements are in the religious reform, peasant war, satirical literature and scientific and technological inventions.

Representative figures: Martin Luther, Diu Lei, etc.

France and its representatives

In France: free thinking and skeptical thinking are quite developed.

Representative figures: essayist: Montaigne, novelist: rabelais, etc.

Britain and its representatives

In Britain: Poetry and drama are flourishing like never before.

Representative figures: writer Shakespeare, etc.

The significance of the Renaissance

For a long time, the Renaissance was regarded as a simple restoration of classical culture. In fact, the Renaissance did not really want to "restore" classical culture, but to attack the culture and system at that time, so as to establish a new culture and create public opinion for the establishment of a new social system.

Renaissance is a period of gradual development, with no clear dividing line and events. But the Renaissance changed people's thinking at that time, which led to the religious reform and fierce religious war. The later Enlightenment took the Renaissance as an example. /kloc-historians in the 0 th and 9 th centuries believe that the subsequent scientific development, geographical discoveries and the birth of nation-states all originated from the Renaissance. Renaissance is the watershed between the middle ages and modern times in the "dark age" and the public opinion premise of bourgeois revolution. Renaissance is a prelude to liberating Europe from the shackles of decadent feudal religions and expanding it to the whole world.

Different views on the Renaissance.

The word "Renaissance" was first put forward by French historian Misley in 1855, which was used to summarize16th century's "exploration of the world and mankind". Since then, historians have had many different opinions on its interpretation.

Most people think that the Renaissance originated in Italy in the15th century, and then spread throughout Europe. Renaissance represents the classical cultural connection between the west and ancient times (before the Middle Ages), and it is the absorption of Arab knowledge (especially mathematical knowledge). The Renaissance made people pay attention to the quality of life in this world (such as humanism). Renaissance is also a knowledge explosion caused by the application of printing and new technology in the fields of art, poetry and architecture. These new technologies have fundamentally changed the form and content of art and literature. During this period, this view holds that with the rise of communication and exploration, the Renaissance represents that Europe has changed from a stagnant pool to a turbulent river for a long time. Therefore, the Renaissance in Italy is usually regarded as the beginning of modernity.

Marxist historians believe that the Renaissance was a "pseudo-revolution" in art, literature and philosophy. These changes only affected a small number of rich people, while the life of most European population remained basically unchanged compared with the Middle Ages. So they don't think the Renaissance is an important event.

Today, most historians believe that the Renaissance represents a great change in rational thinking and thinking, rather than material changes. Perhaps the most important point of view for the Renaissance is that people living in the Renaissance think that they are living in a new era, an era completely divorced from the Middle Ages.

Johan Huizinga (1872–1945) acknowledged the Renaissance, but questioned whether it brought beneficial changes. He believed that the Renaissance was an era of decline from the Middle Ages, which destroyed many important things. For example, Latin, used by churches and others at that time, has developed greatly since classical times and is a living language. However, people who were obsessed with classical purity in the Renaissance thought that Latin contradicted its classical form, so the natural evolution of Latin stopped. Robert lopez thought that the Renaissance was a period of economic depression. However, George Sarton and Lynn Thorndike believed that the Renaissance slowed down the progress of science.

Italy in Renaissance —— Cai Yuanpei's Pictures

Humanism is a philosophical theory and a world outlook. Humanism is based on the interests, values and dignity of people, especially individuals. For humanitarianism, tolerance, non-violence and freedom of thought among people are the most important principles for people to get along with each other.

Modern humanism began in the Enlightenment, in which humanism was regarded as the answer to moral problems independent of religion. In the humanism of the Enlightenment, the supernatural explanation was generally ignored, and people called this humanism "secular humanism".

Humanism also exists in major religions, in which universal humanism is combined with religious beliefs and traditions.

Some humanistic movements believe that people need to attend ceremonies and rules and organize certain groups to meet this need.

Humanism as a historical concept

In the history of European history and philosophy, humanism is mainly used to describe the more advanced ideas in the Middle Ages from 14 to 16. Generally speaking, today's historians call the cultural and social changes in this period the Renaissance, while the educational reform movement is called humanism.

The word humanism actually appeared very late. It comes from the Latin humanitas, which was used by Cicero, an ancient Roman writer. Philosophers in the German Enlightenment collectively called human beings Humanit? Humanists at that time called themselves humanists.

The word humanism only appeared in 1808.

definition

There is no unified definition of humanism, because many different people claim to be or are called humanists, and their views on the world and people may be very different. Some humanistic ideas are very contradictory. Among liberal democracy, Marxism–Leninism and Protestant or Catholic schools of thought, there are humanistic schools. Even in ancient Rome, there was a humanistic trend of thought that can be called today. Humanism at that time was of course very different from that of the Renaissance or the Enlightenment. The humanism of Johann Wolfgang Goethe and Friedrich Schiller is usually called historicism, while that of william von humboldt is completely different from that of the Enlightenment. Renaissance philosophy is regarded as the basis of thought, while Humboldt's science is regarded as the basis of thought.