West European Studies

The term Renaissance refers to a period in human history when a series of diverse cultural developments took place in various parts of the European continent over a period of several hundred years between the Medieval or Middle Age and the Early Modern Period. Spanning between the 14th and 17th Centuries, this cultural transformation brought together various thinkers and artists and modern society can be traced back to the major breakthroughs in philosophy, political thought, science, technology and economics that were born from these great men in history. The Renaissance brought about great changes in learning, religion, politics and art and during this period, Europe experienced great intellectual, social and economic growth.

During the Middle Ages, civilization was intertwined with Christianity and Latin was the language for intellectuals while Rome served as the spiritual capital of European civilization. Christianity became an integrating Middle Age principle and the Church reigned as the most dominant institution. As the Late Roman Empire decayed and lost its grip on society, the church obtained most of the political functions previously occupied by the Roman State and became the only tool that was deemed capable of reconstructing the dying civilized life. Political leadership and the papacy became intertwined in delivery of various functions of society and the church played a great role in the election of political leaders who in turn became agents of the church and representatives of Christianity.  Christianity was taught to the German tribes whose customs had for a long time influenced the social and legal relationships of European society and for those living during the Middle Ages, a great drama of salvation was unfolding with Christians as the main participants. Gods revelation to the human race became the only accepted truth and the church the only avenue to heaven. To the minds of medieval people, the craving for a better after-life turned the church into an institution that society could not do without and church membership replaced the membership in a universal empire (Perry et al., 209-217).

Feudal law replaced Roman law and land became the property of Lords while the peasants became the serfs or slaves who worked on these lands. Agricultural land deteriorated from lack of fertilizers which the serfs could not afford. All aspects of peasant life including the choice of marriage partners were supervised by their Lords. The serfs worked but the Lords had the upper hand in everything while the clergy prayed and allowed all the discrimination to go on. Women were viewed as agents of the devil because of their sexual influence over men and wife beating became a common occurrence. With time, the church was so involved in the power politics of European societies that it gradually neglected its spiritual and moral responsibilities. Yet, as all this decay continued to take place, many Christians longed for the original piety and began to question the church as the institution of morality (Perry et al, 221-241, 280, 316).

The Renaissance created a new kind of human awareness and religion, which for some time had tightly controlled peoples lives, began to lose its grip upon society.  As a result, the church split, giving rise to a new protestant reformation. The Renaissance had given birth to skepticism and human beings began to question religion, tradition and authority. People changed their way of reasoning as they acquired a new kind of awareness of the world in which they lived a world in which every human being had a special role to play. Church leaders were replaced on the rank of power by wealthy merchants and bankers. Poverty lost respect and was replaced by honor and reputation. Individuals got freed from the bondage of tradition and authority and liberal rationalism was born. Liberal political philosophers such as Descartes, Hobbes, Locke, Bacon, Hume, Rousseau and Machiavelli introduced changes in political reality and also introduced the study of politics. They introduced a new perspective of power in which politics was not only a tool for the application of force, domination and selfishness but could also be used for the provision of peace and order in society through the state. These political thinkers no longer wrote in the popular Latin but in their own languages which their people would understand (Perry et al. 291-298, 306, 421-430).

During the Renaissance, classical learning was revived and writers and artists who greatly appreciated the Greek and Roman cultural forms introduced a new secular attitude towards the literal arts. Renaissance arts were developed to include Roman and Greek mythology which were developed in harmony and balance with Christianity. The elite in society revived a new kind of freedom, wealth and love for arts and a worldly life. People now believed that life in the present world was more valuable than the after-life and had to be enjoyed. Great artists such as Francesco Petrarca and Shakespeare greatly contributed to the development of the secular world. Various humanists such as Valla and Pico della Mirandola introduced a new school of thought that had a different approach to religion, magic and spirituality in general. Sex could now be expressed more openly and was considered as a form of spiritual bond similar to the relationship between people and God. Sexual traits such as homosexuality could now be defined. Human beings replaced God as agents of change in society (Perry et al 291-410).   The

Renaissance also led to a completely new understanding of science. New scientific explanations, innovations and methods came into being each claiming real knowledge and certainty. Human beings developed a new urge to gain more knowledge about the natural surroundings and master them. Leonardo da Vinci, for example was a famous artist and scientist who wrote great notes on architecture, engineering and science. He is also famous for the famous painting, Mona Lisa. Another famous Renaissance artist was the sculptor Brunelleschi who made great contributions to the discipline of architecture and together with others like van Eyck and Masaccio developed the moveable type writer. After 1450, the discovery of the printing press and growing prosperity among the masses helped to accelerate the growth of the Renaissance to other regions.  Galileo, the father of modern astronomy was the first person to use the telescope and invented the thermometer and first pump. The Renaissance had given people a new commitment towards shaping their destinies (Perry et al, 291-410).

Conclusion
The Renaissance was a cultural movement that completely changed peoples way of thinking and reasoning. Human beings developed a new desire for knowledge that led to many great discoveries that have developed into modern science and technology. But in the midst of such developments was a worse diversion from morality than had been experienced in the Middle Ages. As people became more broadminded, Christianity gradually lost meaning and skepticism gave rise to classicism, humanism and finally secularism. Even as some people sought piety through the Protestant Reformation, the church had lost its place as the moral guardian of society. Human beings gradually replaced God as agents of change in society. Society was indeed being modernized but at the expense of religion.