Friends, In part one I had painted the background of the Renaissance in verse and in the second part narrated the Story of Florence - Cradle of the Ranaissance. With part three I will be concluding this story ; however this final part had to be divided into two parts for reader's convenience . The last portion will cover art , sculpture & architecture of the Renaissance . Kindly read its interesting story ......
THE STORY OF ITALIAN RENAISSANCE IN VERSE : PART-III
THE STORY OF ITALIAN RENAISSANCE
IN VERSE : PART -III
**BY RAJ NANDY **
INTRODUCTION :
Having seen in Part One the background of Renaissance
History ,
And in Part Two the contribution of Florence and the
Medici Family ,
Let me now tell you about its art, architecture, and
culture ;
To complete my Renaissance Story with its new spirit
of adventure !
But the Story of the Renaissance remains incomplete ,
Without mentioning the basic impetus and the force ,
Behind the entire spirit of the Italian Renaissance ;
This being the new Philosophy of Humanism and its
founding father Francesco Petrarch , -
Whose philosophy embraced the entire Renaissance
movement and Art !
RENAISSANCE PHILOSOPHY OF HUMANISM :
Humanism is a term applied to the predominant
social philosophy ,
And the literary and intellectual currents prevalent
between 1400 to 1650, in Renaissance Italy !
The dominant elements in classical culture were both
secular and aesthetic ,
Rather than supernatural or scientific !
The rediscovery of ancient Greek and Roman classics ,
Focused attention on Man and his participation in
rich and varied human relationships ;
No longer confined to a cloistered monastic life, -
With prayers for a glorious afterlife !
Such sentiments were echoed in the writing of early
6th century Ionian Greek philosophers ;
But it was the Sophist Protagoras, who during the
5th Century BC, -
Proclaimed , “Man is the measure of all things” !
And centuries later in 1732 Alexander Pope ,
In his ‘Essay On Man’ in Epistel two wrote ; -
“Know then thyself, presume not God to scan ,
The proper study of mankind is Man !”
HUMANISM Promotes Individualism :
Along with secularism and humanism, third most
important trend was Individualism ;
Which had remained suppressed under the Roman
Empire ;
And by the Church and the Feudalism of the Medieval
Era !
Inspired by the rediscovered writings of the Classical
Age ,
And the writings of Dante and especially of Petrach ,
and humanists like Machiavelli ;
They emphasized the virtues of individual expression
and intellectual emancipation greatly !
Individualism and instinct of curiosity were cultivated ,
And the dignity of man was now being upheld !
The “honest doubt” of Peter Abelard began to replace
‘unreasoning faith’ !
Abelard was a skeptical French philosopher of the
Medieval Ages ,
Who’s secret love affair with his pupil cannon Fulbert’s
niece Heloise ,
Was discovered much to the Canon’s annoyance !
Leading to Abelard’s ultimate castration , forcing him
to lead a life of isolation !
Now getting back to Renaissance Humanism we find ,
It was Georg Voigt, the 19th century German historian
in his writings ,
Had identified Petrarch as the first Renaissance
Humanist !
PETRACH and Renaissance Humanism :
Dante , Petrach and Boccaccio , were the three
jewels of the preceding era ,
Who with their writings influenced the Humanism
of the later Renaissance Era !
Petrach was inspired by the ‘studia humanitatis’ of the
Roman Cicero ,
Who was his role model and one whom Petrach greatly
adored !
He advocated the study of classical literature, rhetoric,
and poetry ,
To develop one’s full potentials and personality !
Petrach’s treasure hunt for ancient manuscripts ,
Was joined by his friend Boccaccio to make the
hunt complete !
Dante , Petrach and Boccaccio, had used their native
Tuscan dialect ;
Which became the accepted literary language for
the Italians !
Each of these three giants were inspired by a Lady !
Dante had his Beatrice , Petrach his Laura , and
Boccaccio his Maria .
Petrach’s Laura sonnets the ‘Cazoniere’(Song Book)
made history ;
And he was crowned as the Poet Laureate in Rome
in 1340 !
In 1327 Petrach had met Laura briefly at a Church,
And his inspired Laura Sonnets reveal a humanising
touch ;
As Laura gets painted in flesh and blood , and the
poet waxes eloquent for his unrequited love !
This subject matter was a break from the previous
Medieval religious norms ;
While Petrach popularized the Italian Sonnets, -
by giving it a standard form !
And some two hundred years later, these sonnets
had inspired Spencer and also Shakespeare !
( To be Continued with the Conluding Portion of
Renaissance Art , Sculpture & Architecture !)
Thanks for reading , -Raj Nandy .
clever work raj !looking forward to reading the next one which is of interest to me.great write.......ritty
Ah, so the epitome of the sonnet as illustrated by Petrarch, was humanism. Well, that is news to ponder. The stupidity seems the fact that he loved unrequited, which, excepting Spenser and maybe a few other rare souls, seems to be the norm in sonneteering romancing. Mayhap that is also so much an example of the humanism? Very interesting.