II.+Renaissance

TheRenaissance•TheSignificance•Humanism•TheBourgeoisie•TheMainTraitsoftheRenaissanceLiteratureWhatistheRenaissance?•Asanepochofsocialandculturaldevelopment,theRenaissanceembracedallWesternEurope.Itreferstothe“rebirth”ofclassicalliterature,artandlearningthatprogressivelytransformedEuropeanculturefromthemid-14thcenturyinItalytothemid-17thcenturyinEngland,stronglyinfluencedbytherediscoveryofclassicalGreekandLatinliterature.ItiscommonlyheldtomarkthecloseoftheMiddleAgesandthebeginningofthemodernWesternworld.Inliterature,itmaybeseenasanewtradition,markedbyanewself-confidenceinvernacularliteratures,aflourishingoflyricpoetry,andarevivalofsuchclassicalformsasdrama,epicandpastoralliterature.SocratesPlatoAristotleHomerVirgilHumanism•ItisatermforthevaluesandidealsoftheEuropeanRenaissance,whichplacedanewemphasisontheexpansionofhumancapacities.RevivingthestudyofGreekandRomanhistory,philosophyandarts,theRenaissancehumanistsdevelopedanimageof“man”morepositiveandhopefulthanthatofmedievalasceticChristianity.Thehumanistsheldthechiefinterestinman,hisenvironmentanddoingsaswellasbravelyfoughtfortheemancipationofmanfromthetyrannyofthechurchandreligiousdogmas.Theyconsidered“Man”asasourceofinfinitepossibilities,ideallydevelopingtowardsabalanceofphysical,spiritual,moralandintellectualfaculties.TheItalianRenaissance•ThreeGreatestWriters–Boccaccio:“Decameron”–Dante:“DivineComedy”–Petrarch:sonnetPetrarch&ItalianSonnet•Asonnetisafourteen-linepoeminiambicpentameterwithacarefullypatternedrhymescheme.TheItalian,orPetrarchansonnet,namedafterFrancescoPetrarch(1304-1374),theItalianpoet,wasintroducedintoEnglishpoetryintheearly16thcenturybySirThomasWyatt(1503-1542).Itsfourteenlinesbreakintoanoctave(oroctet),whichusuallyrhymesabbaabba,butwhichmaysometimesbeabbacddcoreven(rarely)abababab;andasestet,whichmayrhymecdecdeorcdcdcd.TheEnglishorShakespeareansonnet,developedfirstbyHenryHoward,EarlofSurrey(1517-1547),consistsofthreequatrainsandacouplet--thatis,itrhymesababcdcdefefgg.Boccacciowasbornin1313toanoblefamilynearFlorencebutspenthisyouthinNaples.Heestablishedrelationshipswithotherinfluentialwritersandartistsofthetime,mostnotablyPetrarch,andwasoneoftheearliestcommentatorsofDanteAlighieri’sDivineComedy.HediedinFlorencein1375.GiovanniBoccaccio’sDecameronoccupiesanimportantpositionintheItaliancanonbecauseitbecamethemodelofItalianproseforwritersinthesixteenthcentury.Writtenbetween1349and1351,theDecameronisacollectionofonehundredshortstoriesnarratedbysevenwomenandthreemenduringthePlagueof1348.BoccaccioDecameronDanteDanteAlighieriwasbornintoaFlorentinefamilyofnobleancestry.Hismotherdiedwhenhewassevenyearsold.Hisfather,afterthedeathofhiswiferemarried,butdiedintheearly1280s,beforethefuturepoetreachedmanhood.BrunettoLatini,amanoflettersandapolitician,becameafatherfigureforDante,butlaterinhisCommediaDanteplacedLatiniinHell,intotheseventhcircle,amongthosewhowereguiltyofviolenceagainstnature.DantereceivedathorougheducationinbothclassicalandChristianliterature.Attheageof12hefellinlovewithagirlcalledBeatricewhenshewas9yearsold.YearslaterDantemarriedGemmaDonatiandhemetBeatriceagainwhomarriedSimone.BeatricediedinJune1290,attheageof24.AfterBeatrice'sdeath,Dantewithdrewintointensestudyandbegancomposingpoemsdedicatedtohermemory.•DantewroteseveralsonnetstoBeatriceandalsodedicatedhisfirstbooktoher,buthenevermentionedhiswifeGemmainanyofhispoems.•HaroldBloomseesBeatriceasDante'sgreatestmuse,hisinvention,hisidealladyandinspirationforhispoetrywhosavedhimbygivinghimhisgreatestimageforpoetry,andhesavedherfromoblivion,littleasshemayhavewantedsuchsalvation.Thenatureofhislovehaditsrootsinthemedievalconceptofcourtlyloveandtheidealizationofwomen.DanteAlighieri(1265-1321)DanteisbestknownfortheepicpoemCOMMEDIA,c.1310-14,laternamedLADIVINACOMMEDIA.Ithasprofoundlyaffectednotonlythereligiousimaginationbutallsubsequentallegoricalcreationofimaginaryworldsinliterature.Dantespentmuchofhislifetravelingfromonecitytoanother.ThishadperhapsmoretodowiththerestlesstimesthanhiswanderingcharacterorfixationontheOdyssey.However,hisCommediacanalsobecalledaspiritualtravelbook.Itisanarrativepoeminterzarimacontaining14233linesorganizedinto100cantosapproximately142lineseach.Writteninthefirstperson,ittellsofthepoet'sjourneythroughtherealmoftheafterlife:Hell,Purgatory,andParadise.TheRomanpoetVirgilistheguidethroughtheInfernoandPurgatorio.DantegreetsVirgilasmymasterandmyauthor.Beatrice,thepersonificationofpurelove,hasbeensenttorescueDante.ShefinallyleadsDantetoParadiso.DanteisthenabletogazeuponthesupremeradianceofGod.Heendshispilgrimageintovisionof'theLovewhichmovesthesunandtheotherstars.ThedualallegoryofCommedia-theprogressofthesoultowardHeaven,andtheanguishofhumankindonEarth-wouldlaterbeechoedbyJohnBunyaninPilgrim'sProgress(1678-84).TheDivineComedyThroughmethewayintothesufferingcity,Throughmethewaytotheeternalpain,Throughmethewaythatrunsamongthelost.Justiceurgedonmyhighartificer;Mymakerwasdivineauthority,Thehighestwisdom,andtheprimallove.Beforemenothingbuteternalthingsweremade,AndIendureeternally.Abandon