Sam Krupnikoff

Mr. Biggart
Western Civilizations
September 23
The Life Changing Time of the Renaissance
Imagine living in a time of cultural rebirth that celebrates the achievement of the
individual. This is exactly what the Renaissance was. The Renaissance was a time of fast paced
change that impacted the economy, society, and culture alike throughout Europe. The
Renaissance started because of the huge trading business with the Middle East in Northern
Italy. There, the people of Northern Italy were reintroduced to the classic texts of Greece and
Rome, since they were preserved in the Middle East. In addition, humanism was a big concept
during the Renaissance. In fact, humanism was another main cause of the Renaissance since it
was a social reform. Also, humanism accredited people with the outcome of events, not a god or
an all powerful being. This created the social reform, since people could not be born into power
anymore under the humanist belief system.
To begin, the transition from feudalism to humanism in the Renaissance caused people
living in Northern Italy to want to bring back the classical lifestyles of Ancient Greece and the
Roman Empire. By doing this, the people of Northern Italy and mainly those of Florence,
specifically the Medicis, inadvertently created a new way of viewing life. The trade with the
Middle East and Northern Italy was done to receive products from China such as: porcelain and
silk. With the economy growing on a daily basis with trade, and the merchants of Northern Italy
getting richer by the day, these merchants now had additional reasons to make purchases of
fine art. So, they became patrons of the arts. This improved the economy greatly, since people
were not born into their work anymore, they could earn money based on their work not the
groups work. In addition, humanism was a big concept during the Renaissance. In fact,
humanism was another main cause of the Renaissance since it was a social reform. Also,

humanism accredited people with the outcome of events, not a god or an all powerful being.
This created a huge change in society since the economy was not based on a feudalistic society
with lords or kings leading due to their birthright, but it was rather just the accomplishments of
individuals which is what Humanism emphasized.
In turn, this created a new era of European culture in terms of art, literature, music, etc.
that was a strongly encouraged part of society. While this movement may have started in
Northern Italy, it quickly spread throughout Europe due to people coming from all over to attend
schools that taught the arts in Italy. In England, this time period was referred to as the
Elizabethan Age, where Queen Elizabeth encouraged English art and literature. Besides
England and Northern Italy, this era was referred to as the Northern Renaissance throughout
the rest of Europe. To conclude, the Renaissance was a time of the rebirth of life in general
throughout Europe. This movement impacted the economy, society, and culture in all of Western
Civilization. While the Renaissance Some of the best art was made during this period, and it
never should be forgotten.