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Renaissance & Its Important Facts

A Brief Introduction

The word ‘Renaissance‘ means ‘Rebirth’ or ‘Reawakening’.
The term ‘Renaissance’ means the ‘Revival of Learning’. The term Renaissance “Men of Renaissance were like those captives who have been kept in dark dungeons and gradually returned to all the loveliness and luxuries of life.”

The Renaissance period in English Literature is also known as The Elizabethan Age’ or ‘The Age of Shakespeare’. The Renaissance began in Italy in the fourteenth century and in the fifteenth and the sixteenth century it spread over Western Europe and England. The Renaissance came to England with the first of the Tudor Kings, Henry VII and in the next century spread its influence over all aspects of culture scholarship, literature, science, art, architecture and music..

Important Facts to Remember

1. The chief characteristic of the Renaissance was its emphasis on Humanism. Humanism means Man’s concern with himself as an object of contemplation came to be known as Humanism. It was “man discovery of himself.”

2. Erasmu’s “Praise of Folly” and “Sir Thomas More’s Utopia” (1516) in Latin were remarkable works of Renaissance.

3. The Sonnet was orginally produced in the hands of Petrarch, the Italian Poet of fourteenth century called Petrarchan Sonnet or Italian Sonnet.

4. Petrach and Boccacio were among the earliest of the humanists and their work marks the dawn of the Renaissance.

5. In Renaissance, the famous collection of songs and sonnets by Wyatt and Surrey and some others, called after the name of its “Tottel’s miscellany.

6. Wycliff, Peacock and more are considered the first writer of English Prose.

7. Chaucer has rightly been called The Morning Star of Renaissance’.

8. The Hundred Year’s war with France and the defeat of the Spanish Armada brought about revival of nationalist and patriotic feelings among the Elizabethan.

9. The Spanish Tragedy (1589) of Thomas Kyd’s skillfully managed in Renaissance.

10. Malory’s Le Morte de Arthur was among the first works to be printed by William Caxton who introduced the Printing Press to England in 1476.

11. Christopher Marlowe’s great works of drama represent the Renaissance spirit. For example. Dr. Faustus, Tamburlaine, Jew of Malta and Edward II.

12. Similarly, Shakespeare dramas also represent the Renaissance spirit. His best comedies are As You Like It (1599), Twelfth Night (1600). And his great tragedies such as Hamlet (1601) Othello (1604), King Lear (1605), Macbeth (1606) and Antony and Cleopatra (1606).

13. Francis Bacon through his 58 essays prove his unsatiable thrust or hunger for knwoledge. When he says, “I want to take all knowledge to be my providence.”

14. Spensor’s poetry (Fairy Queen) was masterpiece work of the Renaissance. Spenser was called the “Child of Renaissance and Reformation”.

15. In literature the most famous productions were: In Politics Machiavelli’s, “The Prince”. In the field of Art and Sculpture it produced Raphael’. In Science and Engineering, Leonardo Da Vince’ who was a great engineer, poet, musician and thus a perfect gift of the versatile culture of the age. In literature, il gave us ‘Shakespeare’, ‘Marlowe’ in England, Aristotle’ in Italy.