Journal: “Creativity”

• What is the most creative thing you do? (music, art, sports etc.) Is it something that you were always just good at doing, or did you have to learn how to do it? What do you love about it – or do you not care about it one way or the other?

The Renaissance

Origins

Introduction

• The Renaissance was one of the most important periods of history due to the explosion of creativity that occurred in the Arts and society.

Changes in Society

The Black Death, The Hundred Years War, and the development of nations led to the breakdown of Feudalism in Europe at the end of the Middle Ages.

End of Medieval Institutions

• The Plague had left fewer peasants to work the land, which made them more valuable and important. The war and new weapons like the longbow made knights obsolete.

Nations Develop

• Unified nations began to develop in Europe and took the place of the nobles and land owners. France and England were two of the first countries to unify under a single ruler or government.

Trade Increases

• Thanks to a decline in warfare and invasion, traders began to feel safer traveling along trade routes – this led to an expansion of trade.

Marco Polo

• Marco Polo was an Italian trader, he traveled along the Silk Roads to China and returned with great stories of riches in Asia. His successful journeys encouraged European merchants to increase trade with Asia.

New ways of thinking

• People who had survived the wars and plague wanted to enjoy life. Contact with new people and ideas resulting from trade also led to new attitudes on how to live. These attitudes started to spread across Europe.

Looking for Knowledge

• As the Middle Ages came to an end people wanted to gain knowledge and understanding, they looked to the ancient cultures of Greece and Rome. The study of classical texts led to a movement called humanism.

Humanism• Humanism focused on

the importance of the individual. This was a big difference from past thinking, when groups, guilds, and the church were more important. This focus on individual improvement led to the improvement of many things – which led to the Renaissance.

Now let’s watch a video!

Copy and answer• 1. List some inventions or

improvements that made life during the Renaissance more comfortable.

• 2. What were some of the factors that contributed to improving life during the Renaissance

• 3. What were sumptuary laws?

• 4. Why did people have little access to water?

• 5. Why were spices so desirable to the wealthy during the Renaissance?

• 6. How did the diets of the rich differ from those of ordinary people?

• 7. Explain why education of the masses became important.

• 8. How did humanism affect everyday life?

• 9. What were some of the occupations of people living during the Renaissance?