Humanism And The Renaissance
The Random House Dictionary of the English Language defines humanism as "1. Any system or mode of thought or action in which human interests, values, and dignity are taken to be of primary importance, as in moral judgments. 2. Devotion to or study of the humanities. 3. The studies, principles, or culture of the Humanists." But the true definition of humanism cannot be relegated to dictionary text alone; it must be expanded upon to include its origins and historical significance. The ancient Greeks and Romans first developed the idea of humanism as a very simplistic idea- to achieve excellence in life through one's own accomplishments and endeavors.
For hundreds of years, this was the ...
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during the Renaissance.
Giovanni Pico della Mirandola typified the mindset of the fifteenth century humanist. As one of the most brilliant scholars of his time, Pico della Mirandola was proficient in Latin, Hebrew, Greek, Arabic, and Chaldee. This knowledge of languages enabled him to be extremely well read in original versions of ancient Greek and Arabic texts as well as the Holy Bible. Pico della Mirandola practiced both Renaissance and Classical humanism. He focused on the relation of the human to the divine, seeing in human beings the summit and purpose of God's creation. Renaissance humanists were concerned about defining the human's place in God's plan and the relation of the human to the divine. Pico della Mirandola's Oration on the Dignity of Man epitomizes his humanist rational. In Oration, he cites sources ranging from Plato to Aristotle: "…There I read the same things which we read every day in the pages of Paul and of Dionysius, Jerome and Augustine. In ...
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ability to choose his destiny in life embodied Renaissance humanism thinking. Pico della Mirandola believed that through righteous acts and proper worship, man may not only attain salvation, but become God Himself, because He had given man that power: "…and there, if, like Moses, we shall prove entirely faithful, most sacred theology will supervene to inspire us with redoubled ecstasy…And at last, smitten by the ineffable love as by a sting, and, like the Seraphim, born outside ourselves, filled with the godhead, we shall be, no longer ourselves, but the very One who made us."
Bartolome de las Casas was a member of the Dominican Preaching Order during the Renaissance. He, like ...
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Humanism And The Renaissance. (2004, August 28). Retrieved November 23, 2024, from http://www.essayworld.com/essays/Humanism-And-The-Renaissance/13410
"Humanism And The Renaissance." Essayworld.com. Essayworld.com, 28 Aug. 2004. Web. 23 Nov. 2024. <http://www.essayworld.com/essays/Humanism-And-The-Renaissance/13410>
"Humanism And The Renaissance." Essayworld.com. August 28, 2004. Accessed November 23, 2024. http://www.essayworld.com/essays/Humanism-And-The-Renaissance/13410.
"Humanism And The Renaissance." Essayworld.com. August 28, 2004. Accessed November 23, 2024. http://www.essayworld.com/essays/Humanism-And-The-Renaissance/13410.
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