The Renaissance1485-1625

“The English Renaissance.” Prentice Hall Literature: The English Tradition. Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey: Prentice-Hall. 1989. 153-170.

“The Renaissance 1485 -1660”. Elements of Literature, Sixth Course. Literature of Britain. New York: Holt, Rinehart and Winston. 2000. 190- 212.

Some focus questions: How do historical events

influence the literature of the era?

How does literature shape or reflect society?

How does the literature of one era carry over or contrast from the previous one?

The End of the War of the Roses

• Henry marries Elizabeth of York (Richard’s niece) to secure his position, and acts to ensure peace with foreign powers. This house of Tudor will rule until Elizabeth I, who is the chief monarch during Shakespeare’s time.

• In 1485, Henry Tudor defeats the Yorkist king Richard III and establishes the Tudor dynasty, which rules for 118 years. He unites the houses of York & Lancaster.

The Coming of the Renaissance: Beginnings of Tudor Rule

around 1455 • The printing press is

invented by Johannes Gutenberg.

• William Caxton sets up a press in England.

in 1476

• Books become widely available throughout western Europe.

by 1500

The Printing Press

More things that pave the way for the coming of the Renaissance

Definitions and Characteristics Renaissance: rebirth; a flowering of literary,

artistic, and intellectual development that began in Italy in the 14th century

It’s inspired by the arts and scholarship of ancient Greece and Rome

The religious devotion of the Middle Ages, with its emphasis on the afterlife, gave way to a new interest in the human beings’ place here on earth

Universities introduced a new curriculum called the humanities, which included history, geography, poetry, and modern languages; more scholars are writing in the vernacular.

The Renaissance encouraged individual curiosity and creativity. Bold thoughts, beautiful poetry, and powerful dramatic works emerged.

The instruments shown in this painting suggest the ambassadors have mastered astronomy, mathematics, and music. The Ambassadors (1533) by Hans Holbein

the Younger. Oil on canvas.

Renaissance Learning

Some Other Key Terms and ConceptsRenaissance Man- Renaissance Man- someone who is interested in science, art, literature, history and other subjects. Example: Henry VIII or Thomas Jefferson

UtopiaUtopia-- a perfect society. Thomas More wrote on this

Reformation-Reformation- The rejection of the Pope & church; to change the church & its politics

HumanismHumanism- Renaissance writers who were part of an intellectual mvt that combined traditional Christian thought with Latin & Greek classics to teach people how to live and to study themselves. More on next slide!

Humanism—an intellectual movement that greatly influenced Renaissance thinkers, writers, and artists.

• studied the Bible and the classics to explore questions such as “What is a good life?”

• revived old Greek and Latin classics

The humanists

• made history, literature, and philosophy popular again

• sickly “boy king” • rules in name only• dies at age 15

• “Bloody Mary” • restores pope’s power• hunts down and

executes Protestants

Heirs of Henry VIII

Edward VI (r. 1547–1553)

Mary Tudor (r. 1553–1558)

Elizabeth I (r. 1558–1603)

• “The Virgin Queen” • brilliant, successful monarch

The Tudor Dynasty in brief

• The “Virgin Queen” foiled several murder plots by her cousin Mary, Queen of Scots.

• Elizabeth’s first task was to restore law and order and reestablish Church of England.

History of the Times

• England under “Bloody” Mary was torn by religious feuds after she restored power to Catholics and executed Protestants.

• Elizabeth I inherits kingdom after deaths of her brother Edward and sister Mary.

• Queen Elizabeth’s defeat of the Spanish Armada was one of her finest hours.

England’s Greatest Monarch

Elizabeth I—literary connoisseur; beloved symbol of peace, security, prosperity

• likely most brilliant, successful British monarch

• excommunicated after rejecting pope’s authority

• Parliament begs her to marry; she refuses

• Rebuffs proposal from Philip of Spain; unleashes navy on his Spanish Armada

England’s Greatest Monarch

• Poetry, drama, religious allegory, and philosophical works flourish in this golden age.

• Armada’s defeat is a catalyst for Renaissance writers, who celebrate Elizabeth I as a symbol of peace, prosperity, and security.

• Elizabeth’s court becomes a center of literary culture for gifted writers.

• The plays of William Shakespeare and his contemporaries are created for the general public, rather than aristocratic theater patrons.

Elizabeth’s Influence: Literature of the Times

Renaissance Images You Just Need to Know!

Renaissance Images You Just Need to Know!

Literary Who’s Who Sir Thomas Wyatt, who loved Anne

Boleyn from afar, travelled widely and brought the sonnet from Italy to England

Sir Phillip Sidney wrote a great sonnet cycle called Astrophel and Stella

Edmund Spenser, another poet who is best known for the LONG allegorical work which praises Elizabeth I: The Faerie Queene

Christopher Marlowe: noted playwright and poet, contemporary of Shakespeare, died very young (in his 20s) in a bar fight, has a rumor circulated that he is the “true” author of Shakespeare’s poems and that he faked his death.

More Literary Who’s Who Sir Walter Raleigh: poet, historian, courier,

soldier, explorer, potential suitor to Elizabeth…until she had him imprisoned.

Obviously, Shakespeare (more on him later…)

Ben Jonson: another poet, friend and rival to Shakespeare who put together his works after the bard’s death; said this of Shakespeare, “He was not of an age but for all time.”

Francis Bacon, prose writer towards the end of the Renaissance in time of James I. He made many contributions to natural science and philosophy

Literary forms and terms you should know:

Lyric poetry: poetry that expresses the observations and feelings of a single speaker. Unlike a narrative poem, it presents an experience or single effect, but it does not tell a full story. Sonnets are good examples of these. Odes and elegies are in this category as well.

Pastoral: a genre the deals with the pleasures of a simple, rural life that often has shepherds and country people/scenes as its subject. Think Wesley and Buttercup

End…

It began…..

.....with the changes in people’s values, beliefs and behaviors.

…..in Italy in the 14th Century.

The Humanists

People moved away from “church” literature to Humanist literature to study themselves.

Humanists studied human nature; one’s self.

Erasmus was the most famous Renaissance humanist.

Sir Thomas More was another famous humanist who wrote “Utopia”.

Both Erasmus and More helped shape European thought and history.

What new technology helped bring about the Renaissance Period? The Gutenberg Press helped

spread Humanist writing. Before the press, all books were

hand written and hand copied. The press (with movable type)

was invented by a German named Johannes Gutenberg around 1455.

The first book he printed was the bible (in Latin).

The Reformation…..

….was a movement to REFORM the corrupt church & Pope.

….forced people to question the Catholic Church’s authority.

....made people object to the financial burdens placed upon them by the church.

Henry VIII

…started the Reformation mov’t b/c he wanted a divorce from Catherine of Aragon.

…was a true Renaissance Man.

…created the Royal Navy which led to the spread of England’s rule.

Henry had 6 wives:1. Catherine of Aragon –

divorced; mother of Mary

2. Anne Boleyn -beheaded; mother of

Elizabeth3. Jane Seymour

-died naturally; mother to Edward VI

4. Anne of Cleves-divorced

5. Catherine Howard-beheaded

6. Catherine Parr-only survivor

After Henry VIII….1st Edward VI or the “Boy King”:

-only male son of Henry (& Jane Seymour-she died 12 days after his birth).

-became king at the age of 9 but his relatives ruled for him.

-died at age 15 from TB.

-He was followed by……

Introducing….“Bloody Mary”!

-1/2 sister to Edward, daughter of Catherine of Aragon-devout Catholic, returned power back to Pope & Catholic church.-earned her “name” b/c she hunted down and killed Protestants (Henry’s followers) including burning over 300 people at the stake.- Married the King of Spain (England’s biggest enemy at the time).- ruled England for 5 years.-died of a fever.

Return to Reformation….The “Virgin Queen”….

-Elizabeth I followed Mary.- was the last living heir of Henry VIII.-1/2 sister to Mary and Edward VI, daughter of Anne Boleyn. - ruled from 1558 – 1603.-never married, no children or heirs.-returned to her father’s policies, restored the Church of England.-was intelligent & independent.-executed Mary, Queen of Scots, for attempting to have her killed. She was a cousin to Elizabeth.-Under Elizabeth, the Royal Navy defeated the Spanish Armada which secured England’s independence from ALL Catholic nations in the Mediterranean (The Spanish Armada was sent by King Phillip in response to Elizabeth executing Mary, Queen of Scots).

Hidden Messages….How fashion impacted the Renaissance EraColors and Clothing designs mean different things…

1. GreenGreen: love

2. White & TawnyWhite & Tawny: patience in adversity

3. White or BlackWhite or Black: chastity

4. PansiesPansies: sadness

5. SnakesSnakes: flattery

The 5 major Characteristics of the Renaissance Period….1. People expanded their worlds by reading

classical Greek & Roman writers rather than Christian doctrine.

2. Spread of Humanism- focus on the here & now rather than the “eternal life”.

3. The Gutenberg Press.

4. A growing Merchant class (Middle Class).

5. The spread of scholarly Latin made the sharing of ideas possible.

The End of the Renaissance Period… Elizabeth I died. She was followed by ineffective rulers:

-James I-Charles I (son of James); beheaded for treason-1649 – 1660 Parliament ruled w/o a monarch; Charles II was exiled to France-Charles II returned

Political and Secular (church) values challenged.

John Milton was the LAST great writer of the period. He wrote “Paradise Lost”.