Essay on The Role Of Women in the Renaissance - 1645 Words

When one talks about the Renaissance, the most common topic is art and architecture. It is true that the Italian Renaissance was marked by some of the greatest and most prolific masters of painting, sculpture and building. It is also true that the era marked the emergence of a great deal more. It was a time of awakening from the intellectual darkness of the medieval order and the emergence of many of the concepts that would form the basis for civilization as it is known today. The era saw the birth of new attitudes concerning the role of man in his relationship to the world and to God. Unfortunately, for the most part, the expansion of the role of man did not include the role of women. Renaissance (from the French for†¦show more content†¦Throughout Italy, the social structure underwent a gradual social and political revolution beginning in the late twelfth century. The rapid growth of the towns was driven by local emigration, as individuals and families moved from th e countryside to take advantage of urban economic opportunity. The city of Florence roughly doubled in size during the century. ...the proportions of growth can be traced through the gradual appearance in the course of the century of new neighborhoods and churches (Lansing 38). In the fifteenth century the intellectual pursuit was turned toward the study of humanism, or the understanding of mans role in culture, politics and religion. There grew a belief in the innate dignity and worth of man as individuals and as separate from the animal in their ability to reason. Out of this new intellectual drive, the sciences grew. Personages such as Leonardo de Vinci and Michelangelo were able to make significant contributions in art and other areas, such as mathematics. Geometric relations, mathematical proportion, and the mysticism of numbers played an important part in how painters designed their pictures and architects their buildings. They made the underlying structure itself embo dy central ideas or themes (Osmond 23). The Renaissance embodied many aspects, including humanism, patronage, political thought, classical scholarship, historiography and religiousShow MoreRelatedThe Role Of Women During The Renaissance And Enlightenment991 Words   |  4 Pages Throughout the history of Europe, the role of women has drastically been altered. The Middle Ages saw peasant women working side by side with their husbands and taking care of their children at home. As time passed by, women were given an increased amount of rights, and then the cottage industry took over, providing thousands of women the opportunity to work as in the comfort of their home. The eruption of the agricultural revolution and technological advance soon swept England and the continentRead MoreThe Role Of Gender During The Renaissance Period1466 Words   |  6 Pagesthe Renaissance period, which took place between 1300-1700. The term Renaissance stands for ‘rebirth’, and in this cont ext refers to the increased interest that was taken in learning from Greek and Roman classical writing. Recent exploration by historians into the Renaissance period has seen a fixation on the discussion of the role of gender during the Renaissance. A variety of historians, such as Joan Kelly and Merry E. Weisner, believe that women didn’t experience any form of a Renaissance duringRead MoreThe Reflection of Life During the Renaissance in Literature1601 Words   |  7 PagesLife in the Renaissance has been greatly reflected through the literature of its time. Many authors from this time reflected life in the Renaissance through their works. Several authors who strongly demonstrated this reflection include William Shakespeare, Thomas Elyot, Christopher Marlowe, Walter Raleigh, and Christine de Pizan. They accomplished this by producing various literary works, such as Hamlet, â€Å"The Passionate Shepherd to His Love,† â€Å"The Nymph’s Reply to the Shepherd,à ¢â‚¬  Le Livre de laRead MoreEssay on A Feminist Perspective of William Shakespeare1506 Words   |  7 PagesA Feminist Perspective of Shakespeare   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Although William Shakespeare reflects and at times supports the English Renaissance stereotypes of women and men and their various roles and responsibilities in society, he is also a writer who questions, challenges, and modifies those representations. His stories afford opportunities not only to understand Renaissance culture better but also to confront our own contemporary generalizations about gender, especially what it means to be female. In hisRead MoreWilliam Shakespeares Taming of the Shrew William Shakespeare’s romantic comedy, The Taming of1100 Words   |  5 PagesWilliam Shakespeares Taming of the Shrew William Shakespeare’s romantic comedy, The Taming of the Shrew, is an embodiment of the context in which the text was shaped, the Renaissance. The Renaissance period was a time of progression, primarily in the areas of art, science, humanism, religion and self-awareness. The Renaissance focused on taking elements of the past including religion, art and science and adapting them to make them better. Humanists advocated for the freedom of the individualsRead More Madonna vs. Eve A portrait of the Renaissance Woman827 Words   |  4 PagesMadonna vs. Eve A portrait of the Renaissance Woman The role of women has been portrayed through art since prehistoric times. Women have been a sign of hope, downfall, and power. This image of women was most powerful during the Renaissance. A cultural revival or rebirth occurred during the 15th and 16th century in Europe. The economic growth of the 14th century created a prosperous middle class. This allowed more of the mass to invest their income. Patronage of the arts soon became very fashionableRead MoreOn the other hand, Shakespeare also maintains the feminine ideal through the use of disguise. In700 Words   |  3 Pagesparamount, as the destruction of a women was seen as their undoing in a Renaissance society. Mary Rose discusses the idea of purity â€Å"For a woman, a public reputation was dishonourable, a sure sign of immorality and scandal†. In both cases, the characters have had an impact on society around them, particularly towards men, through the use of disguise and deception. Whilst Shakespeare presents authoritative roles within women, he also presents the contrasting roles of women, particularly in the charactersRead MoreElizabeth Woodville And Anne Boleyn1747 Words   |  7 PagesWomen throughout history rarely receive attention for more than superficial causes: their influence on style, manners, or less. However, many women found themselves contributing to the formation of postmodern constructs of marriage for love, partnership, and fidelity. Foremost among these, temporally and popularly, are the examples of Elizabeth Woodville and Anne Boleyn. Undoubtedly, these cases hold great significance to cultural studies of the temporal periods in which the English identify as participantsRead MoreChildbirth And The Italian Renaissance1741 Words   |  7 PagesChildbirth and Childbearing in Renaissance Italy for upper status woman, was far different than what childbearing is compared to today’s standards. In renaissance Italy it was said that wom an only had one purpose and that purpose was to have many legitimate babies, especially for the nobility and upper status couples. From having these babies, the family could inherit a lot of wealth (King, M. L., 2003). This differs greatly in todays society, as now woman’s primary function is not only to produceRead MoreFemale Humanists in Renaissance Italy Essay1355 Words   |  6 PagesFemale Humanists in Renaissance Italy Arcangela Tarabotti like many young girls in Renaissance Italy had parents who could not afford a sufficient dowry to purchase their daughter a good marriage. In order to protect their honor and her virginity they sent Tarabotti away to a convent against her will. Here she lived out the rest of her unhappy life as a nun. What sets her apart from other girls of similar circumstance is that she became one of the few female humanist writers#. The story of Tarabotti