HI Revision

8/2/2019 HI Revision

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Max Rogers

Ms. Caruso

ENGL 1102

22 February 2012

The Renaissance: An Overview

The Black Death was a lethal monstrosity that seized the middle ages killing millions.

However, the Black Death never touched the farm lands, buildings, ships, machines, or gold

(Hereshleifer 19). This meant that survivors could still rebuild what was left of their damaged

society. Although many citizens would return to their former lives, the earth was forever

changed. Humanity was launched into a new era. This was the birth of the Italian Renaissance.

Several events led to the decline of feudalism. There was an economic revival that began

so knights could be paid. Knights became soldiers of the states. Because of this, fewer lords

relied on knights for protection. Gun powder and weapons like the long bow and cannon came

along.This decreased the effectiveness of knights. Stone castles were no longer the ultimate

fortresses as they gave in to the power of cannons (Simkin 1). Cities became wealthier and more

important. All of these occurrences led to the down fall of the aristocracies that were previously

in place. When these aristocracies began to lose strength, a new form of organization began to

move in and take control.

This began the rise of early government officials. These officials took over the functions

that were previously carried out by the vassals.1 The renaissance aided the development of states.

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introduction but I ended up just creating

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some more detail and elaborate a little m

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is that I dont like to have very long intro

and Ive always been taught to make the

the point. In this type of paper though, I

would be okay to lengthen things out a b

to really start bringing some more inform

make the paper seem more full.

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more information here to help ease the t

from my introduction to the first body pa

Looking back on it now, the lack of a smo

transition makes it feel somewhat like ho

five paragraph essays were written. An e

from a real li fe event back in the renaissa

work as an opener for this paragraph.

Comment [M3]: I feel that this parag

lacking some real examples that support


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Germany was akin to Italy in that it was divided into many largely independent states (Butler 1).

However, Germany was at the core of the Holy Roman Empire which unified the various

German states (Trueman 1). The princes in Italy along with The Great Royal Court supported the

renaissance. The French king, Francis the First, ruled from 1515 to 1547. He attempted to fill his

surroundings with the most refined representatives of the Italian renaissance.

There was a newly found force behind the thinking that God was no longer controlling all

that took place on earth. People began to look at technology, science, and learning as a path to

remodel society and lay down the foundations for the world of the future. Many scientists ran

into conflict with the Church. For example, Galileo was almost constantly locked into a feud

with the Church when he released his observations regarding a heliocentric universe. He was not

alone and many of the scientists emerging during the renaissance had to fight and struggle with

the Church for acceptance.2

Corruption found itself merging into the Roman Catholic Church. Many priests used

money as a way to make it to the top. Priests were buying their positions (Van Hove 1). This led

to many priests being in power who were uneducated and illiterate. Priests were also being

caught. It was becoming evident that the members of the Roman Catholic Church were

becoming too passionate about wealth and less passionate about their roles.

Humanism ignited trade and a desire for a better standard of life. Florence Italy became

the model trade city for others to follow Life in the city was a very lavish lifestyle considering

the not so distant past. At the market, there is always movement and profits are high (Barton 1).

People began to treat themselves to grander luxuries.Europes economy began to flourish. New

Comment [M4]: I actually really like t

and I should use an approach like this to

in more supporting information to each t

would really help the flow for some of th

paragraphs and it also would keep the pa

being to boring.

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transition here. These paragraphs dont w

together in my opinion and if I was to cha

things, I would need to find a segue from

topic to the next. The way it reads right n

it seem like each paragraph is a flash card

just going through them to give a review

period. I need to avoid this in my writing

this by possibly bringing in a more perso

to the paper which will help give it some

should use the text to hold a conversatio

reader.


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goods from the East were introduced to the general public. Merchants brought these goods

across the Silk Road. The Silk Road was a caravan route from Europe to China which had, until

this time, been left unused for years. In the 1200s, the Silk Road was reopened by the Mongols

(Elliot 16). There was a prominent traveler that spent 20 years in Asia. He wrote a book that

rejuvenated an interest in the Far East. The book inspired traders to seek Asian goods and so the

movement began. A fire would soon start thanks to the work done by a man named Marco Polo.

Florence, Milan, and Venice had become major trading centers in Italyby the 1300s.

However, manufacturing centers lived in these cities as well. Specialization began to occur. The

port city of Venice was an essential gateway into trade. Massive ships often stopped in the city

and with them, they would bring dazzling products from Asia.

Trade led directly to banking. A new banking system appeared all over Europe. It was

developed in Florence. The biggest players in this game were the Medici family. The rich

usually controlled the government in Italian cities and in 1344, Cosimo De Medici ruled

Florence (Unknown 1). He had a great desire to make Florence a center of art, literature, and

culture.3 This devotion to art and education was essential to the renaissance.

During this time, great advances in the fields of science and mathematics were made. It

was discovered that the Earth revolves around the sun. Major changes in education occurred as

students began to study the humanities. The study of history soon became important and overall,

necessary. The renaissance was a blending of curiosity, artistry, and an endless hunger for

Comment [M6]: This is a little bit bett

flow. I move better from paragraph to pa

Now that I am reading this, I feel like I m

trying to limit myself t o only one paragra

topics and if I just let it flow into two or t

paragraphs, then the entire paper will wo

better and a lot more information will be

the reader.


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knowledge and understanding. The renaissance left an imprint on humanity that is as fresh today

as it was the day it was birthed.4

It was no coincidence that Columbus found the Americas in the 1400s.It wasnt just a

stroke of chance that Columbus consulted the same mathematician who taught the famous

architect Filippo Brunelleschi. The renaissance took the world by storm and tore apart the once

used guides to life. A fire burned through the people during these times. A perpetual motion was

set into place that has redefined the arts more than a hundred times over.

Comment [M7]: Im not sure why I th

would suffice as a conclusion. I think I wa

mind set of making this very factual and

which in my mind made me want to be q

precise without adding much emotion to

paper as is , is la cking a strong conclusion

everything that has been discussed. The

that needs to be added, also needs to wo

of my reasoning for why each of these as

important.


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Works Cited

Barton, Sara. "Renaissance Florence." Nova-online. Jan. 2003. 9 Feb 2012. Web.

Butler, Chris.The Rise of The Nation States During the Renaissance. Flow of History. 2007.

Web.

Elliot, Lynne.The Renaissance in Europe2009 New York: Crabtree Publishing Company.

Print.

Hereshleifer, Jack.Disaster and Recovery: The Black Death in Western Europe February

1966.

Simkin, John. Decline of Feudalism Spartacus Educational. 14 Oct. 2003. Web.

Trueman, Chris.Holy Roman Empire History Learning Site.

Unknown.Italian Rennaissance Sparknotes.

Van Hove, Alphonse. "Hierarchy." The Catholic Encyclopedia. Vol. 7. New York: Robert

Appleton Company, 1910. 14 Feb. 2012

ENDNOTES Comment [M8]: This is my first time rendnotes and I feel like they should be a

tremendously. Right now, they feel more

points but I would like to make each one

into their own sub-story which helps give

my opinions and how I plan to use this in

in my upcoming novel.


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1 A shift in power is often a time for conflicts to evolve. I feel that people who want to raise their own status will

use this time of change to help vault themselves to the top. This will help give me a setting for corruption to begin

occurring in my final paper.2The science vs.The Church argument has been going on ever since the two were created. This opens up

another resource to pull into my final paper. The church may want to be removing people who go against their

ideals from society. It could also be the hidden agenda that the church has . I can easily create a conspiracy from

this topic.3

The Medici family is one of the best known families from the renaissance. It would almost be wrong of me to not

include them in my next paper. I feel that I can use them as a status of power and or leadership in the city. Theycould possibly be the main enemy of the church because of the way they feel about progressing the arts and

sciences.4

I feel that a push to advance technology and the sciences is always a good thing. It would be wrong to stopprogression because of religion. I want a subtle argument to surface that the church stands in the way of

advancement.

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