Renaissance
by Lamprinos Chatziioannou
Translation: Lamprinos Chatziioannou
1. Ideology
It is commonly accepted that the ideology of the Renaissance was
anthropocentric, as evidenced by the two main philosophical trends of this era,
Humanism and Neoplatonism. During the Renaissance many intellectuals,
influenced by the Greek scholars who visited Florence in 1438 for the Council of
Ferrara-Florence, greatly contributed in the rapid spread of the ancient Greek
culture in the West. In fact, Cosimo de’ Medici, the founder of the house, deeply
influenced by this way of thinking, funded the Plato School of Florence, which
had a significant impact to the shaping of the modern European way of thinking.
1.1 Humanism
The humanism movement is the centre of the Renaissance civilization and
essentially depicts the people's efforts for deeper exploration of their spiritual
potential. Studia human itatis, the study and systematic translation of the
ancient Greek and Latino writers and philosophers had a hand in the
development of a new form of philosophy that stands out from the others due to
the prominent place which according to it the man has in creation.
1.2 Neoplatonism
As a result of the translation and careful examination of Plato’s books,
another philosophical trend was developed, Neoplatonism. It is its name actually
that makes clear what was the main axis of this movement. In greek, Neo means
New and Platonism was a movement based on Plαto’s ideas. It was an attempt
of the people of that time to recreate such an important for philosophy
movement.
2. The Medici House
The Medici was a wealthy family of Florence bankers that, with the use of
its resources, dominated the political, economic and artistic scene of Florence
from the 15th to the 18th century. Its members were patrons of the arts
(Mecenas) and funded many works of art by prominent Renaissance artists, from
the Adoration of the Magi by Botticelli to Donatello’s David.
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