New World, Renaissance Humanism, and Reformation.
1. New World
a. Christopher Columbus
i. Was first a sailor on the Mediterranean and then became a navigator and a
mapmaker
ii. Went on an exploration in 1492 in hopes of finding a new way to the East
Indies and its spice trade
iii. Accidentally sailed into North America and Hispaniola, causing him to
believe that he had reached Asia and in turn he named the natives there
“Indians”
iv. Wrote a letter about his first voyage
1. Describes the potential unity of the islands to get gold and other
commodities
2. Also describes his vision of the evangelization of the natives there
b. Hernan Cortes
i. Spanish Conquest of the Aztec Empire (modern day Northern Mexico)
ii. Took Moctezuma, the ruler of the Aztecs, prisoner who later died
iii. Successfully conquered Aztec Empire after destroying the city of
Tenochtitlan
iv. Wrote about conquering the city and his encounters with the rulers
v. Tried to convert them to Christianity and suggested that the rulers met
their downfall because of the denial to switch to Christianity
c. New World’s Creation Myths
i. Popol Vuh: an epic narrative that describes the creation of the world and
of humankind to the time of creation of the text (1554-58), amongst the
violence of the Spanish conquest
ii. Huarochiri Manuscript: Andean religious imaginary describing conquest
and relationship between rulers and deities
iii. The Florentine Codex: record of Aztec culture; considered the first
modern work of anthropology
2. Reformation
a. Martin Luther
i. Nails 95 Thesis to door of Catholic Church (1517)
ii. Challenges to the Catholic Church
iii. Challenges the Pope
b. Catholic Church
i. Indulgences
1. Money
2. Power
3. Untouchable
ii. Barrier between people and God
iii. Buy your way into salvation
iv. Purchase pardons from sin
v. Revolved around money
c. Protestant Christianity
i. Grace/faith was the way to salvation
ii. Direct access to the Bible in common language
iii. Independence from the Catholic Church
iv. Personal Responsibility for individuals
d. Poetry
i. Skepticism
ii. Religious upheaval
iii. Individualism
e. Reform
i. The downfall of the Catholic Church
ii. Rise Protestant beliefs
3. Renaissance Humanism
a. Definition: A philosophy that places emphasis on reason, the human individual,
and the world.
b. Renaissance
i. Definition: The word Renaissance means “rebirth” or “revival”.
ii. The Renaissance was a philosophical movement that took place during
medieval times that was characterized by a return to classical works, a
revival in art and intellect, the beginnings of modern science, and a focus
on reason, the individual, and society.
c. Studia Humanitatis
i. Education through the study of the humanities.
ii. Includes grammar, rhetoric, history, poetry, and moral philosophy.
iii. Umanisti: Professors of the humanities and classic literature who
encouraged the movement.
d. “Ad Fontes”
i. Latin for “back to the sources”.
ii. Focuses on returning to what is considered to be the classics, the works of
the Greeks and Romans.
e. Causes and Contributions to the Renaissance
i. Humanism movement
ii. The printing press: Made thought-inspiring media more attainable and
affordable.
iii. The Reformation and the Renaissance occurred hand in hand as result of
the philosophical movements occurring throughout medieval society.
f. Key Figures
i. Petrarch
1. Father of Humanism; scholar and poet.
ii. Machiavelli
1. Renaissance philosopher with interests in history, politics, and
classical realism.
