The Nature of Man, the Renaissance, and the Protestant...

Europe was a tumultuous region in the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries. In particular, the Renaissance and the Protestant Reformation both introduced radical intellectual and religious ideas that challenged centuries of established doctrine. This period corresponded with a great surge in philosophical, political, and religious writing. Among the most influential thinkers of the time were the Italian humanist Leon Battista Alberti, the Florentine politician Niccolà ² Machiavelli, and the German monk Martin Luther. Alberti wrote in a time of humanist thought and economic prosperity, Machiavelli in a time of growing political instability and economic uncertainty in Italy, and Luther in a time dominated by an increasingly corrupt†¦show more content†¦Leon Battista Alberti’s On the Family (1435) is a dialogue between the brothers of a wealthy merchant-banking Italian family at the deathbed of the patriarch. Alberti, one of the original humanists, puts forward an optimist ic view of human nature through the characters’ discussion about the correct way to run a family. Although his family was exiled from Florence, the ban had been lifted and Alberti had gone back home and then on to Rome before be began writing On the Family (RWC, 78). His optimism reflects the newfound faith in the ancients held by those in Renaissance Italy, and his family’s great fortune. Alberti opens his dialogue with: â€Å"[N]ature strives to produce all things as complete, both in inherent strength and in various members, as is fitting and proper, with no defects or imperfections†¦we can affirm with certainty that all mortals are endowed by nature with the ability to love and to put into practice even the most praised virtue (virtà ¹). And virtue is nothing else than nature, properly produced and perfect in itself.† (Alberti, RWC, 79-80). Alberti sees nature and man tending towards good and even perfection. He acknowledges that evil exists, but sees it as a result of â€Å"bad habits and corrupted reason, both of which proceed from erroneous opinion and mental deficiency.† (Alberti, RWC, 80). As an early humanist, hisShow MoreRelatedThe Reformation Was the Rejection of the Secular Spirit of the811 Words   |  4 Pagesfocus, the Renaissance concentrated increasingly on the present day, demonstrating a more secular philosophy. Humanism developed, making human beings, and not God, the center of attention. People not longer considered their lives solely as a preparation for the afterlife, but instead gave them actual value. The churchs authority fused with that of the state, resulting in a monopolized power greatly influenced by religion. The rejection of the secular spirit of the Italian Renaissance can be seenRead MoreRenaissance and Reformation806 Words   |  4 PagesThe renaissance and the reformation were two of the most significant changes in history that has shaped our world today. 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