Topic 9: The Renaissance
Objectives
Knowledge 1. To understand the background of the Renaissance
2. To understand the importance of the invention of printing
3. To know the impact of humanism on thoughts, architecture and art
Skills
1.
2.
3.
4.
To use concepts to master historical concepts
To use charts to compare similarities and differences
To understand various historical sources
To synthesize and analyse historical sources
Attitude
1. To train the spirit of thinking and questioning
2. To develop the attitude of appreciating art
Teaching Flow
Items
Format
1
Question to
ponder
Questioning
2
Task 1
Pictures
3
Task 2
Data-based
question
4
Task 3
Model making
Teaching
Objectives
To introduce briefly
how the topic will
be treated
To understand
printing and its
relationship with
the Renaissance
To understand
impact of
humanism on
thoughts
To understand
impact of
humanism on
architecture of the
Renaissance, such
as dome and arch
To understand the
impact of
humanism on art
5
Task 4
Pictures
6
Conclusion
Summary chart
To respond to the
topic
7
Extended
activity
Topical study
To enrich students’
understanding of
the topic
Content
How did humanism in the
Renaissance times affect
thoughts, architecture and art
of later times?
Compare printing methods in
China and in Europe
Similarities between Vergerius’
views and the Greeks’ ideals
1.
2.
1.
Impact of humanism on
architecture
Roman ideals of
architecture
Compare Greek sculptures
with those of the Middle
Ages and the Renaissance
2. A method of art expression
during the Renaissance perspectives
1. Restate the relationship
between the Renaissance
and printing, humanism,
architecture and art
2. Impact of the Renaissance
on Europe
Students may compare works of
two artists during the
Renaissance period, so as to
explore the relationship between
their works and perspectives,
anatomy or reversion to classical
style
1
Question to ponder
How did humanism in the Renaissance times affect
thoughts, architecture and art of later times?
To know more (1): What is “the Renaissance”?
1.
2.
By 1450, a new movement was coming over Europe. This was the
Renaissance. The word means “rebirth”. Unlike many words used by historians
to deal with periods of history, this one was created by contemporaries. They
believed that after the fall of the Roman Empire, they had gone through a
“Dark Age” and, by their own time, they were emerging from that age.
What was so new about the age of rebirth? It was the rediscovery of Greek
books. Before the Renaissance, intellectual discussions had focused on the
Bible. However, the Renaissance view saw people as free agents. Education
was needed to develop their qualities. This was also the Greek view.
2
To know more (2): Why did a revival of Greek learning take place at this time?
The Muslims had preserved Greek learning. After the Crusades, by way of trade
and exchange, knowledge of Greek learning would have come to the Christians
from the East. Moreover, Constantinople fell to the Turks in 1453. The fall of the
city might have driven some people to move back to Christian Europe.
Topic 9
The Renaissance
Task 1: How did the invention of printing promote the development of
the Renaissance?
1.
Identify the differences between printing in 16th-century Europe (Source A) and the
old-style printing in China (Source B), and fill in the chart below:
Source A
Source B
Source: Department of History,
Chinese University of Hong Kong
Source B: photo provided by Professor David Faure
3
Suggested answer:
Similarities
European
Printing
Chinese
Printing
2


Differences (tools / methods)
Used printing 
moulds

Used paper


used movable type made in metal
used a press
brushed the paper by hand
although the Chinese also used movable type, the
Chinese did not use a press
With reference to Source C, identify how the invention of printing promoted to the
development of the Renaissance.
Source C
Before the invention of printing, people in the West were used to the idea of making
patterns from seals. The late invention of printing in the West could be due to the lack
of paper. Until paper was invented, again an idea in which China was ahead of Europe,
printing served little purpose. Another reason might be the shortage of readers. It was
worth printing books only when there were many readers. For that to happen, there had
to be more people living in cities, using writing in their daily lives. The spread of
printing resulted in more and more books printed and published in vernaculars.
Suggested answer:
The invention of printing in the 15th century contributed to the emergence of the
Renaissance. The emergence of printing led to the printing and circulation of large
quantity of books, which enabled the spread of knowledge in cities. In addition,
printing also resulted in more books printed and published in vernaculars. The use of
vernacular facilitated literature and art creation.
Task 2: Impact of humanism on thoughts
Study Sources D and E, and answer the following question.
Source D: A passage written in 1400 by Petrus Paulus Vergerius on the need of education:
We call those studies liberal which are worthy of a free man; those studies by which we
attain and practice virtue and wisdom; that education which calls forth, trains and
develops those highest gifts of body and of mind which ennoble men, and which are
rightly judged to rank next in dignity to virtue only.
4
We come now to the consideration of the various subjects which may rightly be included
under the name of “Liberal Studies.” Amongst these I accord the first place to History, on
grounds both of its attractiveness and of its utility, qualities which appeal equally to the
scholar and to the statesman. Next in importance ranks Moral Philosophy, which indeed is,
in a peculiar sense, a “Liberal Art,” in that its purpose is to teach men the secret of true
freedom.
Source: Petrus Paulus Vergerius, De ingénues moribus et liberalibus studiis, trans. by W.H. Woodward,
Vittorino da Feltre and other Humanist Educators (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1897), 102-110.
Part of text from Source Book on Middle Ages: http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/source/vergerius.html
Source E: Below is a source covered in the topic on Greece.
Our form of government does not enter into rivalry with the institutions of others. We do
not copy our neighbours, but are an example to them. It is true that we are called a
democracy, for the administration is in the hands of the many and not of the few.
… we have not forgotten to provide for our weary spirits many relaxations from toil; we
have regular games and sacrifices throughout the year; our homes are beautiful and
elegant; and the delight which we daily feel in all these things helps to banish
melancholy. Because of the greatness of our city the fruits of the whole earth flow in
upon us; so that we enjoy the goods of other countries as freely as of our own.
Source: Leon Bernard and Theodore B. Hodges, Readings in European History, New York: Macmillan,
1958, p. 6
Topic 9
The Renaissance
Identify the similarities between Vergerius’ views on education and the Greek ideals of
life. Explain your answer with reference to Sources D and E.
Suggested answer: Both centred around human beings. Both consider freedom precious.
In Source D, it stated that liberal studies were worthy of a free man and Moral
Philosophy aimed at teaching men the secret of true freedom. In Source E, it pointed out
that the Greek city-states were called a democracy because the administration was in the
hands of the many and people enjoyed freedom in their daily lives.
Task 3: Impact of humanism on architecture
Group Activity (Please refer to Sources F, G and H)
Teaching Tips
Each group is to use a kind of material, such as newspaper, drinking straws and
ice-lolly sticks, to build a roofed building within a specific period of time, and
then report its difficulties. (The teacher may show Source F to let students see
how pieces of stone were put together to bridge a wide space. The Romans used
arches widely, and turned arches into domes. Then study Source G. It is a picture
of the Pantheon in Rome, built in 125 AD, which illustrate how difficult it could
be to build this dome. Lastly, show Source H – a beautiful architectural example
of Renaissance buildings – St Peter’s Basilica in the Vatican.)
5
Sources F, G and H: Concepts of Roman Architecture
Source F
Roman Architecture - arch
Source: The Chinese University of Hong Kong
Source G The Pantheon in Rome
Source： Wikimedia Commons,
http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Image:Pantheon-panini.jpg
Source H
6
Source:
http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Image:St._Peter%27s_Basilica_Facade
%2C_Rome%2C_June_2004.jpg
To know more (3)：What is the impact of humanism on architecture?
Humanism has the meaning of reviving Greek values. It has great impact on art
and architecture, in particular, how Renaissance art and architecture differed
from the Gothic. The architects of the Renaissance, who were the same people as
the painters and sculptors, rediscovered the Greek and Roman ideals of
architecture. They recovered some of the skills of the Romans, for example, in
using domes. Domes came to be very commonly used from the 16th century.
However, the change was not only technological. The Renaissance artists
believed they had rediscovered how mathematical proportions might be related
to human lives. They believed that the classical traditions (Greek and Roman)
fitted better with these proportions.
Task 4: Impact of humanism on art
1. Identify the difference of the three sculptures in Sources I, J and K, and fill in the table
below.
Suggested answer:
Greece
Middle Ages
Renaissance
Proportion of body
parts
Appropriate
Not in right
proportion
Appropriate
Facial expression
Enrich, passionate
Rigid
Enrich, passionate
Body Lines
Beautiful
Not obvious
Beautiful
Muscle
Can be seen clearly
Not obvious
Can be seen clearly
Source I: Greece
Source J: Middle Ages
Source K: the
Renaissance
Source I: http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Image:Dionysos_pediment_Parthenon_BM.jpg
Source J: http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Image:France_Paris_St-Denis_Trinity.jpg
Source K: photo provided by Ms Joan Cheng
7
To know more (4): How did the drawing style of the Renaissance differ
from that of the Middle Ages?
The same humanist thinking — a reversion to the classical, is Greek and Roman
style — was apparent in painting and sculpture. The objective was to capture
human beings as human beings. The Greeks had considered the human form
itself graceful, and were not shy of representing it in the nude. The style of the
Middle Ages (known as Gothic) had departed in a different direction. Medieval
artists produced many statues, but they preferred the symbolic more than the
realistic. Their work expressed the beauty of lines and curves, rather than the
accurate representation of the human body.
2.
List the features of the perspectives technique with reference to Source L.
8
The martyrdom of St Sebastian, by Piero del Pollaiuolo and Pollaiolo del Pollaiuolo, 15th century
Source L: http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Image:Antonio_Pollaiuolo_003.jpg
Suggested answer:
Background of Picture
(size and distance of
objects)
The landscape slopes away, and the objects towards the far
end look smaller than objects at the near end.
Grouping of people in the
picture
(Number of groups and
number of people in group)
The two in the front who are bending down one can see their
front and back. The other four one can see in four different
directions. Each group shows really the same model, drawn
from different perspectives.
Distance and angle at
viewing objects
Allows for the distortion of distance and the angle at viewing
the objects.
To know more (5): The use of perspectives
1.
2.
One of the Renaissance methods of art representation was the use of
perspectives. We use perspectives nowadays not only in paintings, but also
in engineering and architectural drawing and so this invention has not only
enriched our artistic sense, but has also had very important practical
applications.
Allowance for perspective was an invention of the Renaissance. It was part
of the classical interest to capture the world as it was. It involved the
application of mathematics to art. It also implied an interest in the human
body, and the attempt to portray from it the nature of the human being.
Renaissance artists studied the human anatomy to make sure they painted
the body right.
Conclusion
There are a lot to teach about the topic of Renaissance. This teaching sample focuses on:
1) the Renaissance is a concept already existing at the time; 2) The creation of knowledge
is closely related to the invention of printing; 3) Architecture displays the use of classical
styles, especially dome; 4) Painting and sculpture made use of perspectives and anatomy;
5) Artists in the Renaissance period integrated and utilized these different areas; they
were not merely painters or sculptors, but also architects, scientists, engineers and
scholars expert in every area. They were interested in the world, and dared to express it
with new means.
To know more (6): Impact of the Renaissance on Europe
Influenced by humanism,
people began to explore
Voyages of Discovery
15th-16th centuries
new things
The
Renaissance
14th -16th
centuries
People advocated new ideas
which was a break with the
Reformation
ideological control in the
16th-17th centuries
Middle Ages
People respected inborn
Enlightenment
human rights
17th-18th centuries
9
Extended activity:
In this chapter, we have avoided mentioning the names of artists, including those
very famous ones. If time permits, the teacher may conduct the following topical
study, which will be helpful to the students. Let students look for information on
Leonardo da Vinci and Michelangelo. They may focus on a few works of the two
artists and explain their relationships with perspectives, anatomy, or reversion to
classical style.
Summary Chart
10
Europe in the 1450s
Renaissance (rebirth)
Exit Dark Age
Revived interest in Greek democratic tradition and Roman
style in architecture and art
Humanism
Thoughts
Architecture
Art