Western Civ I Questions: Week 35

     As I prepare to write a post concerning ancient Western civilization, I stop to ask myself a few questions, find your personal answers if you wish, this will likely come up in my next or last post and might interest you further. 

The Northern Renaissance - Renaissance Italy

• During the Renaissance, different geographical areas valued different things within the arts. For example, in some areas such as Italy, they explore the new novel idea of beauty in secular art, whereas northern areas stuck to Christian ideologies. What is your opinion of who is more right, and how beauty can be found in different artistic subjects.

• During this time period Martin Luther was forming the Protestant Reformation, and the current pope didn't really care, he focused more on the value of art than politics, whereas, most popes prior to this had the opposite issue. What is the ideal balance? Would you be able to give a Utopia solution to this issue?

• Why and how was Savonarola controversial? What are your opinions on this figure?

• During the Renaissance, there was an enfaces on the individual. For example, Petrarch was almost obsessed with being immortal through the history books, and centered himself in his works. Whereas, Dante inserted himself in his most popular work, but he was focused on the message of the story. So why is Dante arguably more notable, or at least more well known than Petrarch. What does that say about this concept of focusing on the individual?