15,697
edits
Changes
no edit summary
====Inventing the Renaissance====
[[File: Petrarch four.jpg|200px|thumb|left|Petrarch from a 15th century Italian painting]]
In some ways, the poet was not only one of the most important figures in the Renaissance; in a sense he invented it. The Renaissance is widely seen as a period of ‘re-birth’ when Europe rediscovered classical values and in the process used the ancient past, for models which ultimately led to the development of more modern ways of thought.<ref>Bishop, p. 213</ref> Petrarch was the first to recognize that the study of the past by the humanists was a new period in history and one that would revive the glory of Rome and Greece. He portrayed it as distinct from previous centuries which he described as ignorant and a ‘Dark Age.’
This was not strictly true because learning in Europe had been growing since the 12th century. Indeed, many have argued that the Renaissance in Italy and elsewhere were a direct result of trends in the Middle Ages. Petrarch’s conception of the Renaissance as something distinct from the Medieval world has been profoundly influential, and it remains so to this day<ref> Burckhardt, Jacob. The Civilization of the Renaissance in Italy.
====Conclusion====
