Literary humanist

Father of Italian Renaissance Humanism

1st to characterize Middle Ages as a dark period

Emphasized use of classical Latin.

Cicero & Virgil were his classics

Works:

Sonnets to Laura

Ascent of Mt. Ventoux

Biography of Cicero laid foundation of:
Civic Humanism

Works:

New Cicero

History of the Florentine people

Classically educated

literary criticism of ancient works

Revive the use of classical latin

Works:

Document that proved "Donation of Constantine" was forgery.

The Elegances of the Latin Language

Criticized Catholic Church to make it more simple, pure and ethical

Works:

Facetia-collection of jokes inc. cynical critic. of clergy

Leader of Platonic Academy in Florence

Synthesized Christianity & Platonism

Neoplatonism based on: hierarchy of structure & theory of spiritual love.

Works:

Translation of Plato's dialogues

Translation of Corpus Hermeticum

Embraced Renaissance Hermeticism

-Human potential is unlimited

"You shall have the power, out of your soul's judgement to be reborn into higher forms, which are Divine"

Works:

Oration on the Dignity of Men

Treatise on education stressed importance of study of liberal arts: served as guide for liberal arts school

-Leader of Florentine Academy

Liberal Arts key to true freedom

Works:

-On the Morals that Befit a Free Man

-Concerning Character

Most influencial of all Christian humanists

-Emphasized inner piety

-Believed Christianity should guide philosophy for direction of daily life

-Supported literacy education for all to read Bible

Works:

Adages

Handbook of the Christian Knight

The Praise of Folly

-Embraced Italian humanist idea of service to the state; eventually became Lord Chancellor of England

-Deeply devout intellectual

-Utopian society based on communal worship of property; all activivty, work or play, was done for moral welfare of community

Works:

Utopia-reflected his concern w/ econ., social, & polit. problems of his time

-Father of German humanism

-Introduced Italian learning to Germany

Ulrich von Hutten

&

Conrad Celtis?

-Gave German nationalism a nationalist coloring hostile to non-German cultures, particulary Roman culture.

-Illustrates union of humanism, German nationalism, & Luther's religious reform

-Made famous by his involvement in the Reuchlin affair.

Works:

-German version of Valla's expose of Donation of Constantine.

-Contributed to Letters of Obscure Men: merciless satire of monks & Scholastics

-Europe's foremost Christian authority on Hebrew & Jewish learning

-Came under attack by Pfefferkorn for his involvement with Jewish mysticism

-German humanists in name of academic freedom and good scholarship rushed to his defense

-Isabella's Grand Inquisitor

-Grand achievement: Six volume work that place, Hebrew, Greek & Latin versions of Bible in parallel columns-"Complutensian Polyglot Bible"

Work:

Complutensian Polyglot Bible