Question

What do you understand by the term 'renaissance'? Briefly discuss. about 250 words

Answer 1

The School of Athens by Raphael. This Renaissance painting shows an imaginary scene from Ancient Greece, with many famous Greek philosophers, writers, artists and mathematicians. Raphael has used the faces of lots of famous people from his own time. He has used Leonardo da Vinci as his model for Plato, the philosopher with the white beard in the centre.
The Renaissance is a period in the history of Europe beginning in about 1400, and following the Medieval period.

"Renaissance" is a French word meaning "rebirth". The period is called by this name because at that time, people started taking an interest in the learning of ancient times, in particular the learning of Ancient Greece and Rome. The Renaissance was seen as a "rebirth" of that learning. The Renaissance is often said to be the start of the "modern age".

During the Renaissance, there were many famous artists, many writers and many philosophers. Many people studied mathematics and different sciences. A person who is clever at a great number of things is sometimes called a "Renaissance man". Leonardo da Vinci, who was a painter, a scientist, a musician and a philosopher, is the most famous Renaissance Man.

The Renaissance started in Italy but soon spread across the whole of Europe. In Italy the time is divided into three periods:-

the Early Renaissance.
the High Renaissance
the Late Renaissance which is also called the Mannerist period.
Following the Mannerist period was the Baroque period which also spread across Europe from about 1600. Outside Italy, it can be hard to tell where the Renaissance period ends and Baroque begins.

Answer 2

the term renaissance means rebirth in French.