Petrarch is modern because he says he climbed it for his own personal enjoyment and for god. In the reading it states “I admired every detail, now relishing earthly enjoyment, now lifting up my mind to higher spheres…” This is an example of where Petrarch talks about how he climbed ‘the windy peak’ for self fulfillment and to admire the sights all around. The line continues to say “...after the example of my body, and I thought it fit to look in the volume of Augustine's Confessions…” The quote shows how he sees that religion is also important for him. He also talks about all the things he sees at the top and how he enjoys to look at them. He talks about the rivers and the sea and how beautiful they look from the top.
When ancient people look to understand religion, it is easier for them to relate to a higher power, also known as a god. Throughout the world and through time, there have been hundreds of different religions that have been established, and in the writings by people of these various groups there are often stories about conversation with the gods. This helps other people in understanding and conforming to the same beliefs. Two of such examples of this style of analyzing what gods are, are found in St. Augustine’s Confessions and The Bhagavad Gita.
This paper will outline specific points in Saint Augustine’s Confessions that highlight religious views following the fall of Rome. Though Augustines views on religion may not reflect that of most people in his time period, it still gives valuable insight into how many, namely Neoplatonists,, viewed God and his teachings.
This carried on in to the 18th century where more and more people dabbled in the gothic style with out a full understanding of how gothic architecture worked as a structural system. They confused stages of the gothic period, which were later defined by Thomas Rickman in is writing, and also used Classical forms such as pilaster and venetian windows. Many interiors were of a classical form a layout and some times other style were thrown in. Some gothic forms were even used on the exterior of building where they didn’t perform the function they were meant to. This shows how little the architects of the 18th century studied the mediaeval and how little they understood it.
In his Confessions, Augustine relates that, in his school years, he was required to read Virgil’s Aeneid. The ill-fated romance of Aeneas and Dido produced such an emotional effect on him. Augustine says that Virgil’s epic caused him to forget his own “wanderings” (Augustine 1116). He wept over Dido’s death, but remained “dry-eyed to [his] own pitiful state” (Augustine 1116 – 7). Augustine later rejects literature and theater because he believes that they distract the soul from God. Nonetheless, Augustine shares many of the same experience as the characters in the Aeneid. Augustine discovers that love can be destructive, just as it was for Dido. Both Aeneas and Augustine of them give up love for the sake of duty. Aeneas leaves Dido to fulfill his calling given by the gods. Augustine ends his lustful affairs in order that he may devote himself to his God.
A foundational belief in Christianity is the idea that God is perfectly good. God is unable to do anything evil and all his actions are motives are completely pure. This principle, however, leads to many questions concerning the apparent suffering and wrong-doing that is prevalent in the world that this perfect being created. Where did evil come from? Also, how can evil exist when the only eternal entity is the perfect, sinless, ultimately good God? This question with the principle of God's sovereignty leads to even more difficult problems, including human responsibility and free will. These problems are not limited to our setting, as church fathers and Christian philosophers are the ones who proposed some of the solutions people believe today. As Christianity begins to spread and establish itself across Europe in the centuries after Jesus' resurrection, Augustine and Boethius provide answers, although wordy and complex, to this problem of evil and exactly how humans are responsible in the midst of God's sovereignty and Providence.
In Petrarch’s work The Ascent to Mount Ventoux, Petrarch wrote about his attempt to climb Mount Ventoux. Although he eventually succeeded, he was unhappy about the numerous attempts he had to make in order to reach that. The climbing of the mountain symbolically represents his struggle to live up to those spiritual ideals. The work also displays the dual nature of the Renaissance: modern and medieval. On one hand, some people living in the Renaissance were concerned with their religious ideals and spiritual matters. For example, Ficino’s Neo-Platonism had some elements of Christianity. On the other hand, many people living during the Renaissance were also interested in classical culture and “liberal arts.” Leonardo Bruni idolized the Roman
The Protestant would originally practice their faith in secrecy in order to avoid punishment from the majority of society that was Catholic based faith. Calvin Protestant began to publically perform ceremonies and practice their faith in front of all to see. many of the Calvin followers were nationally French and wanted to spread the Protestant Reformation in their homeland of France. More French Reformed churches began to spread out in France, which made protestant want to practice their faith more publically. This act angered the Catholic people of France even more resulting in an attack on the Protestants. Catherine de’Medici tried to ease the tension between the protestant and the Catholic by enacting a law that forbid harm to Protestant
was like in the house, we can only take Jessica's word for it. I, for
In the beginning, God created the world. He created the earth, air, stars, trees and mortal animals, heaven above, the angels, every spiritual being. God looked at these things and said that they were good. However, if all that God created was good, from where does un-good come? How did evil creep into the universal picture? In Book VII of his Confessions, St. Augustine reflects on the existence of evil and the theological problem it poses. For evil to exist, the Creator God must have granted it existence. This fundamentally contradicts the Christian confession that God is Good. Logically, this leads one to conclude evil does not exist in a created sense. Augustine arrives at the conclusion that evil itself is not a formal thing, but the result of corruption away from the Supreme Good. (Augustine, Confessions 7.12.1.) This shift in understanding offers a solution to the problem of evil, but is not fully defended within Augustine’s text. This essay will illustrate how Augustine’s solution might stand up to other arguments within the context of Christian theology.
Petrarch was a poet and a scholar in Renaissance Italy. “Petrarch is much admired as the first Renaissance man,” (Simpson 1). He is often acknowledged for commencing the Renaissance period. “Petrarch shaped a new sense of literary history and practice,” (Carlino 2). “He inaugurated the dialogical era,” (Celenza 10). He found a new way to write the language which was extremely different at the time. “Much of Petrarch’s well-groomed identity comes from his work in Latin,” (Carlino 2). He wrote most of his works in Latin.
Before Samuel’s time, the judges ruled over the nation of Israel, and then the Israelites fell into disapproval with God. Then the prophets were called upon to redeem the people. In the book of judges it shows how these heroes were called upon to save the Hebrews from their enemies. It also shows that these three heroes were almost perfect despite Samson’s weakness for women and his great strength, Gideon’s heraldry, and Barack’s unwillingness to go into battle unless Deborah with him, and Ehud being left handed. Although these guys had some disadvantages God used these type of people to accomplish his great purpose. However, during Samuel’s leadership things started to become ineffective. Bickering started to spread throughout the population and According to “Ed Hindson and Gary Yates “Because a judge could only partially and imperfectly administer Torah (legislative function), execute Justice (executive function), and condemn law-breakers (judicial function), a king was needed who could be more effective in fulfill all three roles. The stories in Judges also, show that not just any king could effectively govern the nation but rather a king who honored God’s covenant” (1)
An interesting aspect of the famous literary work, "The Canterbury Tales," is the contrast of realistic and exaggerated qualities that Chaucer entitles to each of his characters. When viewed more closely, one can determine whether each of the characters is convincing or questionable based on their personalities. This essay will analyze the characteristics and personalities of the Knight, Squire, Monk, Plowman, Miller, and Parson of Chaucer's tale.
Writing about the years following the fall of Rome, Petrarch asserted, “amidst the errors there shone forth men of genius, no less keen were their eyes, although they were surrounded by darkness and dense gloom.” Petrarch’s negative view of the Early Middle Ages from Rome’s fall in 410 to Charlemagne’s crowning in 800 reflected the opinions of many humanists and historians, and the idea that this was a time of backwardness continues to influence people today. However, Petrarch was wrong to characterize the Early Middle Ages as “dark.” While this wasn’t the most peaceful time in human history, there were plenty of aspects to justify its importance and necessity. Considering the strength of the economy and trade, new technology and codes of law, as well as a focus on education through the rise of Christianity, the Dark Ages were a benign part of human history that slowly paved the way for the future.
From the time of the ancient Greeks all the way to modern day, some part of humanity has almost always been interested in the past. For the ancient Greeks, it was discovering Mycenaean ruins and composing stories about them. Today, inspiration is still drawn from classical architecture. One has to look no further than the U.S. capitol building, or even the University of Michigan's Angell Hall to see remnants of this architectural style. This raises the question of why does it still persists? Logically, the best way to answer this is to examine the origins of classical architecture, and what it represented then and now. Furthermore, the study of ancient architecture can show insights into past civilizations which otherwise would have been lost.
When Samuel Johnson ascribed to a new work "such extent of comprehension, such nicety of distinction, such acquaintance with mankind, and such knowledge both of both ancient and modern learning as not often attained by the maturest age and longest experience," he was speaking of young Alexander Pope's An Essay on Criticism (1711), written when he was about twenty, and published when he was only twenty-three years old (in Mack 177).1 Others have not been as generous in their comments about the prodigy's efforts. One history of criticism textbook describes the work rather ingloriously: "There are repetitions and inconsistencies, some conventional pronouncements along with injunctions of lasting value; but nowhere . . . are the principles organized into a coherent whole, and no cut-and-dried theory [of criticism] therefore emerges" (in Morris 145).2 Despite this harsher pronouncement, Alexander Pope's An Essay on Criticism 1 Johnson's evaluation of Pope's Essay has been upheld if for no other reason than that so many of the work's bon mots have established noteworthy careers in daily household English. As Mack observed (177), "Pope will sometimes manage a verbal maneuver so simple in appearance, so breathtaking on reflection, that the common sense of mankind has plucked it out of the poem and made it a part of speech: 'A little Learning is a dang'rous Thing' (205); 'To err is Humane; to Forgive, Divine’ (525); `For Fools rush in where Angels fear to tread' (625). And several more. Next to Shakespeare, we may recall, Pope has contributed more to our common language than any other poet. It is a gift not lightly to be dismissed."