The Renaissance Essay, Research Paper
In the 1400?s, the feudal system became weak and national
governments became stronger. People put more emphasis
on humanism than on the church. This period was called the
Renaissance. I believe that this period led directly to the
Age of Exploration. During this time, technology became
more advanced. Martin Luther started the Reformation
against the Catholic church. As the effect of the
Reformation, a middle class emerged making it possible for
people to travel more. During the Renaissance, technology
became more advanced and more available to the common
public. The printing press was invented during this time.
This invention made it possible for books to be published,
not hand written. Ideas of the Renaissance were spread in
some of these books and common people could own a
copy of the bible. Some other inventions were the
astrolabe, the quadrant, and the compass. These devices
were used in sailing. The astrolabe and the quadrant told a
person where they were at a direct point and the compass
told which direction was north. Two faster, larger ships
were also invented during this time. They were called the
carrack and the caravel. The weakening of the Roman
Catholic Church, brought about by the Protestant
Reformation, changed the way peopl
and it?s importance in their life. Then, because the church
was not so dominating, people felt free to learn about new
lands. People started learning about Rome and Greece.
They learned about these two countries? culture and art.
This also helped the Age of Exploration to begin because
the Catholic church wanted more souls. They thought they
could go to America and convert Native Americans. As
trade grew, a wealthy middle class of doctors, bankers and
lawyers emerged. These people had more money so they
became more educated and more self- sufficient. They
didn?t have to rely on the feudal system anymore and
national government became more powerful. With more
money, the middle class could fund trips across the ocean.
They could also buy books, paintings and other classical
things. The Age of Exploration was caused by the
Renaissance period. Technology became more advanced,
the Catholic church was reformed and a middle class
emerged. These new ideas encouraged people to explore
and discover new things. In present life, we have a very
strong middle class, religious freedom and a lot of advances
in technology. If the Renaissance period wouldn?t have
happened, it?s possible that we wouldn?t have these things
or that America would even have been discovered.