in sea-borne trade had become fabulously rich. The Renaissance movement was accelerated by two prosperous families, the Medici family in Florence and the Sforza family in Milan. Popes such as NicholasV, Pius II, Julius II and Leo X bestowed their patronage upon the most brilliant artists of the Italian Renaissance. Roger Bacon Modern World: The Age of Reason Florence as Home of Renaissance Renaissance in Literature Dante Petrarch Even in the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries Florence had produced Dante ( - ) and Petrarch, the two great poets of the Italian language.
Dante’s Divine Comedy is a summation of medieval culture. Its dominant theme is the salvation of mankind through reason and divine grace. But it abounds with many other themes such as human love, love of country, interest in natural phenomena and even the desire for a free and united Italian nation. Petrarch ( - ) produced works both in Latin and Italian.
An early humanist, he is considered to be the father of Italian Renaissance literature. Petrarch’s inquiring mind and love of classical authors led him to travel, visiting men of learning and searching in monastic libraries for classical manuscripts. It is believed that his rediscovery of Cicero’s letters was a key moment in the 14th century Italian Renaissance. Giovanni Boccaccio ( – ), also a Florentine, produced Decameron , a collection of stories, as told by seven young women and three young men, during their stay at a villa outside of Florence to escape the ravages of the Black Death.
Niccolò Machiavelli ( – ) Niccolò Machiavelli’s The Prince became famous because of its relevance as a political guide for the rulers. In his view, the supreme Boccaccio obligation of the ruler was to maintain the power and safety of the country over which he ruled. No consideration of justice or mercy or the sanctity of treaties should be allowed to stand in his way. Machiavelli maintained that all men are prompted exclusively by motives of self-interest and the head of the state should therefore take nothing for granted as to the