The Civilization of the Renaissance in Italy (1860) is a work of art history by Swiss historian Jacob Burckhardt. Recognized today as the founder of modern art history and as one of the key thinkers of the nineteenth century, Burckhardt changed not only the way we think about the Renaissance in relation to European and world history, but the value placed on art as a tool for understanding historical developments. The Civilization of the Renaissance in Italy begins with a section on the historical events which sparked the ...
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The Civilization of the Renaissance in Italy (1860) is a work of art history by Swiss historian Jacob Burckhardt. Recognized today as the founder of modern art history and as one of the key thinkers of the nineteenth century, Burckhardt changed not only the way we think about the Renaissance in relation to European and world history, but the value placed on art as a tool for understanding historical developments. The Civilization of the Renaissance in Italy begins with a section on the historical events which sparked the Renaissance, focusing especially on the frequent military conflicts which marred the era as well as on the constant political upheavals undergone by such Italian regions and cities as Rome, Venice, and Florence. Burckhardt then moves to a philosophical discussion of the development of individuality in Italian culture, arguing that the political circumstances of those living in the Republics enabled such thinkers as Dante and Petrarch to create art that corresponded with that newfound sense of individuality. The third section discusses one of the key elements of Renaissance culture: the revival of interest in the cultural products of the ancient world, especially Greece and Rome. Part four focuses on the prominence of discovery in Renaissance culture, for which Burckhardt looks to the colonial expedition of Columbus, the growth of the natural sciences, and the achievements of such poets and writers as Dante, Petrarch, and Boccaccio in discovering new ways to describe humanity and the human spirit. In the fifth section, the importance of societal customs and festivals is discussed, and in the sixth and final part, Burckhardt observes the profound shifts undergone by religion and morality in Italy at the time. The Civilization of the Renaissance in Italy is a thorough, dynamic work of art history that not only changed the study of history at universities around the world, but elevated the status of art in understanding the process of cultural change. With a beautifully designed cover and professionally typeset manuscript, this edition of Jacob Burckhardt's The Civilization of the Renaissance in Italy is a classic of European art history reimagined for modern readers.
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PLEASE NOTE, WE DO NOT SHIP TO DENMARK. New Book. Shipped from UK in 4 to 14 days. Established seller since 2000. Please note we cannot offer an expedited shipping service from the UK.
Choose your shipping method in Checkout. Costs may vary based on destination.
Seller's Description:
PLEASE NOTE, WE DO NOT SHIP TO DENMARK. New Book. Shipped from UK in 4 to 14 days. Established seller since 2000. Please note we cannot offer an expedited shipping service from the UK.
In the time-short lives the average person lives evaluating the thesis of any text often is by default reduced to a singular, but critical parameter. As when driving a car, does the stop-light show a green or red light?
In the case of Burckhardt's "classic" work on the Renaissance the red light is the failure of author and editors to disclose the struggle to create modern Italy in the 1850s, which culminated in 1861, the year after Burckhardt's book was first published. This is evidence either that the agenda of the author's and editors is not transparent or that they are hopelessly incompetent.
Since neither the University of Cambridge nor Basel employ the unintelligent or inept, the only alternative left is to consider the creation and promotion of this text as the product of an overt political process that sought to further the creation of a new state that would arise at the expense of the German Austrian Empire and the Roman Catholic Church.
Burckhardt sought to impose the notion of "Italy" and "Italians" as a "race" that carried unique capabilities back five hundred years onto a geographic region that was neither united politically nor linguistically. This fragmented region was united into a new nation in 1861 called "Italy" which employed the Tuscan dialect as its national language at the very time Buckhardt was touting his notion of unique "Italian" racial characteristics. These apparently were purported to exist from the Alps to Sicily and from Sardinia to Venice despite a millenium of political and linguistic fragmentation and invasion by successive waves of Goths, Huns, Slavs, Normans, Turks and Arabs.
While this notion is highly problematic itself, the failure of either author or editors to disclose the Italian nation-building that was ongoing during the period Burckhardt was concocting his myth of the Renaissance unequivocably brands the text as erroneous, either by incompetence or by deliberate disception.
Italian nation-building in 1860 required a myth for unification. Burkchardt and his followers have attempted to provide that myth for the 150 years since his text was first published. Failure to disclose the nation building effort at the very time Burckhardt was writing his text is clear evidence that the book is fundamentally and fatally flawed.
