There was not much more known about Machiavelli's early life, but he was said to have worked for a prominent Florence banker in Rome between 1487-1495. ... During his time in office, he also carried out twenty-three missions to foreign states such as France and Germany, where he conducted diplomatic negotiations and supervised military operations of the republic. ... He wrote a variety of things such as books about his fame, plays, and books about war and politics. He composed two major works in his lifetime, one called "Discourses on the First Ten Books of Titus Livius," and the other...

• Word Count: 567
• Approx Pages: 2

The printing press, spectacles and pendulum were just some examples of the technology available at that time. The printing press was an important technology, which enabled books to be written and published much faster than before, when all books were handwritten. ... The pendulum, invented by Galileo Galilei around the 1600's, allowed people to accurately keep time. ... Andreas Vesalius, a famous anatomist and physician, was highly regarded for his works on medicine and his many published books. ... Humanist thinkers focused more on the world around them than on spiritual life and death. ...

• Word Count: 601
• Approx Pages: 2
• Grade Level: Undergraduate

"Philosophy was discredited, the link between theology and the sciences broken; and man began to work out an approach to life that was independent of religion, independent of God. ... Boys also read books. But not all schools had books only very few schools had books. ... Many of the books were past from one church to another. ... Their books of prayers were decorated with pictures. ...

• Word Count: 1151
• Approx Pages: 5
• Grade Level: High School

Printing helped increase the quantity of books, help cut down on errors, and gave scholars identical books to learn and work with. Printing made an impact on European intellectual life and thought. ... The printing of books encouraged scholars to research and gave the desire to gain knowledge. Printing helped spread the religious ideas of the Reformation, and allowed the Europeans to reach greater heights and compete with the civilization of China for the first time. ...

• Word Count: 451
• Approx Pages: 2

The Black Death which resulted in the deaths of innocent children was something the Church failed to explain or provide support for in a time of emotional turbulence. ... This catalyzed the emergence of secular curiosity as people looked to books and to themselves for answers. ... Known as the letterpress printing, this form of printing was not only efficient but made books available to the public at an affordable price. Soon after there were more printers in Italy and this abundance of books greatly contributed to their popularity. ... and studied values of human potential and achievement in ...

• Word Count: 738
• Approx Pages: 3
• Grade Level: Graduate

First of all, it made books much easier to come by, wich made them cheaper. ... So books on other subjects were published as well. ... But the increase in arts and education gave people something to look forward to, and a life worth living. ... Although he was not regarded as a genious in his time. ... In conclusion, the Renaissance was a time of new awakening in Euroupe. ...

• Word Count: 806
• Approx Pages: 3
• Grade Level: High School

At the same time as acquiring knowledge, the Islamic civilization was able to disperse it, because it had procured the art of paper-making from the Chinese. At its peak, tens of thousands of books were published every year and in just one suburb in Baghdad there were over a hundred bookshops. ... This was while in Europe, books were only attainable by clergyman of the Church. ... At a time when very few in Europe could even read Greek, the Arabs were already rescuing the genius of ancient Greece from oblivion. They translated Aristotle, Plato, Socrates, Pythagoras, the whole Pantheo...

• Word Count: 695
• Approx Pages: 3
• Grade Level: High School

The renaissance was a time of "I" and personal glory. ... The art he created, the books he wrote were all centered on God and kept to the code of the Church. ... The Middle Ages was a time of toil and hardship, it was a constant uphill battle and life was one of servitude. ... The total attitude shifted from "we" to "I"; no longer was this a time of servitude, now was the time to live life for all that it was worth. ... This parallels the contrasting attitudes between life in the Middle Ages and life in the Renaissance. ...

• Word Count: 598
• Approx Pages: 2
• Grade Level: High School

The dawn of the Renaissance in Italy was a time of distinct contrasts. ... There are also rooms full of books dedicated to the changes in art, literature, and science. ... The plague was integrated into everyday life to such an extent, that even Petrarch, noted for his poetry of love and longing for the evasive "Laura", could not help but write in a letter to Guido Sette, a lifelong friend, "I was noting down the substance of thought-the pettiness of this life, its brevity, haste, tumbling course, its hidden cheats, time's irrecoverability, the flower of life soon wasted, the fugitive ...

• Word Count: 576
• Approx Pages: 2
• Grade Level: High School

Different events through out time have brought about changes in ways of thinking. During the late 1400's to the mid 1500's, a period known as the Renaissance, brought about one of the most influencing and effecting changes in many social issues of that time. ... With the invention of the printing press, books were more obtainable, which led to a more educated society. ... Other politicians were creating new types of government rule, and were showing their opinion through books. ... This time brought unimaginable creativity and new ways to look at every aspect of life. ...

• Word Count: 1155
• Approx Pages: 5

He studied law in Bologna but in 1326 his father died and Petrarch returned to Avignon to take minor orders in the church and would devote much of his life in the service of the church. In 1327, he would meet his life long love Laura de Noves, (a Frenchwoman) who would give him inspiration for his sonnets in his collection written in Italian and entitled Rime in vite di Madonna Laura or Canzoniere (Songbook). ... An example of this is his Vita Solitaria (1480), which was translated in 1924 as Solitary Life. He also wrote many letters during his travels that are important historical descripti...

• Word Count: 645
• Approx Pages: 3
• Grade Level: Undergraduate

As the Renaissance progressed and as the new learning spread, more and more books became available due to the invention on the printing press and popular ideas about education began to change. It is important to note that up to this time books were mostly written by monks and would therefore have had a certain religious viewpoint in them. ... There were many different opinions at this time. ... During the middle ages (the period of time before the Renaissance), the subjects of paintings looked flat and lacked any feeling of movement. ... As well as developing a new style in their work, painti...

• Word Count: 1426
• Approx Pages: 6
• Grade Level: High School

His family moved to Florence early in his life. ... He enjoyed the decedent life as an aristocrat at Avignon, and there on Good Friday 1327 he saw for the first time Laura, the lady who was to be the inspiration and subject of his most famous works. ... He entered Rome for the first time in January 1337. ... Divinity is the symbol of peace, eternal life, and his everlasting love to Laura. ... In Venice he was given a house, and in return he donated all his books to the public. ...

• Word Count: 675
• Approx Pages: 3
• Grade Level: High School

It was during this time that Europe was busy pulling herself out of the economic stagnation of the Middle Ages. ... Artistically, it was a time of firsts such as the first time oil paint was used; the first time symbols and real-life events were represented together in the same painting; the first time scientific principles crept into art. ... Generally speaking--the main elements of the Renaissance were:  Oil paint was used for the first time--prior to this point, egg tempera was the medium of choice.  Both symbols and real-life events were represented together in...

• Word Count: 1970
• Approx Pages: 8
• Grade Level: Undergraduate

He preached dramatic sermons to the Florentines, telling them to repent and burn all their books (which were expensive and sought after during the Renaissance) in preparation for the judgment day. ... He spent most of his life working for the Medici's, and it is represented in Adoration of the Magi, where, although it was not the Medici's who commissioned him to do the work, they still appear in it. It was common in this time of patronage to illustrate your patrons in your works, and many other artists carried out the act also. ... This was mainly achieved through the anatomical stud...

• Word Count: 1530
• Approx Pages: 6
• Grade Level: High School

He was also the author of several books of travel and two burlesques on the sentimental novels of his day, The Elegant Enthusiast (1796) and Azemia (1797). ... At the same time no poet has been more sensitive or responsive to the realities of the human condition and of his time. ... His great work, The Life of Samuel Johnson, LL.D., appeared in 1791. ... Always lively and, at times, even exciting, the journals portray Boswell's daily life in extraordinary detail. ... He continued his studies at Cambridge, and he remained there for most of his life, living in seclusion, studying Greek, a...

• Word Count: 1249
• Approx Pages: 5
• Grade Level: High School

Petrarch opted out of studying law in order to devote his life to literature. ... In his time, no longer were the teachings of the church and Aristotle, a teleologist who believed in eudaimonia, often described as the highest form of human good, suitable (Kessler 59). ... During the political turmoil within the city, the study of classical texts and the values learned from them were to be fused with the republican beliefs of the time (Humanism 1). ... As a result, humanism was reflected in all types of literary works; rhetorical pieces, poetry, historical accounts, and even books on education...

• Word Count: 2321
• Approx Pages: 9
• Grade Level: Undergraduate

Verbal skills are used all the time due to the need to express emotions, feeling and emotions. ... For example in a care home or a hospital the patient may say that they are not in pain when in real life their expression says differently, this is good because that way the carer or doctor can tell when the patient is lying, which makes it easier to understand them. ... Written communication is used between businesses and people and is used for everything that is on the internet, without written communication information would have a hard time spreading. ...

• Word Count: 3303
• Approx Pages: 13
• Grade Level: Undergraduate

VOCABULARY Archaeology: the scientific study of ancient people and cultures principally revealed through excavation. Cromlech: a circle of megaliths. Henge: a Neolithic monument, characterized by a circular ground plan. Used for rituals and marking astronomical events. Megalith: a stone of great siz...

• Word Count: 10708
• Approx Pages: 43
• Grade Level: High School