Chapter 4 Study Questions Flashcards
- What does the word Renaissance mean? What period of time did the Renaissance encompass?
The Renaissance is a time period dated between 1450 to 1600, the word itself means rebirth, it was started due to the discovery of ancient Greek and Roman texts and led to open-minded methods of inquiry, Europe leaned away from god and towards the study of nature.
- What is meant by Renaissance humanism, and what four themes does it encompass?
Humanism became the dominant idea of the time, it was the intense study of human beings and focused on four main themes. Individualism, Personal religion, Intense interest in the past, and Anti-Aristotelianism
- Briefly describe the philosophy and contributions of Francesco Petrarch (1304–1374)
Petrarch is seen as starting the Renaissance with his iconic works that mainly took issue with Scholasticism and freeing the human spirit from the confines of medieval traditions. He didn’t like those who used the classics to support their own beliefs and urged a personal religion based on the Bible, personal faith and personal feelings believing Scholasticism made it too intellectual. He also argued that a person’s life in this world is important, we must actualize upon the vast capabilities god gave humans and by focusing on human potential Petrarch helped stimulate the explosion of artistic and literary endeavors that characterized the Renaissance. He challenged the religious and philosophical dogma of the time.
- Briefly describe the philosophy and contributions of Giovanni Pico (1463–1494)
Giovanni Pico believed god created humans between Angels which were perfect and nonhumans which were bound by their instincts and cannot change, humans are capable of change and choose to live sensual, animalistic lives becoming brutish or we can exercise our rationality and intelligence becoming more angelic and godlike. Much like how all philosophies have common elements that reflect human rationality and individuality, humans had the freedom that allowed us to choose from a variety of viewpoints. All viewpoints should be studied objectively with the aim of discovering what they have in common and how they relate to the Christian worldview seeking harmony among philosophical and religious rivals.
- Briefly describe the philosophy and contributions of Desiderius Erasmus (1466–1536)
Erasmus believed humans could not be perfect and challenged exorcism and alchemy as nonsense as well as other forms of superstitions. He believed war was caused by fanaticism especially disturbed by bishops who became rich and famous. He believed women should stay in their role as caregivers but argued that they should have access to education and argued against the idea that celibacy is superior to marriage. In 1512 Erasmus finished his book The Praise of Folly where he attacked the church, papacy, philosophers, nobility, and superstitions of the time. He believed fools lived a better life than so-called wise persons as they live in accordance with their true feelings instead of religious or philosophical doctrines. The Catholic church tried to bride Eramus with the position of cardinal and then banned his books once that failed in response to his criticism of them that would parallel the views of Luther and lay the seed for his reforms.
- Briefly describe the philosophy and contributions of Martin Luther (1483–1546)
Martin Luther was a Augustinian priest and biblical scholar and believed human intentions were inspired by God or by Satan, which leads to either commiting God’s work or sin; and that the consequences of sinning cannot be escaped through penance or absolution and should suffer the consequences which could be eternal damnation. Luther believed in a personal religion in which each person answers to God and deemphasized ritual and church hierarchy. He became the Reformation on October 31, 1517 when he nailed his Ninety-five Theses to the door of the castle church in Wittenberg, he especially opposed the Catholic church’s sale of indulgences which allowed sinners to reduce the retribution for their sins by paying a fee to church officials. He believed a major reason for the downfall of Catholicism was its assimilation of Aristotle’s philosophy and also disagreed with the Catholic church on such matters as the compulsory celibacy of nuns and priests as well as the amount of church leaders who lived lavish lives and fathered illegitimate children. He celebrated sexual enjoyment within marriage, but said men should turn to the maid or someone else for sexual relations if the wife refuses him but also said women should pursue intercourse with another if the man is impotent but still desires children. Luther believed free will gave humans the power to either apply or turn away from what leads to eternal salvation. He believed without free will humans cannot be held responsible for any of their actions, but he also believed that all human actions were predestined. He believed god was foreseeing and omnipotence, and when he was excommunicated in 1512 started a new religious movement called Protestantism with Luther its leader. Protestantism denied the authority of the pope and insisted every individual had the right to interpret the Bible for himself, the religion was austere, harsh and unforgiving and insisted on accepting the existence of God on faith alone attempting to understand him through reason or empirical observations was to be avoided. Protestantism also challenged the authority of the pope and Aristotle’s dogma replacing them with the belief that individual feelings can provide the only truth needed to live one’s life.
- Briefly describe the philosophy and contributions of Michel de Montaigne (1533–1592)
Michel de Montaigne was an extreme skeptic questioning every possibility of indisputable knowledge arguing both Catholic and Protestant theologies were equally indefensible on rational grounds and that the only justifiable basis for a religious conviction was faith. He argued human rationality caused human problems, didn’t glorify human nature and didn’t believe humans were superior to animals, they are in fact, due to their lack of rational powers, superior to humans. He analyzed and pointed out contradictions within the most famous political doctrines and rejected science as a means of obtaining reliable knowledge because scientific truth is in constant flux denying simple sensations can act as responsible guides for living. His ideas worked against the humanist ideas of the time of human potential.
- Why did Ptolemy’s incorrect model of the universe prevail for over a thousand years?
The Ptolemaic system, despite being incorrect, stuck around for thousands of years as the earth does appear to be the fixed centre of the universe, allowing for reasonable astronomical predictions and was adopted into official church dogma and became unchallengeable.
- Describe the work of Ptolemy (fl. ca. second century AD)
Ptolemy was a Greco-Egyptian and created the Ptolemaic system which included his beliefs that the heavenly bodies, including the earth, which was spherical in shape and that the sun, moon and planets travel around the earth in orbit that are circular and uniform.
- Describe the work of Copernicus (1473–1543)
Nicolaus Copernicus, wrote De Revolutionibus Orbium Coelestium, published in 1543 and took aim at the church as it tried to solve a major problem within the church, the creation of a more accurate calendar. He argued the earth revolved around the sun (the heliocentric theory), challenging a deeply held worldview and making his book be considered revolutionary.
- Describe the work of Kepler (1571-1630)
Johannes Kepler was a Protestant who, despite the risk embraced Copernican theory as he was a Platonist seeking the simple mathematical harmony that describes the universe and, like Bruno, Kepler saw the sun as a mystical force. Keeping with the Pythagorean-Platonic philosophy believed that true reality was the mathematical harmony that existed beyond the world of appearance, the sensory world, the world of appearance, was an inferior reflection of the certain, unchanging mathematical world. He was able to make a living as an astrologist and through mathematical deduction and observation finding the paths of the suns were elliptical rather than circular and observed that the velocities of the planets vary inversely with their distance from the sun, thus anticipating Newton’s concept of gravity. He also demonstrated that all the different planetary motions could be described by a single mathematical statement. His most important contribution to science was his insistence that all mathematical deductions be verified by empirical observation, he studied vision directly and found that environmental objects project an invested image onto the retina contrasting earlier theories that explained vision as the result of the projection of exact copies of objects directly into the sense receptors.
- Describe the roles that Giordano Bruno played in the history of science.
Giordano Bruno was a former Dominican priest who took an interest in ancient Hermetic philosophy which professed the existence of magical forces that can be used to benefit humankind and a harmony among humans, stars and planets. It also held the idea that in the universe there are innumerable inhabited worlds (that is, solar systems) and in each of these worlds, including our own, the sun is divine. He accepted Copernicus’s heliocentric theory as it restored the divine statue given to the sun by the ancients.
- Briefly describe the life and work of Galileo Galilei (1564–1642). Explain why Galileo’s attitude toward experimentation was Pythagorean-Platonic
Galileo Galilei, born in 1564 in Pisa, Italy, was a prominent mathematician and an early advocate of the Copernican heliocentric theory. He made significant astronomical discoveries, such as the moons of Jupiter and the mountains on the moon, using his modified telescope. His approach to experimentation was rooted in Pythagorean-Platonic beliefs, emphasizing the use of rational deduction alongside demonstrations to confirm certain laws
- Describe Galileo’s views of objective and subjective reality
Galileo distinguished between objective and subjective reality, considering the former as describable through precise mathematical terms (primary qualities) and the latter as relative and based on psychological experiences (secondary qualities).
- Describe Galileo’s views of the possibility of a science of conscious experience
He argued that consciousness could not be studied through scientific methods due to its reliance on subjective qualities