Concetti Chiave
- The English Renaissance spanned from 1509 to 1660, marked by a strong Protestant influence due to the Reformation under Henry VIII.
- Humanism, known as "New Learning," spread across England, emphasizing human reason to interpret man and nature.
- The period was called "The golden age" due to the flourishing of love songs and sonnets, heavily inspired by Italian poets like Dante and Petrarch.
- Western literature idealized women, with themes of loyalty and spiritual elevation, evolving from medieval influences to Renaissance interpretations.
- Shakespeare played a pivotal role in redefining love in literature, challenging conventional depictions of women and exploring diverse aspects of love.
The English Renaissance covers the period between 1509, the year Henry VIII ascended the throne, to 1660, the year which marked the beginning of the Restoration. It was a typical English movement and began later than its European equivalents. It was featured by a strong Protestant base influenced by the Reformation under the reign of Henry VIII. The English literature was less linked to the visual arts than Italian literature.
The “New Learning”, as Humanism was also called, was diffused in grammar schools all over the country and in the two universities, Oxford and Cambridge. It was based on the power of human reason that could interpret man and nature.
During the Renaissance love songs and sonnets flourished: therefore this period was called “The golden age”. The sonnet was introduced into England by Sir Thomas Wyatt and Henry Howard and was refined in Italy by Dante and Petrarch, whose Canzoniere had become the model for all European renaissance poets. The poetry of Petrarch was unique also because of the distinctive devices, like oxymoron.
After a period of evolution, the English sonnet came to be identified with the Shakespearean model.
The idealization of the woman has been one of the main topic of Western literature all along. In the French metrical romances the woman was a lady who was worshipped by the author. Love for this ideal woman was linked with the ideals of loyalty, sacrifice and renunciation. Actually the lady often lived with her lord in an isolated castle and married him for economic or political reasons. The lady usually tempted the few men she came into contact with. The Italian dolce stil novo introduced a new theme connected with love: spiritual elevation. The woman became an angel, an intermediary creature between the earth and heaven. This poetic started with Guido Guinizzelli and reached the highest point in the poetry of Guido Cavalcanti and Dante Alighieri. During the Renaissance the poet used to confront the ideal love, which led to perfection, and the real love, which was irrational and led to folly. The figure of Petrarch stood between the dying medieval period and the Renaissance. William Shakespeare tried to separate the different aspects of love inverting the conventional presentation of the woman.
Domande da interrogazione
- ¿Cuál fue la influencia del Renacimiento en la literatura inglesa?
- ¿Cómo evolucionó el soneto en Inglaterra durante el Renacimiento?
- ¿Cómo se representaba el amor y la figura femenina en la literatura renacentista?
El Renacimiento inglés, que abarcó de 1509 a 1660, se caracterizó por una fuerte base protestante influenciada por la Reforma bajo el reinado de Enrique VIII. La literatura inglesa durante este período se centró menos en las artes visuales y más en el poder de la razón humana, difundido a través de las escuelas de gramática y universidades como Oxford y Cambridge.
El soneto fue introducido en Inglaterra por Sir Thomas Wyatt y Henry Howard, y evolucionó hasta identificarse con el modelo shakespeariano. Este desarrollo fue influenciado por la poesía de Petrarca, que se convirtió en un modelo para los poetas renacentistas europeos.
Durante el Renacimiento, el amor idealizado y la figura femenina eran temas centrales. La mujer era vista como un ángel o intermediaria entre la tierra y el cielo, un concepto introducido por el dolce stil novo italiano. Los poetas confrontaban el amor ideal, que conducía a la perfección, con el amor real, que era irracional y conducía a la locura. Shakespeare, en particular, intentó separar los diferentes aspectos del amor, invirtiendo la presentación convencional de la mujer.
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