Renaissance Philosophy

RENAISSANCE PHILOSOPHY

Overview

In the Western tradition, Renaissance Philosophy referred to the period after Medieval Philosophy but before Modern Philosophy. There were no exact dates delineating the period, but many would roughly estimate it as extending from 14th to 17th centuries. Much of this period can also be seen as a reaction to and a move away from the ideas and schools that dominated the medieval period. As the Renaissance heightened its uprising against the reign of religion and therefore reacted against the church, against authority, and against Scholasticism, there was a sudden flourishing of interest in problems centering on civil society, man, and nature. These interests found exact representation in the three dominant strands of Renaissance philosophy: Humanism, Platonism, and Aristotelianism.

I. HUMANISM

“I am a man, and nothing human is foreign to me.”
- Terence (Latin writer)

Etymologically, the word humanism came from the Latin word h...