Language and Images of Renaissance Italy

The Italian Renaissance Has Traditionally Been Regarded As A Critical Turning Point In The History Of Europe; The Vital Stepping Stone Between The Age Of Faith And The Age Of Reason. This Classical View Of The Renaissance As The Birth Of Individualism And Modernity, As Formulated By The Famous Swiss Historian Jacob Burckhardt, Is Challenged And Reassessed In This Intriguing And Diverse Group Of Essays. Leading Scholars From Different Disciplines Use A Variety Of Approaches - Textual And Literary Criticism, Social Anthropology And Gender Studies - To Re-evaluate The Period As A Whole. The Book Is Divided Into Three Section, Which Discuss The Model Of Death And Rebirth And Its Political Function; The Social Context Of Revival In Terms Of Corporate And Individual Patronage; And The Renaissance Body As A Political Metaphor And Social Gesture. What Emerges Is An Account Of A Mixed And Lively Culture Which Avoids The Old Generalizations And Gives A Fresh View Of This Most Creative And Fascinating Period Of European History-- Prolusion / E. H. Gombrich -- Introduction / Alison Brown -- Did The Ancients Have An Antiquity? : The Idea Of Renaissance In The History Of Classical Art / Salvatore Settis -- The Donation Of Constantine : A New Source For The Concept Of The Renaissance / Robert Black -- The Vocabulary Of Renaissance Republicanism : A Cultural Longue-duree / Quentin Skinner -- Was There A Renaissance In Music? / Jessie Ann Owens -- Renovatio Or Conciliatio? : How Renaissances Happened In Venice / Patricia Fortini Brown -- Creating Memory : Monumental Painting And Cultural Definition / William Hood -- Individuals And Families As Patrons Of Culture In Quattrocento Florence / F. W. Kent -- The Humanist Villa Revisited / Amanda Lillie -- Burckhardt Revisited From Social History / Samuel K. Cohn -- The Republic's Two Bodies : Body Metaphors In Italian Renaissance Political Thought / John M. Najemy -- Portraiture, Portrayal, And Idealization : Ambiguous Individualism In Representations Of Renaissance Women / Patricia Simons -- The Italian Renaissance Tale As History / Lauro Martines. Edited By Alison Brown. This Book Originated In The Papers Delivered At A Conference On 'cultural Definition And The Renaissance', Which Was Held At The Courtauld Institute, University Of London, In June 1990--preface. Includes Bibliographical References And Index.