Was the Renaissance Real? Art, Money, and Humanism in Italy

CrashCourse

This video explores the European Renaissance, examining whether it was truly a distinct historical period or merely a continuation of the Middle Ages. Host John Green investigates the intellectual shift known as Humanism, which prioritized human potential and worldly concerns over the divine focus of the medieval era. The video details how the rediscovery of classical Greek and Roman texts influenced philosophy, education, and the arts, while also highlighting the economic boom in Italian city-states like Florence that fueled this cultural explosion through patronage.