The Civilization of the Renaissance in Italy - Softcover

Burckhardt, Jacob

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1781391009 ISBN 13: 9781781391006

Publisher: Benediction Classics, 2012

Synopsis

"The Civilization of the Renaissance in Italy" is a classic interpretation of one of the most vibrant periods of human history, providing information and analysis for the scholar and a spell-binding introduction for the generalist. This single volume covers and uncovers the political, spiritual, artistic and social history of the Italian Renaissance. The work is divided into six parts: Part 1 - The State as a Work of Art; Part 2 - The Development of the Individual; Part 3 - The Revival of Antiquity; Part 4 - The Discovery of the World and of Man; Part 5 - Society and Festivals; Part 6 - Morality and Religion. Middlemore's translation does justice to Burckhardt's brilliant mind.

About this title

About the Author

Jacob Burckhardt (1818-1897) intended to join the Church, but lost his faith while studying theology. Thereafter he studied history at the University of Basel, gaining his doctorate in 1843 and becoming a lecturer. He moved to the Zurich Polytechnic as Professor of Architecture and History in 1855, which is where he wrote The Civilization of the Renaissance in Italy. In 1858 he returned to Basel, where he lived for his work as a teacher at the University. Burckhardt's historical writings did much to establish the importance of art in the study of history; indeed, he was one of the "founding fathers of art history" but also one of the original creators of cultural history. According to John Lukacs, he was the first master of cultural history, which seeks to describe the spirit and the forms of expression of a particular age, a particular people, or a particular place. His innovative approach to historical research stressed the importance of art and its inestimable value as a primary source for the study of history. He was one of the first historians to rise above the narrow nineteenth-century notion that "history is past politics and politics current history." Burckhardt's unsystematic approach to history was strongly opposed to the interpretations of Hegelianism, which was popular at the time; economism as an interpretation of history; and positivism, which had come to dominate scientific discourses (including the discourse of the social sciences). In 1838. Burckhardt made his first journey to Italy and published his first important article, "Remarks about Swiss Cathedrals." Burckhardt is best known for his books The History of the Renaissance in Italy and The Civilization of the Renaissance in Italy. Burckhardt considered the study of ancient history an intellectual necessity and was a highly respected scholar of Greek civilization. "The Greeks and Greek Civilization" sums up the relevant lectures which Burckhardt first gave in 1872 and which he repeated until 1885. At his death, he was working on a four-volume survey of Greek civilization.

Edition details

• Publisher: Benediction Classics
• Publication date: 2012
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 1781391009
• ISBN 13: 9781781391006
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 350