Paper Topics: Paper #2
Paper Topics: Paper #2
The second paper is due Friday, April 20 at class time. Once again, the papers should be about 1000 words in length, double-spaced, with 1" margins. Please use internal citations (author's last name, page #) in identifying sources according to the following format: "Good men, truly, are in every respect useful to everyone" (Erasmus, 89-90). I would like to see all of you draw on the texts in your work, with material directly cited from the sources. You have three topics from which to choose:
Topic #1: Religious life in the Renaissance. There is a traditional view of the Renaissance that holds it to be a secular phenomenon, a breaking free of the rigors of medieval religiosity. Yet some of our readings show that religion is in fact central to the way people ordered their lives. Write an essay about religion in the Renaissance, taking into account personal expressions of devotion and extraordinary individuals such as Savonarola. Is there some truth to the traditional view? What do the things you've learned, from the documents and other readings, about the Renaissance papacy contribute to your understanding?
Topic #2: Family life in the Renaissance. What was the ideal Renaissance family, according to theorists such as Barbaro and Alberti? What evidence do we have, from the documents we have read and from King, about what family life might have been like? Evaluate as best you can what you find favorable to women, and what you find unfavorable.
Topic #3: Idealism, Politics, and Violence. We have seen ideal expressions of what public life and family life should be like, yet in April Blood we also see not just one but several examples of conspiracies that involved horrific violence. Evaluate the political realities of Italy in general and Florence in particular during the latter half of the 15th century against the legacy of civic humanist ideals. In particular, what seems to be the intersection between public and private life among the rich and powerful? How do family ties function to promote certain outcomes in the public sphere?
I am deliberately leaving these topics open-ended so that you can choose the sources on which to focus, and how to structure your approach. The best papers will sort through the complexities in the evidence and arrive at thoughtful and original conclusions.
Laurel Carrington carringt@stolaf.edu
Most recent update: January 26, 2012