Humanism

In the period covered by the Renaissance in Europe, a stage of thought transformation was generated in Italy that freed itself from the limitations imposed by the religious doctrine that had ruled in the Middle Ages to focus on the development of the sciences and the arts , rescuing Greco-Latin philosophical influences and focusing on man for man. This movement known as humanism spread rapidly throughout Europe in the fourteenth century causing great changes in the Catholic Church, education, letters, art and science.

What is humanism?

Humanism as a philosophical and intellectual thought gives value to the subjective and private experiences of each person . It is the man focused on man and his development in society. This movement of thought is articulated in the form of a philosophical attitude that focuses on the human being and human values .

Characteristics of humanism

Among the most outstanding characteristics of humanism we can mention the following:

• Study ancient works from classical antiquity and Greco-Latin philosophy.
• Geographical and technical discoveries.
• Interest in the arts and sciences.
• Its literary character.
• Man and nature are the topics most tackled.
• He rejects the theocratic vision for an anthropocentric conception of the Universe.
• He focused on the teachings of the Neoplatonic schools.
• There was a Renaissance feeling.

Target

The main objective of humanism was to recover all the disciplines that came from classical antiquity and from Greco-Roman philosophy to form a new man and a new world.

Then with the passing of time, various approaches to humanism were generated, which continued to be centered on man and his development in society but from different points of view.

Contributions

Humanism generated many contributions in the Renaissance in the scientific area, the arts and literature. Examples of these contributions are:

• In medicine: the “Book of the Anatomy of Man” by Bernandino Montaña de Monserrate ; the works of Leonardo Da Vinici “Anatomical Manuscript A” and “Il libro dell’anatomia” ; the “Magna Chirurgia” of Paracelsus.
• In literature: “The Divine Comedy” by Dante Alighieri .
• In the arts: The works of Michelangelo , Donatello in Italy and in Spain the works of El Greco .
• In Astronomy: Nicolás Copernicus takes up the heliocentric ideas where the Sun is the center of the universe and the planets revolve around it in orbits. Galileo Galilei builds the telescope .

History of humanism

Humanism has its origin in the Middle Ages, in Italy between the fourteenth and sixteenth centuries when it began to spread throughout Europe . Florence was the cradle of this Renaissance movement , from where the new philosophers, scientists and artists arose who changed the theocentric vision that managed the church during the Middle Ages for an anthropocentric vision where man was the center of everything and the measure of all things.

Between the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries, the way of acquiring knowledge goes from faith (revealed knowledge) to reason, experience and observation (empirical knowledge), seeking to make man a creator of his destiny and of everything he does. .

But the history of humanism does not stop at the Renaissance since it advances to the Modern Age mixing with other philosophical ideas and generating different types of humanist currents such as classical, Christian, Marxist, existentialists, among others.

Types of humanism

There are different types of humanism. Among the most representative we can mention the following:

• Theocentric: bases its foundations on the existence of a supreme being (God) who determines the good and the bad and the behavior that human beings should have.
• Historical: It is focused on the arts and sciences, focused more on the human and considering it as the center of everything.
• Anthropocentric: in this type of humanism, the human being is considered the center of the moral system, the behavior presented in the sacred texts is put aside to formulate a new human ethic.
• Empirical:   it focuses on the rejection or acceptance of some attitudes or concrete facts such as the rejection of violence and respect for freedom of belief and opinion. This humanism is more focused on practical facts and not on the abstract ideas of the other types of humanism.
• Existentialist : it focuses on the liberation of material and intellectual totalitarianisms that limit man’s thinking and behavior.
• Marxist: based on the ideas of Karl Marx, it presents the human being and creates his identity from his interaction with other people in collective events, generating bonds of solidarity in societies.
• Universalist: it is a postmodern approach that presents the need to create inclusive societies that respect different cultures, appreciating the creativity and spontaneity of the inhabitants of a society.

Importance

The importance of humanism lies in the historical restoration of the disciplines that facilitated the knowledge of classical antiquity , seeking to resume Greco-Roman philosophy, the human spirit, developing liberal knowledge, rhetoric , grammar, history, literature and science. as opposed to Theology.

Representatives

Humanism has many representative characters among which some can be mentioned such as: Francesco Petrarca, Juan Boccacio, Erasmus of Rotterdam, Leonardo Da Vinci, Galileo, Paracelsus, Dante Alighieri among others.

Outstanding works

Among the most outstanding literary works in humanism we can mention the following:

• “Canto a Laura” by Francesco Petrarca.
• “In Praise of Madness” by Erasmus of Rotterdam.
• “El Decameron” by Juan Bocaccio.
• “The Divine Comedy” by Dante Alighieri.