This textbook will introduce you to artworks of the Renaissance through themes common to the human intellectual experience.

Rather than a chronology, we have decided to consider the Renaissance thematically, investigating art, religion, and scientific inquiry through the themes of Metamorphosis, Power and Resistance, Identity and the Body, and Secular Humanism. This book owes much to existing OER publications and is partially a remix of outside content in art history, philosophy, and history. Much of the content has been curated from Smarthistory and Khan Academy, both of which offer excellent videos and essays for further exploration and expansion of the content presented here.

Our intent in this book is to provide a foundation for continuing study of the Renaissance, sparking ideas for inquiry rather than providing a comprehensive summary of the period. The “Stop and Think” questions throughout each chapter are designed for students to continue their study and to make connections between the Renaissance and the present day.

This iteration (2023) is a first-run, and our intention is to continue to flesh out existing content and to add further examples each semester.

Dr. Monica Krupinski and Dr. Monique Harrington

All content is licensed CC BY unless otherwise noted.

It is recognized that the best practices in the pedagogy of the Humanities are spiral, rather than linear, in nature.  Objectives build upon each other and continue to circle back, both for skill and for content.  This being asserted as true, each of the Course Learning Objectives outlined for HUM 2235 is considered an integral part of each of the five themes of this book, with none being able to be excluded from the objectives of a particular module.