Interpretations of Renaissance Humanism

Authored by some of the most preeminent Renaissance scholars active today, the essays of this volume give fresh and illuminating analyses of important aspects of Renaissance humanism, such as the time and causes of its origin, its connection to the papal court and medieval traditions, its classical learning, its religious and literary dimensions, and its dramatis personae. Their interpretations are varied to the point of being contradictory. The essays bear the imprint of the work of the eminent scholars of the second half of the twentieth century, especially Kristeller’s, and demonstrate an awareness of the various modes of critical inquiry that have prevailed in recent years. As such they are an important exemplar of current scholarship on Renaissance humanism and are, therefore, indispensable to the scholar who wishes to explore this pivotal cultural movement.

Contributors include: Robert Black, Alison Brown, Riccardo Fubini, Paul F. Grendler, James Hankins, Eckhard Kessler, Arthur F. Kinney, Angelo Mazzocco, Giuseppe Mazzotta, Massimo Miglio, John Monfasani, Charles G. Nauert, and Ronald G. Witt.

Authored by some of the most preeminent Renaissance scholars active today, this volume’s essays give fresh and illuminating analyses of important aspects of Renaissance humanism, including its origin, connection to the papal court and medieval traditions, classical learning, religious and literary dimensions, and its dramatis personae.

Angelo Mazzocco, Ph.D. (1973) in Romance Languages and Literatures, University of California, Berkeley is Professor emeritus of Italian and Spanish at Mount Holyoke College. He has published extensively on antiquarianism, historical linguistics, Dante, and Renaissance humanism including Linguistic Theories in Dante and the Humanists (Brill, 1993).