By: Steven Anuszkiewicz, Kristen Kurlander, Colleen

Kelly & Kristine Cura

Key People

• Dante

• Chaucer

• Christine de Pizan

• Machiavelli

• Johannes Gutenburg

• Shakespeare

Dante

• Dante was an Italian writer and poet.

• Most famous work- the Divine Comedy. It tells the story of an imaginary journey through Hell, Purgatory and Heaven, where he finally meets God.

• He lived from 1265 to 1321• wrote using the vernacular.

Chaucer

• 1343-1400

• Chaucer helped make vernacular literature more popular

• used the English vernacular in his famous work The Canterbury Tales

• The Canterbury Tales have always been Chaucer's most popular work

• During the next twelve or fifteen years there is no question that Chaucer was constantly engaged in literary work

Christine de Pizan

• 1363-1430

• a French womanthat defended women's rights

• She wrote The Book of the City of Ladies in 1404.

• She denounced the many male writers who had argued that women, by their very nature, are unable to learn and are easily swayed.

• Christine de Pizan argued that women could learn as well as men if they attended the same schools.

Niccolo Machiavelli

• 1469 – 1527

• studied politics

• most famous work- The Prince.

• His political views have influenced leaders profoundly.

• One of the first people to reject the idea that rulers should base their decisions and behavior on Christian principles.

• believed political activity should not be restricted by moral principles.

Johannes Gutenburg

• 1398 – February 3, 1468

• a German blacksmith, goldsmith, printer, and publisher who introduced printing to Europe

• His invention of mechanical movable type printing started the Printing Revolution

• The first European to use movable type printing, in around 1439, and the inventor of the printing press

Shakespeare

• 1564 to 1616

• wrote many famous works such as:o Romeo and Julieto Hamleto Macbetho Julius Caesar

• is viewed universally as a genius and master of the English language

The Vernacular

• a style of speech that used vocabulary and slang from everyday people.

• Many famous writer of this time began to write in this style, such as .

• Allowed everyday people with improper educations to read and understand books.

The Impact of Printing

• The Renaissance first saw the development of printing in Europe.

• In the fifteenth century, Europeans gradually learned how to print with moveable metal type.

• The printing of books encouraged scholarly research and increased the public's desire to learn.

• Certain ideas and beliefs, such as the Reformation would not of spread as rapidly without the printing press.

• Printing allowed European civilization to compete with the civilization of China for the first time.