I have 4 really hard questions that I need a lot of help on. I know there is a lot here but what ever help you can give me would be great! Thanks! Here they are:

1. What were the defining features of the Renaissance and how was it different from the preceding era of the middle ages?

2. Why was Martain Luther's Protestant Reformation successful when the previous efforts of Jan Hus and John Wycliffe had failed?what were the initial points of Luther's protest and how did they eventually become so radicalas to create a break with the cathloic church?

3. Describe and analyze the causes and consequences of the "rise of the west"

1. What were the defining features of the Renaissance and how was it different from the preceding era of the middle ages?




One way in which the Renaissance distinguishes itself from the period prior to it is by its emphasis on the human being, his goals, his rights, his concerns to achieve dignity, to live a fulfilled life.



These things were of secondary importance prior to the Renaissance. Only man's servitude to his ruler and his God were of any consequence.

Even the arts were totally dominated by the religious in contrast with the Renaissance art which was characterized by the portrayal of romantic themes and other such mundane concerns. In contrast, the pre Renaissance period was dominated by the representations religious icons and the dominance of religious themes such as the Resurrection of Christ and the veneration of Mary and the saints.

Also, European thought was shackled by its reliance on church dominated concepts which in turn were based on the philosophies of Aristotle's and the ideas of Ptolemy. Only after much struggle was this reliance broken after the scientific method of observation and experimentation led to conclusive proof that these ideas such as that the earth was the universe's center, and that celestial spheres existed were wrong.