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B-D  Find out what Renaissance Humanism is and who Sir Thomas Elyot was. Tell us about them, and what they have to do with one another.

Sir Thomas Elyot was a prominent figure during the reign of King Henry VIII of England and served as an ambassador to the court of Emperor Charles V. He was born circa 1490 to Sir Richard Elyot, a lawyer, and his wife Alice Delamere. Thomas Elyot claimed that he was self-taught most of his life and that he was responsible for his own education. In 1511, he was married to Margaret A’Barrow and began to work under his father. After his father’s death in 1530, Thomas Elyot inherited his estates (though not immediately as they were not directly bequeathed to him) and moved there to write. He completed his first book in 1531 entitled “The Boke Named the Gouernour.” This book was what had brought him to the attention of Henry VIII, who then promoted him to many positions, most which Elyot found displeasingand financially draining.Eventually, he would fall from favor with the English king somewhat most likely due to his friendship with Sir Thomas More.Still, he was responsible for the first Latin-English dictionary and continued to author works throughout his life, dealing in varying subjects such as liberal arts, philosophy and medicine. He also introduced many words into the English language including “encyclopedia”(Roy).   

Renaissance Humanism was a movement that was at least initially centered on Italy. It was the concept that classic Greek and Roman myths and legends held moral knowledge and lessons within them and that by studying them one might attain the guidelines for an effective life. Members of this movement sought to better the world around them through this knowledge by acting as tutors for the children of presumably wealthy families and working within the church in order to promote the knowledge and understanding of those around them. Within the church, they attempted to aid the image of the pope and develop more classical forms of mass and the Latin language that was used by the church at this time.Some members of the movement even went so far as to call God “Jupiter” or churches “temples,” though other members of the movement found this extremism distasteful.They felt thatagreementChristianrevelationcould be found inthe works ofPlato(a pagan)andargued that theological teaching that originated in universities as inferior to direct biblical text. This ledthem to develop their own theology that caused their relationship with the church to become unsustainable. Still, as they found great wisdom in ancient Greek and Roman texts, they sought them out and copied them down in order to preserve these works. They consistently promoted knowledge and betterment of society("Rome Reborn: The Vatican Library & Renaissance CultureHumanism."). 

Sir Thomas Elyot’s first book, the aforementioned “The Boke Named the Gouernour,” was basically written as an educational outline intended for those who would hopefully come to be in important positions within society.It probably was influenced on his own educational background(Roy).Elyotaimed not only tobetter himself though education, but improve society around him by sharing hisknowledge with those around him and especially those who could eventually oneday influence the highest echelons of Europe. This aim falls in line with the goals of the Renaissance Humanist movement. They wanted to be able to share and preserve knowledge that they found to be of the highest importance. They felt that the knowledge they were unearthing would change society for the better and that those who held power (like the children of the wealthy and the Catholic Church) would benefit from their understanding.This coupled with his promotion of Latin through his Latin-English dictionary is Sir Thomas Elyot’s link with the humanist movement. 

Works Cited 

"Rome Reborn: The Vatican Library & Renaissance CultureHumanism."Humanism. Library of Congress, June 2002. Web. 29 Aug. 2016. 

Roy, David. "Thomas Elyot."Salem Biographical Encyclopedia. Salem Press, Dec. 2015. Web. Aug. 2016.

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Sir Thomas Elyot and his Work on Renaissance Humanism  

   Renaissance Humanism was a philosophy that rose up during the time of the Renaissance. It was the time period where people started to focus more on worldly or secular interests instead of focusing purely on religious values. People started to care more about their own lives then about their possible afterlife. They were essentially caught between faith and scientific reasoning and not sure about which one to follow.  

    There were many people who followed this new philosophy and were appropriately called humanists. A few examples of noted humanists at the time are Desiderius Erasmus who was considered to be the greatest and whose beliefs were halfway between piety and secularism, Francesco Petrarch who was an Italian humanist,RudolphusAgricola who was from Germany, and Francis Bacon who represented agnostic humanism.  

    Humanists contributed to science by discovering Greek literature about the sciences which had more accurate facts than other scientific books available at the time. The humanists also enjoyed reading works by famous ancient writers like Cicero and Aristotle. These writings were focused more on life on earth and taught men how to live a successful life rather than focusing on how to gain salvation. These virtues which were considered pagan,were brought back by the humanists.  

The humanists brought back the secular philosophy of Rome and Greece and they brought back the concept of individualism.The idea of individualism had been discouraged by the Church because they thought that it was thesame as arrogance, rebellion, and sin. The Church demanded that people have unwavering faith and that they obey without question. The humanists brought back individual expression and opposition to authority which became popular in the intellectual community.  

    A writer who was important to the spreading of humanism was Sir Thomas Elyot. Sir Thomas Elyot wasaEnglish writer who was born in 1490 in Wiltshire and died in 1546in Carlton. He was the son ofSir Richard Elyot who was a lawyer and came from adistinguished family. He was hired by his father to be a clerk starting in 1510 but he also held jobs as an author, Parliament member, and diplomat. He was given the title of a knight in 1530. After his father passed away he inherited an estate which includeda library of French and Latin books. He also inherited a manor inOxfordshireafter another relative had passed away. This is where he made his home for many years until he later moved to Carlton. 

    Both Oxford and Cambridge have claimed that he was an alumnus of their university. He was also trained in medicine by a physician named Thomas Linacre. Amongst the books that he wrote, there is a book calledThe Boke Named theGovernourwhich was the first educational treatise,Dictionarywhich was the first Latin-English dictionary, andThe Castel ofHelthwhich was a popular medical book at the time. He was most likely able to write this book because of his medical studies.  

    Through these books Thomas Elyot sought to teach classical wisdom and to promote the ideals of being a gentleman and political morality. He fulfilled the aim of Tudor humanism through his writings especially withThe Boke Named theGovernour.That aim was to teach virtue and to provide education. Through his writings Sir Thomas Elyot was able to teach the basic ideals of Renaissance Humanism.

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  Renaissance Humanism is an era in history that took place approximately between 1400 and 1650. During this time period Europeans began to stray from their medieval ideas, becoming more modern and scientific. With life changing, Europeans grew in many different areas including: socially, religiously, and culturally. In terms of social context, citizens initiated contact with their peers more regularly. The growth of trade later ensued because of this, allowing regular citizens to further thrive. As the Renaissance period continued the general population also became more secular and independent. The church started losing influence on the public. This heavily impacted the art that was created around this time. Due to social life growing and the church losing authority, the European population was introduced to various cultures and relicts, which had an important role in shaping the future for the modernized citizens (Kreis)

            According to many scholars, Sir Thomas Elyot was predicted to been born around 1490. In 1523 Elyot moved to Carlton and is then knighted. In the years to come Elyot writes various books that are praised by the public. As time passes he becomes Ambassador to King Henry VIII. This job allows Elyot to travel to various locations where he continues to write. In November of 1532 Elyot is employed sheriff of Cambridgeshire and Hungtintonshire. While Elyots career furthens he continues to write. Sir Thomas Elyot is important in context of the Renaissance period because he is an example of the culture that shifted during this time.

References

Steven Kreis - http://www.historyguide.org/intellect/humanism.html

http://www.carlton-cambridgeshire.org.uk/History/People/sir_thomas_elyot.htm

G-R  Find out what Renaissance Humanism is and who Sir Thomas More was. Tell us about them, and what they have to do with one another.

Renaissance Humanismcan be broken down to understand the word meaning.Renaissance means “ rebirth”, and humanism is the emphasis on classical literature.So looking at this basically means, the rebirth of interest in classical literature.  It took place between the 1400 and 1650. People were ditching their medieval views and going more modern (Kreis).  

Thomas Morelived from February of 1478- July of 1535. His days ended when he denied that the King Henry was the head of the Church, which lead to his death at his hands. Before this he was a Saint and was mostly known for his creation of Utopia. This term refers to reasoning. In creating this term he is tied into Renaissance Humanism, adding on the fact that he was a Renaissance Humanist. He believed in giving education to women, and basically providing the means of equal rights (bio). 

http://www.biography.com/people/thomas-more-9414278#at-odds-with-henry-&-subsequent-beheading 

http://www.historyguide.org/intellect/humanism.html 

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The Renaissance referred to (rebirth)

Humanism referred to (ethical) (values) (to promote the welfare of others)

Renaissance Humanism – TOGETHER “the rebirth of values, ethics during the classical era.

Thomas More born 1478-1535 (57) was a very important person to the King until he decided that he was not going to acknowledge that he was the head of the Church Catholic, and so the king had him beheaded. More was known for wanting a life that had a governed political system that was lead with reason. He was killed because of his beliefs. Thomas More is now known as Saint More, which took place in 1935. 400 years after his death.

The Renaissance Humanism and More are strongly related because of his beliefs and his writing of Utopia. 

S  Find out what Renaissance Humanism is and who Desiderius Erasmus was. Tell us about them, and what they have to do with one another.

The term “Renaissance Humanism” refers to social change towards individual expression and sovereignty, and away from the “scholasticism” which preceded it. A revival of interest in texts from Classical antiquity changed Western Europe in a way that lessened their faith in biblical explanations, favoring instead the use of the senses to garner for themselves the truth.

Desiderius Erasmus, born in the Dutch lands, helped fuel this shift as a social critique, poking fun of the church’s practices. While there was a New Testament already printed in Greek, Erasmus contributed his Greek New Testament.

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Renaissance Humanism: A period of time between the 1400s and 1650 where the social, intellectual, and literary philosophies struggled between those of faith and those of reason. During this era worldly pleasures started to take priority over the previous medieval focus of the after life and spirituality. A movement focused on aesthetics also began to take place. Renaissance humanist began to see their beauty and worldly beauty as their transcendent experience.
Renaissance Humanism also focused a great deal on  reviving the classic Roman and Greek teachings while offering their own modern day interpretations, visions and teachings. 

Desiderius Erasmus: Born 1469 in Holland. Known as a “Humanist and scholar of the northern renaissance.” As a child Erasmus was pushed towards joining the priesthood and he eventually did enter the priest hood possibly because he didn’t have many other opportunities. Erasmus Studied Greek and became the first translator of the New Testament. However, because he lacked confidence in is knowledge he did turned down the opportunity to teach the Old Testament. However, he did teach some of the classic Greek and Roman teachings at other institutions and universities.

 https://www.britannica.com/biography/Desiderius-Erasmus

http://www.historyguide.org/intellect/humanism.html

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Renaissance Humanism began in the thirteenth century and continued to around 1650. The movement involved the use of classical texts to ultimately increase creation and individual expression. People began consulting classic texts to form the modern notion that God had granted them with potential that they had to actively attempt to cultivate thus decreasing the validity of God’s will. Desiderius Erasmus was known as a great scholar of the northern renaissance as well as one of the editors of the New Testament. His work contributed to Renaissance Humanism by encouraging reform in a way that stressed the importance of the classics which is what gave life to the movement.

https://www.britannica.com/biography/Desiderius-Erasmus

http://www.historyguide.org/intellect/humanism.html

http://europeanhistory.about.com/od/religionandthought/a/Renaissance-Humanism.htm

Hubley, Cornewell   Please find a brief passage (10 lines max) from Skelton's The Tunning of Elynour Rummyng, tell us what it says, and why the section you chose is crucial to the poem as a whole.

Ale House or Barnyard?

            Sketlon’s poem "The Tunnyng of Elynour Rummyng" is oozing with description and imagery. Skelton creates a vivid picture of an ale house and of its owner and occupants. The words and phrasing he uses to describe the setting are incredibly ghastly and vulgar. While reading the poem, the reader can easily conjure up a grungy and filthy image in their mind. One could easily have visions of rowdy guests, and fecal covered floors inside a shanty bar. He describes the other members in this poem harshly; he points out their questionable morals and unsightly outside appearances. However, he stands apart as an observer merely making jest of the spectacle. He creates a satire of “drunken, filthy, sordid, gossiping woman” (Skelton 9). He does this in an amusing way by using figures of speech to liken swine to humans.

     Skelton seems to see little distinction between the people in his work and uncivilized animals. Animal are referred to so often throughout this poem that the line begins to blur between human and animal. Sketlon constantly compares humans to wild animals. Some characters even have animals included in their name like Margery Milk-Duck with the “foot of a kite” (425). She has a bird name and fowl-like features.

 He refers to Elynour having “legges like a crane,” (50) and that she is “wrinkled / like a roast pigges ear” (19-20). He uses these comparisons to emphasize her ugliness. Later in the poem, he also describes a prostitute as “skewed as a kitten” to again invoke an animalistic image. However, it does not cease with just their physical attributes but also by their behaviors. Skelton mentions “swine go to the high dese” (175) which could allude to the women in the ale house. The footnotes translate this as a table for a feast, and possibly symbolizes communion. He often makes connections to their lack of morals and un-Christian like behaviors. These characters seem to belong on a farm rather than amongst civilized society.     

     The characters also make direct comparisons to themselves and other animals. In the poem Elynour describes her relationship to her husband. Her husband refers to her as his “whiting” (223) and his “conny (225),” which refers to a small fish and a rabbit. She is sweetly admired by her husband with animal “pet” names. This is different than Skelton’s narrator, who uses animal comparisons to insult and joke, instead the peasant use them as terms of endearments.

 A poignant section of Skelton’s poem is lines 225 to 234; Elynour describes when she and her husband make love. In line 233, she states that afterwards her husband will “rout” and “snort” just like pigs would do. She states that they lie happily together “as two pigs in a sty” (234). This phrase seems to represent the entirety of the poem. The individuals in this piece are all portrayed as loose, ugly, and dim. They are in an unkempt setting and even the ale that they serve is rumored to contain animal excrement. They do as they desire and do not seem to profess Christian morals and instead behave like animals.

     “Sweetly together we lie” (Skelton 233), Elynour says about her husband. They seem to still feel love, and her husband believes that his wife is valuable and “worth good and monny” (Skelton 228). Although, she does not possess great beauty or high morals; they are living in temporary happiness being like animals. One researcher, Robert Newman, examines Skelton’s technique. He believes that Skelton portrays his character’s images poorly to indicate that they are lacking values that they should be upholding.

     “The bread-and-ale image, reminiscent of a sacramental view of human experience, is ignored by Elynour's clients, who favor instead an unholy delight in drunkenness and excess. Skelton's numerous references to animals and diseases also point to a moral lesson” (Newman 139).

     Skelton creates an untidy animalistic image of the bar occupants, and dissuades others in to taking up the same actions. He does so somewhat humorously, and clearly states that they are not living up to the Christian-ideal. He would not be able to have achieved this lesson without the use of imagery by comparing the peasant to animals. They are not people now, but “pigs in a sty” (Skelton 234).

References:

Loughlin, Marie, Sandra Bell, and Patricia Brace. The Broadview Anthology of Sixteenth-Century Poetry and Prose. Peterborough, Ontario: Broadview Press, 2012. Print.

Newman, Robert D. "The Visual Nature of Skelton's "The Tunnyng of Elynour Rummyng"" College Literature 12.2 (1985): 135-40. Jstor.org. The Johns Hopkins University Press. Web. 29 Aug. 2016. 

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The passage I chose lies within the lines, 100-109 on page 3 of the anthology. Lines 100-102 reads, “The devil and she be sib,/ But to make up my tale/ She breweth noppy ale.” The first three lines indicate that the woman who the narrator is referring to, has a relationship of some sort with the devil. She brews strong enough ale to easily intoxicate a person on sight. Moving on with lines 103-106, “And maketh thereof port sale/ To travellers, to tinkers/ to sweaters, to swinkers/ And all good ale drinkers/” (Skelton). Not only does the woman make a potent ale, but she sells it at the highest price, making as much money out of it as she can to those who she knows will buy it without questions. The buyers are described as travelers, working men, who all enjoy ale, maybe a little too much.

            The last lines for the selected passage read as, “That will nothing spare/ But drink till they stare/ And bring them self bare/” (Skelton). Essentially, the men who come to the woman for alcohol will spare nothing to drink until they are good and drunk. The last line, “And bring them self bare” (Skelton), I read with a few different interpretations. One, the men initially come with nothing left of themselves into the bar where they drink. And two, with their action of drinking, they not only bare themselves to their drunkenness, but also make them see how low they have reached. Sometimes, when people have reached a certain level of drunkenness, they see a side of themselves that they wished they had not, and therefore continue to drink so as to not see themselves that way again, which turns into a vicious cycle.

            This particular passage that I chose is crucial to the poem as a whole because it tells the tale of not only a woman who is not seen highly by the narrator, but also to the drunkards who play into her scheme and feed her growing business. The entire poem speaks of a woman, the narrator even mentions her by name on several occasions, Elynor Rummyng who is clearly despised by the narrator. The narrator is verbally abusive towards this woman left and right in his poem, where he states that a man must have a great deal of courage to even look upon her face within the first fifteen lines of the poem. During the whole poem the narrator depicts Elynor as a hideous woman who sells ale to those who really should not be having any. The narrator is painting a picture to the reader regarding this woman, who he clearly loathes with a passion.

            The passage I chose to examine is crucial to the poem as a whole because it not only depicts an image of a much hated woman, but clearly depicts those who suffer under her ministrations as well. The men who choose to visit her tavern at night to drink themselves silly, should obviously not be given a mug of beer, but rather a hand to help them out of the bar.

            With Skelton’s background as a Roman Catholic priest, I believe that he did not like this woman not only because she was a bad person, but because she brought others down with her and did not seem to question her actions at all. This would have affected Skelton’s Catholic background and would act as poison behind his words regarding the woman in question.

Skelton, John. “The Tunning of Elynor Rummyng.” The Broadview Anthology of Sixteenth Century Poetry and Prose, Loughlin, Marie H., Bell, Sandra, and Brace, Patricia., Broadview Press, 2012, 1-9.