ANTHROPOCENTRISM: ORIGIN AND CHARACTERISTICS - PHILOSOPHY - 2024

The anthropocentrism is a doctrine that affirms the centrality of human beings in the universe. Under this current of thought, the human being is the measure and the center of all things. From an ethical point of view, it is believed that only human interests should receive moral attention and that these are above anything else.

Anthropocentrism is considered the doctrinal alternative to theocentrism, a prevailing philosophical vision during the Middle Ages, in which God is considered the center of the universe, who directs everything, including human activity.

The transition from theocentrism to anthropocentrism meant withdrawing power from the divine deities to hand them over to the human being. This change of doctrine supposed great transformations in the intellectual and artistic fields.

Origin

Anthropocentrism emerged in the early Modern Age. In the transition from the late Middle Ages to the Modern Age, civilizations had evolved in the ethical, moral, judicial, and philosophical realms.

The knowledge of the philosophies of ancient civilizations together with the scientific investigations on the origin of the human being, led the society of the time to question theocentrism, the dominant doctrine until now.

The result of the above was a man with a new mentality, a mental scheme that positions the human being as the supreme being and considers that reason, and not faith, should be the only guide to human steps.

This idea revolutionized all the beliefs of the time. It gave way to a doctrine based on man as being independent of the myths and religious and biblical stories that, until now, forced society to perform certain acts or maintain certain behavior.

The anthropocentric thought of the human being was fundamentally expressed in two movements:

Renaissance

It is an artistic movement that emerged in the 15th century in northern Italy and was expressed in painting, architecture and sculpture. It received the name of Renaissance because it mainly uses styles from the classical Greek and Roman tradition.

The prevailing anthropocentrism at the time attributed great value to the representations of the human body made by classical Greco-Roman art and artistic currents recovered the techniques of harmony and proportions. This current spread throughout Europe and remained in force until the 16th century.

Humanism

It is an intellectual movement originated in Italy in the fourteenth century that was expressed in disciplines such as literature, philosophy and theology.

The prevailing anthropocentrism at that time led to the recovery of the classical Greek and Roman tradition, which placed the human being as an object and center of study.

During this time, the translation and dissemination of numerous Greco-Roman works that had been kept hidden during the Middle Ages were carried out.

It should be noted that, although during this stage the center of interest was in the human being, this did not mean a complete abandonment of religiosity. This intellectual trend developed throughout Europe and reached its peak between the 15th and 16th centuries.

characteristics

The main characteristic of the anthropocentric doctrine is that it is the human being, and not God, who is situated in the center of thought.

As a result of this transformation of thought, some characteristics of the society of the time can be pointed out:

Full confidence in the human being

Everything that was human creation and its ability to dominate the environment was fully trusted.

An example of this are the exploratory initiatives of the time, such as the discovery of America and the opening of new trade routes, as well as works such as Don Quixote by Miguel Cervantes, in which the protagonist is completely sure that he can be who he wants to be; feels invincible.

Glory and personal prestige as the ultimate goal

Values ​​such as prestige, fame, glory or power were rescued and were considered ambitions that added value to the human being.

Unlike what happened in medieval times, trade and enrichment were well regarded by society. This change of vision was fundamental for the subsequent birth of the bourgeoisie and capitalism.

Classicism

The Greco-Roman tradition was highly valued during this period. In the intellectual sphere, some authors with strong influence in this period were Plato, with his aesthetic idealization; Aristotle, with his logic; and Plutarco.

In artistic terms, patterns abandoned during the Middle Ages were taken up. On the one hand, the use of nudes in painting and sculpture was recovered; on the other, the figure of the Catholic Virgin was replaced by that of the Greco-Roman Venus, which represents femininity, love, sensuality and beauty.

Greater optimism

There was a greater concern for earthly life and the pleasures it offers. The idea that the human being should enjoy the here and now (carpe diem) prevailed. The world stopped being a place of transit and became a place to be enjoyed.

Reason and science have special value

Rationality was applied to every object of study, leaving aside religious beliefs. It sought to understand the world from an analytical vision based on study and observation.

Under this vision arose many of the sciences that we know today, such as anatomy, physics, biology, astronomy, among others.

An example of the contradictions that this new paradigm generated in society was the confrontation that Galileo Galilei had for stating that the Earth was not the center of the solar system.

Artistic explosion fueled by patronage

The appearance of people with enough power and money to provide economic support and influence to artists, considerably boosted the artistic production of the time. A family recognized for their support of artistic development in Italy are the Medici.

Proliferation of universities

In order to expand and consolidate humanist thought, great schools proliferated throughout Europe.

References

1. Anthropocentrism: the human being as the center of thought. In My History Class. Recovered in myclassdehistoria.org.
2. Theocentricism. On Wikipedia. Consulted on June 15, 2018, from en.wikipedia.org.
3. Renaissance. On Wikipedia. Consulted on June 15, 2018, from en.wikipedia.org.
4. 10 characteristics of the Renaissance. Recovered in characteristics.co.
5. 10 characteristics of Humanism. Recovered in characteristics.co.
6. Humanism. On Wikipedia. Consulted on June 15, 2018, from en.wikipedia.org.