HUMANISM: HISTORY, CHARACTERISTICS AND REPRESENTATIVES - ART - 2025

The humanism is a philosophical and intellectual movement that sought the development of thought and ideas in order to move the supernatural or superstitious beliefs that spread from the Middle Ages. For this reason, it is based on the exaltation of man and reason, as well as the impulse of the scientific field.

Through scientific evolution, analytical and interpretive exercise and the study of languages, especially Greek and Latin, were promoted. Interest in natural elements and progress in research areas also increased, among which politics, sociology and psychology stand out. Humanism is, then, a cultural revolution.

Erasmus of Rotterdam is one of the main representatives of humanism. Source: Hans Holbein

In the same way, it can be appreciated that this movement is a polysemic current of thought since it focuses on the restoration of the Greco-Latin world, which includes the study of art and classical literature, philology and human letters; but at the same time it can be understood as the system that generated existential questioning.

This refers to the distancing of religions and the proclamation of the nonexistence of God. By placing man as the pillar of society, humanism established the principle of doubt: individuals can act, feel and think without waiting for intervention in their lives from a higher entity.

However, this cultural manifestation did not come from a preconceived plan by a select minority nor did it arise from one moment to another, but was the result of a set of economic, political and social circumstances that were expressed in different ways in East and West, originating the humanist project and interdisciplinarity.

Origin and history

It is often stated that the origin of humanism (as a philosophical and intellectual movement) occurred in Italy around the fourteenth century and spread throughout much of Europe in the course of the sixteenth century, causing the birth of isms.

They were avant-garde that sought to break with the past and expose a new way of perceiving what was considered real.

As for the term, which derives from the Latin humanismus, it was given by the German theologian Friedrich Niethammer (1766-1848) in 1808 to refer to the learning that was oriented in the investigation of the classical texts.

The concept "humanist" was used since the 16th century by university students to designate teachers who taught language or literature.

It must be emphasized that humanism was not only a philosophical doctrine, but an educational and literary system whose axis was the valorization of pedagogy and man. However, the events that contributed to its formation are imprecise or heterogeneous, although three were presented that were fundamental for its development:

Fall of Constantinople (1453)

This event marked the decline of the Byzantine Empire in the hands of the Ottoman Turks. The event was characterized by being a struggle between religions for territorial conquest, when the Turks, under the leadership of Mehmed, besieged Constantinople. The resistance of his army was dominated by Janissaries, a group of skilled warriors.

The Roman troops, who followed the command of Giovanni Giustiniani, fought for two continuous days, but failed their strategy by leaving one of the gates of the wall open. This event was essential for the Turkish army to take over the city, assassinating not only Constantine XI but half the population.

This fact represented the offense of Christianity by Islam, in addition to the commercial decline because the cultural link between Asia and Europe was fragmented, an aspect that gave rise to the shortage of basic supplies.

In order to find solutions that would help them survive, the inhabitants began to look for new commercial routes.

This is how the idea arose that the world was larger than previously thought, this being the beginning of humanism. Some time later, this ideal influenced travelers who wanted to discover new routes and was confirmed with the arrival in America in 1492.

Exodus and cultural growth

After the fall of Constantinople, many Byzantines began to emigrate to Italy. The presence of these Hellenists in European territory was fundamental for the expansion of artistic ideas, since the Greeks were one of the peoples who imposed humanism as a way of life.

The exodus of these intellectual elites caused the economic flourishing of Rome, Naples, Venice, Milan and Florence through commercial, manufacturing and port activity, causing the growth of the legal professions, such as notaries and lawyers. The truth of the Bible was replaced by that set forth in legal documents.

In this way, diplomacy was born, which was increasing the discredit of monks and theologians as they were considered idle, while at the same time the ethical-social transformation was carried out. The values ​​of the citizens were no longer centered on the faith and virtue that had been professed in the Middle Ages, but the earthly happiness that money provided prevailed.

The economic and intellectual reality was displacing the promise of eternal bliss. For this reason, new roles appeared in society, such as grammarians, lawyers and artists whose function was to refute the old world view and spread the knowledge that had been denied to men. Being cultured became a duty to the nation.

Renaissance

Despite the fact that this movement does not have a specific date of origin, its peak occurred in Western Europe in the 15th and 16th centuries.

In this period, the transformation of thought and scientific development was manifested. That is, the Renaissance personifies the transitional stage between the Middle Ages and modernity.

However, this change did not originate from one moment to the next, since the first ideas about individuality and the expansion of scientific studies appeared thanks to the bourgeoisie, a class that ruled a part of medieval times. Thus, more than a transition, the Renaissance is a cultural continuity.

It is a continuity because the Renaissance did not focus on the ideals proposed by humanism, but expanded them. While humanism was characterized by renewing and trying to return Greco-Latin wisdom, based on a theological-philological framework, the Renaissance promoted the progress of science.

In this way, both movements supported each other to proclaim the importance of knowledge as the nucleus of society, detaching themselves from the religious perspective that had been the beginning of humanism and resulting in the creation of artistic academies, schools and universities where education was sought. scientific and literary training.

Humanism in the world

West

Humanism in the West was closely linked to the educational program and language, distancing itself from the rational ideal that prevailed during the sixteenth century to focus on creativity and interaction between subjects. The purpose was to motivate poetic and rhetorical growth.

This manifestation was influenced by the Greco-Roman culture, which did not emphasize the need for the gods or the relevance of the divine to explain the world.

For this reason, from the 13th century on, Western humanism represented a rupture between the religious and the secular space due to the conflict that was generated around the political and ecclesiastical institutions.

Both the pope and the kings sought to have absolute power over the State and its inhabitants. This lasted until the middle of the 18th century, when the Enlightenment was born, a movement that exalted man as the main figure in history. In this way the dominance of both empire and Christianity was blurred.

Some men no longer had gods or monarchs to praise, which is why knowledge was born as an instrument that organized reality; Along with this language stood out, an attribute that differentiated humans from other beings. Hence the conception of linguistic progress as a unifying project of humanism.

East

Unlike humanism in the West, which was distancing itself from the ecclesiastical sphere, in the East it was related to numerous moments of religious transformation or humanization.

At first, the faith in the Asian continent was understood as a social system to solve the inconveniences that men could have, but this vision changed due to Hinduism.

Hinduism, although it sprouted in India, influenced the entire Asian continent because it communicated the immanent idea of ​​the presence of divinity in all actions and decisions of men.

Therefore, it constituted the internal and external reality of individuals. If the being lost his faith, he also distanced himself from the truth and from the connection with the "universal soul."

That is to say, it was moving away from sensitivity and, therefore, from the human sense. This cult proclaimed that man was not the axis of the world, but was related to nature.

Despite the paradox regarding the place occupied by individuals, humanism in the East managed to stabilize after the Vedic era (327 BC - 1500 BC), being prior to that which emerged in Europe (West).

After that period, the Asian man - despite being rooted in his religious doctrine - exercised responsibility and leadership in the construction of his own destiny, which was based on the well-being and perfection of his acts.

Humanism and interdisciplinarity

This philosophical-religious movement that developed both in the East and in the West generated freedom of thought and the so-called humanistic theory.

These terms should not be used synonymously, although one is derived from the other. Humanism can be seen as an intellectual current, while humanist doctrine is the materialization of scientific ideas.

Humanistic theory was a project that aimed to promote the progress of artistic and cultural ideas, as well as the evolution of empirical investigations, with the aim of manifesting new explanations that would help to understand the facts and the order of the world.

From there emerged interdisciplinarity: a field of study where the academic disciplines that had the purpose of expanding the conception of humanism through experiments and work were brought together.

characteristics

Interest in classical studies

One of the features of humanism that stood out most was its interest in classical studies: trying to go back to the past and establish Greco-Roman didactics through philological investigations.

The aim was to develop the historical study through the learning of another culture. Therefore, this manifestation consolidated historicity as the axis of modern thought.

The desire for power is legitimized

Humanism promotes the development of human potentialities and, therefore, defends the legitimate right to fame, prestige and power. Such a position can be seen in the book The Prince by Nicholas Machiavelli, read by today's rulers and whose power tactics are closely followed.

These values ​​more mundane than divine, enhance human virtues to the detriment of the Christian morality of God, who was careful to avoid sins and highlight religious goodness, in the scholastic period.

The man is aware of his rights

In this period European civilizations evolved from the ethical, moral and judicial point of view. The man was more aware of his rights and also of the principles of equality before the law, in the face of injustices or misdeeds that occurred at that time.

Worldly human

Unlike the vision that was held in the late Middle Ages, humanists presented men as worldly beings and destroyed the religious altar where they were.

Humanity was the center of the world, but it was still natural and historical. This approach presented the individual as an imperfect being impregnated with vices and intelligence.

Displaced church

Another essential characteristic is that the ecclesiastical institution was displaced, but not eliminated.

In other words, religion had the function of ensuring civil peace or, rather, of maintaining social order and marriage contracts; it can be said that it went from a theocratic to an anthropocentric position of reality.

Cultural identity

Humanism restored the conception of the Neoplatonic academies in order to promote a particular cultural identity.

For this reason, he proclaimed the principle that every being should know its nature; This is how he would identify his defects and virtues. The first distanced them from the social good, the second would be used for the moral progress of the State.

Optimism beats medieval pessimism

In humanism there is a faith in man, which sets aside faith in God. The cult of the ego takes shape and spreads the idea that fame and glory are worth fighting for to transcend. In this way, a world is configured that encourages great feats.

The optimistic man owns his life and does not delegate his future to God, since that conservative pessimism loses him and dares to innovate, burying the past.

Emergence of great artists

Francesco Petrarca, Dante Alighieri, Giovanni Pico Della Mirandola, Giovanni Boccaccio, Leonardo Da Vinci, Michelangelo, Donatello, among others, are the artists who lived in that era of humanistic splendor.

Thus, in the political and religious field, characters such as Erasmus of Rotterdam and Giordano Bruno emerged, the latter was sentenced to death by the Inquisition, since he began to study astronomy, against "the designs of God."

Bruno maintained that there was a vast universe, of which the Earth was only a small sphere. However, they did not believe him, considered him blasphemous and publicly cremated him. In time science would prove him right.

Scientific investigations emerge

In humanism, man began to use his intelligence and wondered about his origin. This is how he also began to conduct scientific research, with the use of his reasoning.

Science caused myths, legends and divine stories to be put aside, devaluing sacred books such as the Bible, which had been so prevalent in previous decades.

The elite contributes in art

Patrons were the elite who contributed to the creation of art. They were people who, because they had abundant economic resources, took an artist or scientist under their protection so that they could do their works or research, but always thinking of benefiting or taking advantage of it.

Specifically, patronage is the manifestation of this bond that could, to some extent, be a circumstance similar to what vassalage was in the Middle Ages.

Most popular art

It should be noted that humanist art is inspired by popular themes, and chooses them to turn it into something stylized and idealized. In poetry, the song of love, war or existence acquires relevance.

On the other hand, the pastoral novel arises, which recreates a country life away from the usual concerns of peasants.

Popular does not mean vulgar. That is to say, in humanist art there is no room for ordinary manifestations of the "plebs" (people), which will see their apogee later with the Baroque, in the seventeenth century.

Anthropocentric vision

In humanism a vision was imposed on the role of man different from the one that had existed in the previous era and gave birth to the modern era.

It is about anthropocentrism. It alludes to a branch of philosophy that, in addition to studying man in society, understands him as a factor of social change: “Man is a conductor of civilizations and a builder of cities; it is the reference for everything that is conceived and conceptualized ”.

Specifically, what this doctrine intends is that man is the measure so that everything is executed and constituted at his will, and not justify his actions before a superior being, as happened in the Middle Ages.

Trading is not a sin

The economy begins to boom and trade between countries ends up prevailing and growing constantly. Trading was no longer considered a sin. Quite the opposite.

Even the Protestant John Calvin glorifies money; believe it is a sign that God has blessed people who work

Manifestations of humanism

Humanism is a current of thought that has varied over the decades, since its doctrine was assimilated by other cultural or religious movements. For this reason, although it is a manifestation that emerged in the mid-thirteenth century, it is still in force today, as evidenced in the schools of letters and philosophy.

Throughout time, three kinds of humanisms have been manifested, which were related to promote personal reflection as an instrument of life. These are Renaissance, secular, and religious humanism.

Renaissance humanism

It arose at the end of the fourteenth century with the aim of opposing scholastic education, whose method of study was Aristotelian logic.

The teaching of scholastic philosophy was based on showing the veracity of supernatural facts that derived from Christianity. For this reason, Renaissance humanism was born, since it sought to show that miracles were a fiction.

This demonstration reacted against utilitarianism and created a new cultural circle, which stood out for including women who had the ability to speak and write fluently.

In this way, it can be seen that his objective was to contribute to the evolution of society, which is why he tried to persuade all civilians to have a prudent sharing.

Secular humanism

Secular humanism was characterized as the space in which interdisciplinarity developed.

This movement was a philosophy of life that wanted to broaden the vision of the world through the incorporation of all beliefs in the same place; that is, it did not contradict any religion that had coherence and did not emphasize superhuman events.

Within this movement were naturalism, morality and justice. The work of these currents was to watch over, grant and promote the physical and mental stability of men, who had the right to give their own meaning to their lives.

For this reason, this humanism - like the Renaissance - did not accept the supernatural explanation offered by Christianity.

To say that the world was created through magic or inexplicable events meant an attack on the psychological health of beings. On the other hand, secular humanism had great relevance since it was the first to include political ideals as pillars when building a community.

Religious humanism

This ethical expression was characterized by integrating philosophy and religious rituals in the same current of thought. Its purpose was to cooperate in the development of the abilities and interests of each individual.

During the French Revolution (1789-1799) he presented various objects or manifestations that had the function of acting as symbols. These symbols should be worshiped by men because they corresponded to the representation of their new religion.

Due to this, in 1793 Notre Dame Cathedral became the image of the "temple of reason", while the "lady of freedom" replaced the portraits of the Virgin Mary; but the most important icon was the so-called cult of reason, a doctrine started by Jacques Hérbert (1757-1794).

That cult consisted of a set of civic festivals where those people, whether humanists or scientists, who had the project of showing that God did not exist because he did not stop with the terror of war would meet.

This approach originated another system of devotion based on reasoning and critical thinking, called the “century of lights”.

Types of humanism

Humanism was a movement that participated in various areas of life, such as political, religious and scientific.

Each current influenced the perception that man had about the universe and the truth. However, three movements that drastically changed the way of seeing the environment should be highlighted: empiricism, existentialism and Marxism.

Empiricism

It was a psychological-epistemological theory based on experience. This doctrine stated that knowledge is not true if it cannot be verified with physical facts.

Empiricism is the branch of humanism that focused on practical events and not abstract arguments.

Existentialism

It was a philosophical-literary doctrine spread by Jean Paul Sartre (1905-1980) throughout the 1920s, where it was stated that man was solely responsible for his actions, freedom and emotions. Each individual is alone in the world because the divinity abandoned him and the company of other beings is not constant.

This current of thought had as its nucleus the dispossession of material and intellectual elements, which only limited the thoughts and behaviors of people.

Marxism

It was a political-economic manifestation based on the ideas of Karl Marx (1818-1883), in which it was proposed that man should develop his identity through interaction with other individuals. This aspect generated bonds of cordiality in the social environment.

This humanistic doctrine also rejected capitalism and defended the construction of a society without hierarchies.

Representatives

As a philosophical, political and intellectual thought, humanism was characterized by having numerous representatives who developed various hypotheses through their experiences.

This was how the movement became an intellectual knowledge that focused on values. In that sense, two precursors have to be distinguished: Erasmus of Rotterdam and Leonardo Da Vinci.

Erasmus of Rotterdam (1466-1536)

He was a Dutch philosopher, philologist and theologian who presented a pessimistic conception of reality. This humanist stated that life does not depend on Christianity, nor is religion the basis of existence. However, every man had to receive baptism to consecrate himself with dignity.

Rotterdam's contribution lies in his fight against scholasticism since, according to him, it was a trend that did not contribute to the evolution of scientific knowledge.

In addition, he proclaimed that man is as rational as he is sensitive and his reality would never be ideal. His purpose was to propose that decadence be happily accepted.

Leonardo da Vinci (1452-1519)

He was an author who dedicated himself to both humanistic and scientific studies, as he was obsessed with the idea of ​​the absolute.

Da Vinci considered the individual to be an unequal unit that had to be structured through his own knowledge. This is how the sketch of the Vitruvian Man arose, a project where he exposed the canon of the ideal man.

This artist motivated the inquiries in the various branches of science and art, because he stated that virtue was only found through rational learning.

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