Late Medieval Rosary

An important element of the cultural background of the Reformation was the late-medieval fashion of the memento mori or "reminder of death". Influenced by the Black Death, which seemed to strike people down at random, as well as the anxieties brought about by early modern social and political change, people continuously reminded themselves of the futility and transience of this life. With a heightened awareness that death could come at any time many in European society focused on being constantly prepared for the Final Judgement.

A common theme in the art of this period is a fixation on the macabre. Images of death and decay reminded the viewer of the fate that awaited all regardless of social standing. For the social elite in particular it was a type of ostentatious humility by which they paradoxically decried as vanity the very things they used to differentiate themselves from their social inferiors.

This rosary from the early sixteenth century is an outstanding example of urban lay piety on the eve of the Reformation. With it, the act of meditation through repetitive prayers became a reflection one's mortal frailty, and that someday soon the body would be consumed by worms and decay. As humbling as this thought is, the vehicle is anything but modest. The intricate working and the valuable materials used suggest that this object was meant for a very wealthy individual, yet this was not meant to be a public sense of display of status in the way that clothing was. Thus while it was considered virtuous to for the elite to reflect on death and the vanity of wealth, there was no reason why it couldn't be done in style.

Luther and the "New Media"

One of the things we emphasize in this class is how the Protestant Reformation was the product of a particular social, cultural, and political context instead of a sudden realization that the Catholic Church was corrupt. Luther's significance is not that he was the first religious reformer (he was not) but in the fact that he was the first reformer to achieve notable success.

Part of the historical context of the Reformation was the advent of the printing press. Although Guttenberg's invention appeared several decades before Luther's 95 theses, Luther and his inner circle were masters at exploiting the possibilities of this revolutionary invention. This article from The Economist is a good introduction to how Luther used the power of the press to spread his ideas.

Divine Apparitions in Everyday Objects

In looking at Reformation culture, one of the overarching themes is the balance between the sacred and the profane, the divine and the everyday. While every side of the confessional divide agreed that supernatural forces interacted with the physical world, this agreement tended to break down over the meaning of the sacred, its relationship with everyday life, and the authority to verify and interpret supernatural occurrences. It is a common misperception that Catholicism was more "superstitious" than Protestantism, but while Protestants did not believe in the efficacy of saints' relics for example, they were still in many ways superstitious by modern standards.

Apparitions were extremely common in pre-modern religion and people often perceived a supernatural meaning in random, accidental events. However as this montage shows, this tendency is still alive and well today in our supposedly modern, rational world. This can raise some interesting questions about the meaning of modernity, and when/how the transition to modernity took place.

Final Exam Spring 2011

Answer two of the following questions in essay form. An adequate answer will be at least 4 pages in length using the formatting guidelines linked to the syllabus. The final grade will be based on how well your response incorporates evidence from the reading assignments.

1) The Cheese and the Worms describes Menocchio's trial as part of a larger "war on popular culture". Discuss the social and cultural factors behind Menocchio's trial as well as the witch craze in the sixteenth century. How do these phenomena fit into the trend of "social disciplining"?

2) The readings on "social disciplining" and "confessionalization" suggest that religious reform and the emphasis on "godliness" went hand in hand with the centralization of state authority. Discuss.

3) How did the Reformation affect women?

Spring 2011 Midterm

Directions: Answer both questions below in essay form. An adequate answer will be a minimum of 4 pages using the formatting guidelines linked to the syllabus. Your grade will be based on how thorough your responses are and how well they incorporate the material from your reading assignments. You have nearly three weeks to work on these questions, so your essays should evince an appropriate level of effort.

A) The medieval church on the eve of the Reformation represented an accumulation of more than one thousand years of traditions, some of which even preceded Christianity itself. Discuss some of these traditions as they apply to salvation, clerical authority, and the place of the sacred in daily life. What are some of the social and cultural forces that led humanists and other reformers to question the traditions of the medieval church?

B) The Age of Exploration dramatically transformed Europe's economy and culture. Discuss the impact that the "New World" had on Europe's economy and mentality. How did contact with non-Christian cultures lead some to question the role of religion in human society and challenge European notions of their own cultural superiority? How did the discoveries lead to anxiety and doubt about past tradition and authority?