History 238 Fall 2012 MIDTERM

Directions:  Answer TWO of the following questions in essay form.  I will be looking at how well your response is supported by evidence from the assigned readings.  An adequate response will be AT LEAST three pages using the standard formatting requirements for this class.

1) The Reformation was arguable more a product of late medieval society and culture than it was of Luther's theology.  Describe the social and cultural factors that made the Reformation possible, particularly in Northern Europe.

2) The Reformation developed in (and for some, contributed to) an atmosphere of profound anxiety in the sixteenth century.  Describe the sense of crisis in the sixteenth century and the factors that contributed to it.

3) Luther was not a lone actor in the religious revolution that carries his name.  Describe the social context that Luther's career began in, and how political and social conditions in the early sixteenth century contributed to the success of his movement.  How did patronage and social networks contribute to the development and spread of the Protestant movement.

The Ship of Fools

This is a repost of an online exhibition of Sebastian Brant's Narrenschiff, which was originally published in 1494 and went through several subsequent editions over the next couple decades.  Historically significant for being one of the earliest "bestsellers" of the early print age, it is also one of the early commissions of a young Albrect Durer.

By satirically taking the voice of "Folly", the author had a sort of poetic license to criticize the social institutions of his day and what he viewed as the political and religious corruption around him.  This is one of many examples of the sense of disillusionment felt by many intellectuals of the time, especially in Northern Europe.

The Ship of Fools was a common allegory of the time that went after the much wider theme of how human temptation leads the leaders of society astray.