Reassessing the Renaissance

The idea of the Renaissance as a golden age is often challenged by the notion that this period was filled with propaganda designed to reshape historical narratives. The podcast addresses the frequent misconceptions surrounding the Renaissance, including the simplistic contrasts between a so-called 'dark age' and a 'golden age.' Scholars argue that these ideas were propagated to serve political ends, allowing leaders to claim associations with greatness while dismissing rivals as remnants of darkness. This historical over-simplification invites deeper exploration of the complexities that characterized the Renaissance, illustrating that it was not uniformly positive or negative, but rather a time of significant social, political, and cultural upheaval.