Throughout my blogs I gain a better understanding of what the Italian Renaissance really was. In the beginning of the class I was so lost in the words of different philosophers “I often find myself saying ‘I agree… Oh, I disagree… Or maybe I do agree… Maybe it’s some of both?’ I become quickly confused as to how I can be so conflicted with just one person’s words and the many ways you can choose to interpret them.” (Pico Blog) and I was having so much trouble following the class. But, as the class progressed I found reading and keeping up in class (as far as comprehension is concerned) much easier. You can see this in my blogs. Instead of just connecting class ideas with other class ideas – such as my city and art blogs – I begin to draw connections outside of class – such as my last two blogs – and I believe that is an accurate sign to deeper comprehension.
Great Expectations --> Fulfilled and more. In my expectations I wrote about my excitement for learning about the Arts, but I don’t write at all about the Philosophy. I would have to say that even though I had an overwhelming excitement about the Arts of the Renaissance (which was in no way unfulfilled), the Philosophy that we learned in this class, For me, far outshined the Art. I haven’t had a lot of experience with philosophers or their theories; I’ve never thought of studying thought and learning (however, as a psychology major you’d think I would’ve) and with the help of this class I’ve found that I very much enjoy philosophy and I plan on continuing to learn in its field. This class fulfilled my expectations as an interdisciplinary class; being able to hear each diverse opinion that is founded in differing studies and sources was more of a privilege than I had thought. I find myself thinking more open-mindedly and arguing my point in my own head before I begin to speak. Although I don’t know whether this change can be attributed to the interdisciplinary nature of the course or having been immersed in a unfamiliar culture, but I can be sure that the change is because of the FOTIR Perugian experience.
Self-Understanding? In class we went around the room answering the question “do you think that you are a Renaissance thinker?” I would like to say yes… and I thought I had a lot to back it up with. Yes, I am pretty versatile (pretty good at a lot of things, but not super amazing at anything) and I have a great respect for learning for the sake of learning. I am more of a humanist than I thought I would be (I think along the Neo-Platonist belief that we as humans are capable of more than poor imitations, we should attempt to do these things because we have been gifted the aptitude… to reject that opportunity would be a dishonor). However, for those same reasons I have proven myself not as much a renaissance woman in my actions. If I truly thought that learning and human capacity were a treasure, I would have tried harder in this class and thus had many, many more blogs. So, yes. I have come to understand myself a lot more through this class. A short five weeks ago I had no idea who Plato, Socrates, Pico, Machiavelli or any of the fantastic philosophers were let alone anything that they taught/believed. Not only am I proud that I can now be involved in philosophical discussions and not seem like a complete dummy, but I am also honored to be able to have educated opinions about these philosophers and some of their teachings. I can explain in a sophisticated fashion why I agree or disagree with Pico, appreciate and discuss the beauty that is controlled Renaissance music. Learning truly is a treasure, it enriches us; with every new piece of information we can add to our fortune and in the end we will have a marvelous array of precious jewels and metals that complement each other in ways that were never anticipated.
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