What is the difference between renaissance and enlightenment?

Answer 1

The Renaissance is the era beginning about the 15th century when new ideas began to emerge in Europe as a result of the proliferation of books as a result of Gutenberg's invention of a practical way to cast movable type elements. Books led to literacy, literacy led to questioning minds wanting to know why things were so. In the process people discovered that many things believed to have been settled long ago were wrong, particularly the scientific writings of Aristotle and Ptolemy.

With their new found literacy, people demanded to be able to read The Bible in their own languages, instead of having to have a priest interpret from Latin. This produced revelations that not all the practices of the church were in accordance with what was scriptural. The resultant discontent led to the Protestant Reformation.

Meanwhile, the arts flourished, as churches and the wealthy aristocrats began to demand a return to the glory of the days of the Romans and the Greeks.

In a way, the Enlightenment was just the final political stages of the Renaissance. Notions such as that of questioning arbitrary authority and governments being the servant of the people and not their master that were forged as a result of the Reformation surfaced and became "self-evident." Once people begin thinking for themselves there is little that can stop them.

Also in a way, the Enlightenment is still with us. Notions such as that equal rights to justice are for all men AND women and not for just white males is actually rather recent, especially in implementation. Fortunately, even though at times it takes a while, if something is the right thing to do then eventually it is what the United States does

Answer 2

The Renaissance was a cultural movement in Europe from the 14th to 17th century focused on art, literature, and Humanism. The Enlightenment was an intellectual movement in the 17th and 18th centuries that emphasized reason, science, and individual rights. The Renaissance was more focused on the revival of classical ideas and artistic expression, while the Enlightenment was more about questioning traditional beliefs and promoting progress through reason.