Home to some of the most outstanding artists, writers, and theorists the world has known,
Renaissance Italy, with its ancient memories of Roman greatness, gave birth to one of the world's
greatest cultural revolutions.  The contributions of the city of Florence were crucial to that
revolution: its robust and exuberant vision of human life is shaped by the Florentine spirit.  If you
have experienced the darkness of Dante's hell and the rarified light of his heaven--or even if you
haven't-- you will find a different kind of excitement in the human measure of Boccaccio's
sometimes bawdy wit, Giotto's figures, Donatello's sculptures, Alberti's ideas on the family and
architecture, Machiavelli's controversial political ideas, Leonard's painting and scientific
orientation.  Florentine artists, writers and thinkers brought Western ideals down to earth and
created a spectacular heritage for our modern world in which individual talent and initiative have
come to have a new significance.
Come and join us for a tour of one of the world's great cities; it is a journey of exploration and
discovery.  We will take you on a walking tour of the city, using aerial photographs and slides, to
show you her greatest monuments in art and architecture.  We will introduce you to some of
Florence's most famous citizens: find out why Vasari called this period the "rebirth"; why
Boccaccio's Decameron was kept locked up in many libraries in this century; why Michelangelo
wore dogskin boots; why Machiavelli does not deserve the reputation of a "Machiavellian"; why
Petrarch's love of gardening and mountain climbing was controversial in his times; why modern
songwriters still depict love in terms of "fire" and "burning"; how Florence was able to bankroll
the Hundred Years War between England and France; why Boccaccio wrote a story about Giotto;
why Cellini told the Pope a=that artists such as himself are above the law; why they painted fig
leaves on figures in Michelangelo's Last Judgment; who inspired Shakespeare's All's Well That
Ends Well; why Boccaccio says "a sin that's hidden is half forgiven"; and so on.
This course is a survey of Florentine culture of the Renaissance (1300--1530); the major
emphasis will be upon such artists and writers as Giotto, Boccaccio, Masaccio, Donatello,
Lorenzo de' Medici, Leonardo da Vinci, Leon Battista Alberti, Machiavelli, Michelangelo, Vasari
and Benvenuto Cellini.  For more information, contact the instructors: Julia Bondanella (Italian,
5-3554 or 5-9408) and Bruce Cole (Art History, 5-9556).  This course is listed jointly by Italian
and
Art History:  M234/A234 is approved for Culture Studies credit by COAS.