10-10-14 AP Euro
During the Renaissance there were many various values and purposes of education. Over time, these were challenged and transformed. Major themes that remained in this time period were the benefits of education, the faults of education, and education for women. The benefits of education in Italy and the United Kingdom during the Renaissance changed over a hundred-year period, starting in 1528. Education was used to create the perfect courtier, someone who had a passable knowledge in the humanities. Castiglione believed that the purpose of this knowledge was to entertain women with writing, and judge the writings of others (Document 3). When Guicciardini was a young man, there was not very much weight put on the education of more decorative skills in the arts. However, by the time he was a man, these skills showed great prestige. They could lead to the favor of royalty, as well as great honors and profits (Document 6). In 1562, only a small percentage of jobs valued and required a complete education. Shown in the chart, the percentages of justices of the peace that attended universities grew tremendously in the United Kingdom as time went on. By attending the universities, people could obtain better jobs. This gave education a new value that was more tangible than what was seen in the past (Document 12). As an Italian diplomat, Castiglione’s point of view shows how in Italy great merit was prized, as well as knowledge of the humanities. Since Guicciardini was an Italian statesman, his point of view was similar to Castiglione’s and there was not much of a difference between their opinions. The benefits of education altered from 1562 to 1636. Starting out as being more of advances in social standings, education ended up being highly valued when it came to getting jobs. Faults of education were seen during the Renaissance, the flaws varying from the end of the 16th century to the mid 17th century.