Assignment:
1) Initial Post
Please choose one of the following questions, and post your response of a minimum of 150 words. Be sure that your comments are original, thoughtful, and well developed. This discussion will be open for the whole course, so check back frequently:
1) Go Danteworlds and read to find an area, and discuss one of Dante's circles of the Inferno or Purgatorio. Discuss briefly (one or two sentences) what kind of sin is there and what is the punishment or penance. Is it an appropriate setup? Do you feel it is too harsh or too lenient, and explain why? How would you change it to fit your answer, and fit the modern time? (Now, I understand that people can get creative, so please make sure to keep your language proper, and your responses relevant. Also, keep your replies respectful.
Or
2) Some have argued that the Renaissance would NOT have happened if the Medici did not influence the arts. Discuss the Medici family's contributions to humanist scholarship and art, and explain how the role of a patron helps to promote the arts. Support your post with ideas found in the etextbook and compare it to those found in your research.
Or
3) Visit the Lorenzo Ghiberti website (go to the next page on Brunelleschi as well) and read up on the rivalry between Lorenzo Ghiberti and Filippo Brunelleschi. The rivalry was born regarding the competition over the decorative bronze doors on the Florentine Baptistery and how each of them conducted themselves in this competition. Was Ghiberti being an intelligent competitor, or dishonest? Did Brunelleschi overreact or was his reaction appropriate? Choose one of these two artists and support how your chosen artist acted in this competition as being the right way to act. If you do not agree with how either acted in this competition, please describe how you would have approached this competition if you were one of the artists?