Editing Module:Petrarch (section)

==Philosophy==
[[File:Statue of Francesco Petrarca- Uffizi Gallery.jpg|thumb|left|upright|Statue of Petrarch on the Uffizi Palace, in Florence]]Petrarch is often referred to as the father of [[humanism]] and considered by many to be the "father of the [[Renaissance]]".<ref>See for example [[Rudolf Pfeiffer]], ''History of Classical Scholarship 1300–1850'', Oxford University Press, 1976, p. 1; Gilbert Highet, ''The Classical Tradition,'' Oxford University Press, 1949, p. 81–88.</ref> In ''[[Secretum (book)|Secretum meum]]'', he points out that secular achievements do not necessarily preclude an authentic relationship with God, arguing instead that God has given humans their vast intellectual and creative potential to be used to its fullest.<ref>[[Famous First Facts]] International, H.W. Wilson Company, New York 2000, {{ISBN|0-8242-0958-3}}, p. 303, item 4567.</ref> He inspired humanist philosophy, which led to the intellectual flowering of the Renaissance. He believed in the immense moral and practical value of the study of ancient history and literature{{mdash}}that is, the study of human thought and action. Petrarch was a devout Catholic and did not see a conflict between realizing humanity's potential and having [[religious faith]], although many philosophers and scholars have styled him a [[Proto-Protestantism|Proto-Protestant]] who challenged the Pope's dogma.<ref>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=5VqIeLaN_HYC&dq=%22petrarch%22+%22proto-protestant%22&pg=PA143|title=The Uses of History in Early Modern England|date=2006|editor=Paulina Kewes|page=143|publisher=Huntington Library|isbn=9780873282192}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Vww9sIBSG6cC&dq=%22petrarch%22+%22proto-protestant%22&pg=PA3|title=The Site of Petrarchism Early Modern National Sentiment in Italy, France, and England|date=2004|author=William J. Kennedy|page=3|publisher=Johns Hopkins University Press|isbn=9780801881268}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=CrL1DwAAQBAJ&dq=%22petrarch%22+%22proto-protestant%22&pg=PA6|title=Petrarch's 'Triumphi' in the British Isles|page=6|editor=Alessandra Petrina|date=2020|publisher=Modern Humanities Research Association|isbn=9781781888827}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=aufeDwAAQBAJ&dq=%22petrarch%22+%22proto-protestant%22&pg=PT109|title=The Early Modern English Sonnet|publisher=Manchester University Press|date=2020|editor1=Enrica Zanin|editor2=Rémi Vuillemin|editor3=Laetitia Sansonetti|editor4=Tamsin Badcoe|isbn=9781526144416}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=JQaOCwAAQBAJ&dq=%22petrarch%22+%22proto-protestant%22&pg=PA10|title=Vittoria Colonna and the Spiritual Poetics of the Italian Reformation|page=10|author=Abigail Brundin|publisher=Taylor & Francis|date=2016|isbn=9781317001065}}</ref>

A highly introspective man, Petrarch helped shape the nascent humanist movement as many of the internal conflicts and musings expressed in his writings were embraced by Renaissance humanist philosophers and argued continually for the next 200 years. For example, he struggled with the proper relation between the active and contemplative life, and tended to emphasize the importance of solitude and study. In a clear disagreement with Dante, in 1346 Petrarch argued in ''[[De vita solitaria]]'' that [[Pope Celestine V]]'s refusal of the papacy in 1294 was a virtuous example of solitary life.<ref>{{Cite book | last= Petrarca | first = Francesco | title = De vita Solitaria | location = Bologna | publisher = Gaetano Romagnoli | year = 1879 | url = https://archive.org/details/lavitasolitaria01petr | language = it}}</ref> Later the politician and thinker [[Leonardo Bruni]] (1370–1444) argued for the active life, or "[[civic humanism]]". As a result, a number of political, military, and religious leaders during the Renaissance were inculcated with the notion that their pursuit of personal fulfillment should be grounded in [[Classical era|classical]] example and philosophical contemplation.<ref>{{Cite web| url = https://edizionighibli.com/francesco-petrarca/ | language = it | title=Edizioni Ghibli, Il Rinascimento e Petrarca| date = August 18, 2016 |publisher=edizionighibli.com| access-date=September 6, 2019}}</ref>