Decide if the following statements are True or False. Be ready to explain False statements.

1) The Middle Ages was a period that took place between the prosperity of ancient Rome in 476 A.D. and the beginning of the 14th century.

2) Some historians agree that there was relatively little regard for ancient Greek and Roman philosophies and learning at the time.

3) As a result of this advance in communication, little known texts from early humanist authors were printed and distributed to the masses.

4) The Renaissance started in Florence, Germany, a place with a rich cultural history where wealthy citizens could afford to support budding artists.

5) The famous backers of the Renaissance were members of the powerful Medici family, which ruled Florence for more than 60 years.

6) Great Italian writers, artists, politicians and others declared that they were participating in a grim and bloody revolution that would be much different from what they experienced during the Dark Ages.

7) During the 15th century Renaissance ideas spread from France to Italy and then throughout western and northern Europe.

 

Match the following words and phrases with their definitions. How do you understand them?

The Renaissance	a period that took place between the fall of ancient Rome in 476 A.D. and the beginning of the 14th century
Humanism	a powerful family, which ruled Florence for more than 60 years
The Middle Ages	a situation in which there is not enough food for a great number of people, causing illness and death, or a particular period when this happens
Dark Ages	a belief system based on the principle that people's spiritual and emotional needs can be satisfied without following a god or religion
Medici family	a period of new growth of interest and activity in the areas of art, literature, and ideas in Europe during the 15th and 16th centuries
Ignorance	a period, often branded as a time of war, ignorance, famine and pandemics such as the Black Death
Famine	(of a disease) existing in almost all of an area or in almost all of a group of people, animals, or plants
Pandemics	lack of knowledge, understanding, or information about something

 

Translate the questions from Russian into English.

1) В каком году Оттоманская империя захватила Константинополь?

2) Какое ещё событие произошло в тот же год?

3) Что создал Иоганн Гутенберг?

4) Какой точки в Америке Колумб достиг первой?

5) Кем был Васко да Гама и за что он стал известен?

6) Что несла в себе Реформация?

7) Какое влияние Реформация оказала на искусство и литературу?

8) Чем был знаменит Коперник?

9) Что означает термин Тёмные века?

10) Что изменил приход гуманизма?

 

Discuss the translated questions in pairs or small groups.

Open the brackets and put the words into the correct form.

Christopher Marlowe 1) ______ (be) Elizabethan poet and Shakespeare’s most important predecessor in English drama, who is noted especially for his establishment of 2) _______ (drama) blank verse. He was the 3) _________ (two) child and 4) _______ (old) son of John Marlowe, a Canterbury shoemaker.

After 1587 Marlowe was in London, writing for the theatres, occasionally 5) _______ (get) into trouble with the authorities because of his violent and disreputable behaviour, and probably also engaging himself from time to time in government service. Marlowe 6) ______ (win) a dangerous reputation for “atheism,” but this could, in Elizabeth I’s time, indicate merely unorthodox religious opinions.

In a playwriting career that 7) _________ (span) little more than six years, Marlowe’s achievements 8) _______ (be) diverse and splendid. Perhaps before 9) _______ (leave) Cambridge he had already written Tamburlaine the Great. Almost certainly, during his later Cambridge years, Marlowe 10) __________ (translate) Ovid’s Amores (The Loves) and the first book of Lucan’s Pharsalia from the Latin. About this time he also wrote the play Dido, Queen of Carthage[13].

 

CASE-STUDY

The Renaissance means not only cultural changes but also economical ones. To understand the importance of finance in historical change use the Internet to make a research and complete the tasks.

Group 1. Generate a list of economic changes that occurred during the Renaissance (examples include letter of credit, gold florin, or holding company). Connect them to modern interactions (how is the letter of credit like a credit card? of what does a holding company remind you?).

Group 2. Study the Medici family and their contributions to banking. In what ways did the Medicis use banking and financial management to push the Renaissance forward?

 

WRITING