The new middle class of people, tradesmen, grew into a wealthy class that solidified the foundation of the aristocracy. The new middle class consisted of tradesmen, which are people who specialize and are experts in a specific industry. The Medieval Era was known to have many scholars, for becoming an expert took much skill and effort. Some of the experts included, bankers, accountants, merchants and tradespeople. Many of this new class used their free time to play musical instruments, study topics unrelated to their profession, and read for pleasure. The wealth that these newly successful people made, was rather quick and very appealing to the common man. As the skilled workers became very comfortable with their level of wealth, the desire for new, expensive items came to mind. Due to their recent successes, they began to wish to show off their prosperity. Amongst their riches, they dreamt of luxurious homes, fine art, boisterous apparel to display their gain, and exotic, expensive food. These purchases drove the economy in the Medieval Era. The fine art that was associated with the Medieval Era was characterized to be of religious influence. However, the true depiction of the Medieval Era is in the manufacture of the pieces. Before the Middle Ages, art was produced without many copies and was typically very expensive. On the other hand, when the prosperous group increased and the demand for art was higher, pieces were often duplicated and found much easier. The art industry blossomed and even small villages had fine art.
by: Kaylee Anderson, Benjamin Hillman, Benjamin Lee, Kimberlin Low
Melody Sue, Tiffany Chen, Lucy Zhao
ReplyDeletewyl.t2.p5
That was a very well written piece that was obviously well researched. Your information about the scholars greatly showed that they were becoming wealthy and prosperous. We found that during the Medieval era, such “successes” of these people have also helped social interaction which in turn was shown in Medieval art. What we learned from your synthesis was that not only were trades people gaining riches in society, bankers, accountants, and merchants all were able to enjoy their free time. We liked how you gave background information about how this “new class” that was able to actually have hobbies and time for pleasure due to their new level of wealth. You also included that they were able to enjoy great riches and luxury. This would have been a great place to transition into the art that was the one of the main components of the question. However, we would have liked to see some specific examples of Medieval art that show that the tradesmen were becoming affluent. For example, we talked about how skilled tradesmen involved their art with religion in stonework. However, we do like how you gave many examples on what fine riches that they acquire through their new lifestyles, but you should have focused more on how these riches were shown in their art. Good job on your synthesis though! I enjoyed reading it and learned much from it.