The Tragedy Of Medieval Society - 2295 Words

Medieval society was a society bound by personal relations with an authority based on the twin pillars: classical antiquity and Christianity. Between 1300 and 1800 European society underwent a gradual cultural deconstruction, through the religious reformation, scientific revolution, and development in social relations which broke down the authority of these twin pillars and redefined European society. This was a radical break that marked the 18th century as a critical moment of change in European history. Life in pre-enlightenment Europe centred around the divine, which answered questions that couldn’t be answered by accepted knowledge. Everyday thinking was influenced by the religious linear historical progression that was distinct and†¦show more content†¦People found comfort and commonality between each other in the church, and thus a common, unified cultural and religious identity was shared there. There was also apprehension about their survival, both in everyday life and eternal Salvation, and thus found comfort in the sacred. Thus, the Church was important not just as a place of worship but also as a form of identity and comfort. Community was not only experienced through the church, and the Early Modern period can be characterised as a period of development from â€Å"Space† to â€Å"place† – creating places with meaning for the community. Rural society was a topographical patchwork wherein rich and poor were bound by the harvest quality each year. Only 10 – 20 percent of Early Modern Europeans lived in towns. Towns were the local political, economic, administrative and cultural centres, however the extent of urbanisation differed between states and were dependant on several factors including economic shifts, political forces, and socio-economic diversity. Thus, urban society experienced, accommodated, and influenced social, economic, and cultural change in this period, as towns were the forefront of the major trends. The development of universitas in the 12-13th centuries is crucial in the creation of intellectual culture, and the concept of community in Early Modern Europe. People grouped together for protection, as many were