Text 1: Historian Klein argues that the Renaissance represented a sharp break with medieval thought. Humanist scholars rediscovered classical texts, valued individual achievement, and embraced empirical observation, replacing the theological worldview of the Middle Ages with a recognizably modern outlook.
Text 2: Historian Antonelli challenges the Renaissance-as-rupture thesis. Many "humanist" innovations, she argues, had medieval precedents — twelfth-century scholars were already studying classical texts, and Gothic cathedrals reflected sophisticated mathematical thinking. The Renaissance, in her view, accelerated and rebranded medieval developments rather than breaking from them.
The authors most clearly disagree about
- A
whether the Renaissance occurred.
- Bcheck_circle
whether the Renaissance represented a sharp break from medieval thought.
- C
whether humanists studied classical texts.
- D
whether medieval Europe had cathedrals.
Explanation
Both accept the Renaissance and humanist study of classical texts. They disagree on the degree of rupture. B captures the dispute.