Renaissance is a period developed in Italy, during the fourteenth century, and then spread to the north Europe in  the sixteen century. It is characterized by enormous renewal of interest in study of classical antiquity. This was also an age of discover both Geographical, Scientific and intellectual. Renaissance thinkers associate themselves with classical antiquity and dissociate themselves form the middle ages. They were unsatisfied, the period was not able to give them enough answer, and in the Middle Ages the vision had religious limits.

The classical chain of being continues in the Renaissance. The vision of middle age was that every existing thing in the universe had its "place" in a divinely planned hierarchical order. The Renaissance thinkers viewed a human being as a microcosm that reflected the structure of the world as a whole, the macrocosm; just as the world was composed of four "elements" (earth, water, air, fire), so too was the human body composed of four substances called "humours”, but there were still hierarchical order.

 The fear of "disorder" was not only philosophical, it had significant political ramifications. The renaissance sign the end for the most part to feudalism, the major political accomplishment of the renaissance was the establishment of effective central government. In  Italy there were city-state. It is no wonder then that much Renaissance literature is concerned with the ideals of kingship.

 Humanism, represented a shift from the “contemplative life” to the “active life”. In the Middle Ages great values had been attached from religion. In the Renaissance, the highest cultural values were usually associated with active involvement in public life, in moral, political, and military action, and in service to the state. The traditional religious values coexisted with the new secular values. Renaissance man was an individual who participate in public life, possesses knowledge in different area and teach that.

Another concept from Classical era was the concept of imitation. To a great extent, contemporary critics believed that the great literary works expressing definitive moral values had already been written in classical antiquity. The most important genre of this period were epic, satire, comedy and tragedies.

The Protestant Reformation was a movement that had profound implications, not only for the modern world in general, but specifically for literary history. The Reformation had significant political ramifications, for it split Europe into Protestant and Catholic countries, which often went to war with each other during this period. Among the most important tenets of Protestantism was the rejection of the Pope as a spiritual leader. Protestants believed only in a direct relation with God.

Protestants were similar to Humanists. Protestants wanted to translate the Bible (Catholics didn’t want that) in different language, so became a renewed source of literary inspiration In this period there will be also the revival of great drama, characterized by the greatest English writer: Shakespeare.