ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL PERSPECTIVES OF THE FAMILY AND SOCIETY IN RENAISSANCE

Abstract

This paper aims to analyse the ways in which a marriage can be concluded in the case of rich and noble families, as well as in the case of the poor ones. Marriage habits are different, depending on the social and economic status, and most of these traditions prevail nowadays also. The institution of marriage will lead to a transformation of the sentimental imaginary, starting from the Middle Ages’ fin amor, played by the troubadours, to the pragmatic, interested relationship, focused on procreation and the transfer of possession. At the mental level, we are observing the magic of the inside reflexion, inwardly, towards that inner feeling analysed by both literary and artistic specialists. The social status of the family cannot be provided by an individual. Affiliation to a family ensures social inclusion and human survival. The role of the family in society is a sum of the roles of each member, the man may have the archetypes of prince or warrior, artist or humanist, merchant or clergyman, scholar or adventurer; the woman, first of all mother or daughter, widow, virgin or prostitute, nun or witch; the child seen as a follower of the family's reputation, entrepreneur and supporter of the mother. The feminine condition in the family is a tragic one, as the woman gets to accept the premature disappearance of her beloved children, removed from inheritance in noble families through crime or natural causes. Examples of historical realities and artistic works will support the above statements and lead to conclusions.