The Ugly Renaissance
Sex, Greed, Violence and Depravity in an Age of Beauty
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Narrated by:
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Arthur Morey
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By:
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Alexander Lee
About this listen
A fascinating and counterintuitive portrait of the sordid, hidden world behind the dazzling artwork of Michelangelo, Leonardo da Vinci, Botticelli, and more....
Renowned as a period of cultural rebirth and artistic innovation, the Renaissance is cloaked in a unique aura of beauty and brilliance. Its very name conjures up awe-inspiring images of an age of lofty ideals in which life imitated the fantastic artworks for which it has become famous. But behind the vast explosion of new art and culture lurked a seamy, vicious world of power politics, perversity, and corruption that has more in common with the present day than anyone dares to admit.
In this lively and meticulously researched portrait, Renaissance scholar Alexander Lee illuminates the dark and titillating contradictions that were hidden beneath the surface of the period’s best-known artworks. Rife with tales of scheming bankers, greedy politicians, sex-crazed priests, bloody rivalries, vicious intolerance, rampant disease, and lives of extravagance and excess, this gripping exploration of the underbelly of Renaissance Italy shows that, far from being the product of high-minded ideals, the sublime monuments of the Renaissance were created by flawed and tormented artists who lived in an ever-expanding world of inequality, dark sexuality, bigotry, and hatred.
The Ugly Renaissance is a delightfully debauched journey through the surprising contradictions of Italy’s past and shows that were it not for the profusion of depravity and degradation, history’s greatest masterpieces might never have come into being.
PLEASE NOTE: When you purchase this title, the accompanying PDF will be available in your Audible Library along with the audio.
©2014 Alexander Lee (P)2014 Random House AudioListeners also enjoyed...
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The Venetians' language and way of thinking set them aside from the rest of Italy. They are an island people, linked to the sea and to the tides rather than the land. This latest work from the incomparable Peter Ackroyd, like a magic gondola, transports its listeners to that sensual and surprising city. His account embraces facts and romance, conjuring up the atmosphere of the canals, bridges, and sunlit squares, the churches and the markets, the festivals and the flowers.
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An endless droning list.....
- By jack on 03-15-11
By: Peter Ackroyd
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Our Oriental Heritage
- The Story of Civilization, Volume 1
- By: Will Durant
- Narrated by: Robin Field
- Length: 50 hrs and 17 mins
- Unabridged
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The first volume of Will Durant's Pulitzer Prize-winning series, Our Oriental Heritage: The Story of Civilization, Volume I chronicles the early history of Egypt, the Middle East, and Asia.
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Wonderful
- By Michael on 11-30-13
By: Will Durant
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Constantine the Emperor
- By: David Potter
- Narrated by: Phil Holland
- Length: 11 hrs and 14 mins
- Unabridged
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This year Christians worldwide will celebrate the 1700th anniversary of Constantine's conversion and victory at the Battle of the Milvian Bridge. No Roman emperor had a greater impact on the modern world than did Constantine. The reason is not simply that he converted to Christianity but that he did so in a way that brought his subjects along after him. Indeed, this major new biography argues that Constantine's conversion is but one feature of a unique administrative style that enabled him to take control of an empire beset by internal rebellions and external threats by Persians and Goths.
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In this sign thou shalt conquer!
- By Darwin8u on 06-11-18
By: David Potter
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Shakespeare and the Resistance
- By: Clare Asquith
- Narrated by: Allan Corduner
- Length: 7 hrs and 27 mins
- Unabridged
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The 1590s were bleak years for England. The queen was old, the succession unclear, and the treasury empty after decades of war. Amid the rising tension, William Shakespeare published a pair of poems dedicated to the young Earl of Southampton: Venus and Adonis in 1593 and The Rape of Lucrece a year later. Although wildly popular during Shakespeare's lifetime, to modern readers both works are almost impenetrable. But in her enthralling new book, the Shakespearean scholar Clare Asquith reveals their hidden contents.
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Excellent scholarship unveiling hidden history
- By Lumen Fidei on 07-03-23
By: Clare Asquith
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Incarnations
- India in Fifty Lives
- By: Sunil Khilnani
- Narrated by: Vikas Adam
- Length: 16 hrs and 51 mins
- Unabridged
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For all of India's myths, its sea of stories and moral epics, Indian history remains a curiously unpeopled place. In Incarnations, Sunil Khilnani fills that space, recapturing the human dimension of how the world's largest democracy came to be. His trenchant portraits of emperors, warriors, philosophers, film stars, and corporate titans - some famous, some unjustly forgotten - bring feeling, wry humor, and uncommon insight to dilemmas that extend from ancient times to our own.
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Great listen, the author is biased
- By Anonymous User on 02-15-19
By: Sunil Khilnani
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The Islamic Enlightenment
- The Struggle Between Faith and Reason: 1798 to Modern Times
- By: Christopher de Bellaigue
- Narrated by: Charles Armstrong
- Length: 15 hrs and 11 mins
- Unabridged
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This absorbing account of the political and social reformations that transformed the lands of Islam during the 19th and early 20th centuries offers a game-changing assessment of the Middle East. Beginning his account in 1798, de Bellaigue demonstrates how the Middle East has long welcomed modern ideals and practices, including the adoption of modern medicine, the emergence of women from seclusion, and the development of democracy.
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fascinating story not told.elsewhere in one place
- By Joseph Sullivan on 11-30-21
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Natasha's Dance
- A Cultural History of Russia
- By: Orlando Figes
- Narrated by: Ric Jerrom
- Length: 29 hrs and 23 mins
- Unabridged
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Beginning in the 18th century with the building of St. Petersburg - a 'window on the West' - and culminating with the challenges posed to Russian identity by the Soviet regime, Figes examines how writers, artists, and musicians grappled with the idea of Russia itself - its character, spiritual essence and destiny. He skillfully interweaves the great works - by Dostoevsky, Stravinsky, and Chagall - with folk embroidery, peasant songs, religious icons and all the customs of daily life, from food and drink to bathing habits to beliefs about the spirit world.
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A Kaleidescopic panorama of an enigmatic culture.
- By Tarquin on 02-13-19
By: Orlando Figes
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Amsterdam
- A History of the World's Most Liberal City
- By: Russell Shorto
- Narrated by: Russell Shorto
- Length: 11 hrs and 25 mins
- Unabridged
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In this effortlessly erudite account, Russell Shorto traces the idiosyncratic evolution of Amsterdam, showing how such disparate elements as herring anatomy, naked Anabaptists parading through the streets, and an intimate gathering in a 16th-century wine-tasting room had a profound effect on Dutch - and world - history. Weaving in his own experiences of his adopted home, Shorto provides an ever-surprising, intellectually engaging story of Amsterdam from its golden age to the present.
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Worth Reading - Highly Recommended
- By Whit B on 05-12-14
By: Russell Shorto
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SPQR
- A History of Ancient Rome
- By: Mary Beard
- Narrated by: Phyllida Nash
- Length: 18 hrs and 30 mins
- Unabridged
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In SPQR, world-renowned classicist Mary Beard narrates the unprecedented rise of a civilization that even 2,000 years later still shapes many of our most fundamental assumptions about power, citizenship, responsibility, political violence, empire, luxury, and beauty.
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Shallow and unsatisfying
- By Joe on 02-19-17
By: Mary Beard
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The Life and Times of Chaucer
- By: John Gardner
- Narrated by: Graeme Malcolm
- Length: 15 hrs and 26 mins
- Unabridged
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In this exquisite biography, John Gardner brings to life Geoffrey Chaucer, illuminating his writings and their inspiration like never before. Through exhaustive research and expert storytelling, Gardner takes readers through Chaucer’s varied career - from writing The Canterbury Tales to performing diplomatic work at the Parliament - and creates a fully realized portrait of an author whose work would remake the English language forever. Written with passion and insight, this a must-listen for those interested in Chaucer and the medieval time period.
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Good book, but quoted passages are in Old English
- By Kathi on 02-26-14
By: John Gardner
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What the Ermine Saw
- The Extraordinary Journey of Leonardo da Vinci's Most Mysterious Portrait
- By: Eden Collinsworth
- Narrated by: Cassandra Campbell
- Length: 5 hrs and 45 mins
- Unabridged
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Five hundred and thirty years ago, a young woman sat before a Grecian-nosed artist known as Leonardo da Vinci. Her name was Cecilia Gallerani, and she was the young mistress of Ludovico Sforza, duke of Milan. Sforza was a brutal and clever man who was mindful that Leonardo’s genius would not only capture Cecilia’s beguiling beauty but also reflect the grandeur of his title. But when the portrait was finished, Leonardo’s brush strokes had conveyed something deeper by revealing the essence of Cecilia’s soul.
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So Many Names
- By Sue Solomon on 12-13-22
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Heroes
- From Alexander the Great and Julius Caesar to Churchill and de Gaulle
- By: Paul Johnson
- Narrated by: James Adams
- Length: 11 hrs and 4 mins
- Unabridged
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In this enlightening and entertaining work, Johnson presents heroism through examples in history. From Alexander to Joan of Arc and George Washington to Marilyn Monroe, here are men and women from every age and corner of the world who have inspired and transformed their cultures and the world itself.
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Interesting, but deeply flawed
- By Kennet on 12-27-07
By: Paul Johnson
What listeners say about The Ugly Renaissance
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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- peter brumlik
- 10-26-21
Realistic look at the Renaissance
Well narrated. The epilogue would be better placed as chapter one. A good read overall.
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- AnonymousB’ham
- 12-16-17
Informative but unfortunately listens like a college textbook
Bought this title because I have always enjoyed history. It is touted as a fresh and exciting take on the Renaissance. While it does contain a wealth of details, it just listens like a college textbook. Not sure if it’s the narration or the writing, but I hate to say — I struggled to finish it and I am a history enthusiast. Would only recommend it if you have minimal knowledge of Renaissance and want to educate yourself.
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1 person found this helpful
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- John M. Kegley
- 07-26-15
Nothing new under the sun
We tend to believe the stories we were taught. The Renaissance was a period of unequaled beauty and creativity. It was, but it was also a period of the Black Death, and the emptying of chamber pots out windows unto the streets. Popes with illegitimate children, bankers killing rivals racism against Jews and Muslims and the enslavement of millions. A most interesting story of the lives and time of many of the greats, Michelangelo, Da Vinci, etc and the true conditions under which they lived and worked
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1 person found this helpful
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- William
- 04-15-23
Wonderful!
A really enjoyable and informative perspective on the renaissance! Highly recommended, and worth listening to again sometime in the future.
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- Athenaesq
- 07-06-21
Quite disappointing
As the book progresses it is increasingly shaped by the author’s leftist politics. Things reach a crescendo at the end when the author claims that Renaissance artists’ failure to depict the native peoples of Africa and the New World was evidence of deepest bigotry. Pass this one by.
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- Troy
- 07-02-15
Incredible Depth and Insight
Very important to note: this overview isn't for beginners. It's assumed going in that the reader knows the important names of the time, as the goal here is to weave these names together into a larger tapestry. If you're not up on your who's who of Renaissance Italy, Wiki will likely be your friend. And even if you are, it might be worth having it on standby every now and again. Even so, names aren't thrown at you without some context. It's just helpful to know who these people are other than to say "this one's a pope, that one's a warlord," and so on. The more you already know about the basics, the better positioned you'll be for getting the most out of what this book has to offer.
That said, this is a wonderful overview of the Italian Renaissance and all of the terrible things that defined it. The scope of this is astounding. It intertwines the worlds of art, merchant banking, politics, religion, and warfare so as to present everything as an inseparable whole. Add in the obligatory additions of disease, cultural differences, and taboos of every kind, and the end result is an amazingly insightful book. If those classic artworks could talk, what stories they could tell.
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8 people found this helpful
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- Amazon Customer
- 10-19-19
Seems a bit Marxist
Not sure I trust much of what was in this book given that by the end the author gives himself away as someone who has absorbed critical theory and found that he liked it.
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- Susan Tubbs
- 11-14-23
Many pdf’s
This read was littered with many references to pdf’s. Consequently I had to stop many many times to search the internet to possibly capture what was being discussed. I did love the last part of the book discussing the age and how it affected the rest if the world and vice versa.
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- zendawg
- 03-07-15
Racy Title, Mundane Story
Is there anything you would change about this book?
Deliver what the title promises. It's not a revelation that the Medicis were flithy rich bankers who patronized Michaelanagelo and other artists, that artists had personal lives and obligations, that some of them were homosexual, and so on. The Borgias t.v. series has a lot more sex, greed and depravity than this book, and is much more entertaining. This book is really dry.
What was the most interesting aspect of this story? The least interesting?
The chapter on the mercenaries from as far away as England who became private armies for the Italian city states is the most interesting. The most boring is the chapter on Michaelangelo's family life (his father and brothers, one a deadbeat). Who cares? Also, the love letters with his boyfriend.
What did you like about the performance? What did you dislike?
Didn't like much.
Was The Ugly Renaissance worth the listening time?
No. I ended up skipping ahead, waiting for the greed, sex and depravity, which never came.
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1 person found this helpful
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- Valerie K. Schurman
- 05-30-23
Skip it
Very skewed view of the renaissance and bizarre recommendations for the future. Waste of time.
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