The amazing contributions made by the literary and social revolutionary contributions of Petrarch initiated the Renaissance. Discouraged by the direction his own time and culture had taken, Petrarch felt that the only way to find salvation for the modern world was to return to a time when their was order and intelligence. As a result Petrarch turned his attentions to the teaching and creations of ancient Rome, especially focussing on their use of the written and spoken word. (Rabb & Marshall, 1993, p. 2). This refocusing of intellectual resources, would, in his opinion, correct the ignorance of his contemporaries and provide them with the skills needed to act more as the ancient Romans had.

Petrarch created a program of promotional speeches and personal example, in order to promote the acquisition, study, and imitation of Roman culture. He used his family’s influential friends to spread his ideas about the resurrection of ancient Roman ways, and the rekindling of Latin texts, teachings, art, and political orientations. (Rabb & Marshall, 1993, p. 2). Everywhere that Petrarch went he collected ancient works of art, statutes, and texts. (Durante, 1953, p. 8). In order to overcome the churches objections to the pagan works, Petrarch devised a new way to view the works, and instead of studying the mythologies as fact, he suggested that they be studied as figurative and corollaries to Christian truths instead. This position suggested that mythologies were not really about gods and goddesses, but about moral dilemmas caused by straying from Christian truths. (1993). The church allowed this interpretation and ancient texts and arts were then allowed as suitable subjects to study. Without this transition in perspective about the ancient arts and literature, the Renaissance Movement probably would not have been able to advance in the direction that it did. As he became more skilled in the language of Latin, he began to write his own Latin texts and he would teach his writings to anyone that would sit still long enough to hear him lecture. These campaign trips of Petrarch launched the humanist movement that gained a strong following, and helped to spark the spreading of ancient Roman art and literature, and in turn ignited the Renaissance.