1) The Bubonic Plague affected Europeans in more ways than just illness and death. They looked to the Catholic Church for answers and they could not explain the cause or cure it. This hurt their power over the people. How do you think this would have affected you if you lived in those times? 2) Using the article, "What the Renaissance", describe how people began to shift away from the Middle Ages and the way they thought.

3) Breaking down the word, humanism, what does this word mean to you and how this was such a shift in thinking? As you answer, keep in mind that the Middle Ages was about the larger group, the Catholic Church, and now they were shifting away from the group to what?

4) There is no right or wrong answer to this, but you need to support your answer. Do you think the government should be more about protecting the collective group- the nation - or the individual? We still debate that in this country. Think of examples such as individual rights vs. public safety issues as possible answers.