The Italian Renaissance was a cultural and intellectual movement, while the Middle Ages was an epoch in European history.. The Renaissance time frame was the late 13th century to the 17th century, and the middle ages took place in the 5th century to the 16th century. The Italian Renaissance was described as the beginning of modernity, but the middle ages was also known as the dark ages. The Renaissance focused on man and his inherent capabilities, as the middle ages focused on the supremacy of god. Rational thinking and scientific temperament were the characteristics of the Renaissance, while the characteristics of the middle ages was belief in the supernatural and superstitions.