1688-1790. Ideals of the Renaissance Individualism, secularism, rebirth of classical teachings Scientific Revolution logic, reason, mathematics New way.

1688-1790

The Age of Enlightenment

Ideals of the RenaissanceIndividualism, secularism, rebirth of classical

teachings

Scientific Revolutionlogic, reason, mathematicsNew way of thinking based on willingness to

question assumptions

AbsolutismReaction to government of total controlQuestioning of DIVINE RIGHT

CAUSES

People try to apply the scientific approach to all aspects of society

Political scientists propose new ideas about government

Philosophes (philosophers) advocate the use of reason to discover truthsAddress social issues through REASON

OVERVIEW

Ideas incorporating the themes listed below were heavily discussed during this era

1. REASON-justification 2. HAPPINESS-What makes people happy?3. LIBERTY-freedoms4. PROGRESS-tolerance, diversity, science5. NATURE- outside (plants, earth, universe,

etc) - inside (emotion, human

interactions, etc)

Characteristics of Enlightened Thought

A gathering of men and women in private homes of Parisian intellectuals to discuss enlightened ideas

SALONS

Voltaire“Those who can make you

believe absurdities can make you commit atrocities.” -Voltaire

His intelligence, wit and style made him one of France’s greatest writers and philosophers

in favor of religious tolerance and interested in the study of the natural sciences

Believed in ENLIGHTENED KINGS

Jean –Jacques Rousseau“Never exceed your rights, and they

will soon become unlimited.” -ROUSSEAU  

 contended that man is essentially good, a "noble savage" when in the "state of nature"  

good people are made unhappy and corrupted by their experiences in society  

most important work is "The Social Contract" that describes the relationship of man with society "compact" agreed to among men

that sets the conditions for membership in society.

“Man is born free, but everywhere he is in chains.” -Rousseau

John Locke "Government has no other

end than the preservation of property.“ –John Locke

He postulated that the mind was a "blank slate" or "tabula rasa“; people are born without innate ideas

believed that human nature is characterized by reason and tolerance

Believed people govern not the government

"Wherever Law ends, Tyranny begins." -John Locke

Mary WollstonecraftVINDICATION ON THE RIGHTS OF WOMEN- 1792

• advocating equality of the sexes

• Saw women as helpless, charming adornments in the household

• women were too often nauseatingly sentimental and foolish.

• Education held the key to achieving a sense of self-respect and anew self-image

“Strengthen the female mind by enlarging it, and there will be an end to blind obedience.”

MontesquieuHe is famous for his

articulation of the theory of separation of powers in government; executive, legislative and judicial

largely responsible for the popularization of the terms feudalism and Byzantine Empire

“Liberty is the right of doing whatever

the laws permit.” -Montesquieu