Transcript The Enlightenment

The Enlightenment
Mid 1700’s
Note Key:
If the writing is in black
WRITE IT DOWN!!!
If the writing is in White
read it and think about it.
What Was the Enlightenment?
The Enlightenment was an intellectual movement in
Europe during the 18th century that led to
a whole new world view.
According to the 18thcentury philosopher
Immanuel Kant, the “motto”
of the Enlightenment was
“Sapere aude (dare to know)!
Have courage to use your
own intelligence!” (Kant,
“What Is Enlightenment?”
1784)
Immanuel Kant
The Scientific Revolution
The Enlightenment
grew largely out of
the new methods and
discoveries achieved
in the Scientific
Revolution
The equatorial armillary, used for navigation on ships
Francis Bacon and
the Scientific Method
• The scientific method
• Observation and
experimentation
• Testable hypothesis
Sir Francis Bacon
Isaac Newton and
the Scientific Method
• Used the scientific
method to make a
range of discoveries
• Newton’s
achievements using
the scientific method
helped inspire
Enlightenment
thinkers
Sir Isaac Newton
Enlightenment Principles
• Religion, tradition,
and superstition
limited independent
thought
• Accept knowledge
based on
observation, logic,
and reason, not on
faith
• Scientific and
academic thought
should be secular
A meeting of French Enlightenment thinkers
The Marquis de Condorcet
• French mathematician
• Sketch for a Historical
Picture of the Progress
of the Human Spirit
• Played active role in the
French Revolution
Condorcet (continued)
• Universal education
(education for all)
• Progress and “perfectibility,”
the idea that people
realistically strive for
perfection in all areas of life.
New Social Developments
Concepts and People
The French Salon and the
Philosophes
• Madame de Pompadour
• Salons: gatherings for
aristocrats to discuss
new theories and ideas
• Philosophes: French
Enlightenment thinkers
who attended the salons
Madame de Pompadour
The Encyclopédie
• Major achievement of the
philosophes
• Begun in 1745; completed
in 1765
• Included the most up-todate knowledge on the
sciences, arts, and crafts
Frontspiece to the
Encyclopédie
The Encyclopédie (continued)
• Denis Diderot and Jean
Le Rond d’Alembert
• Banned by the Catholic
Church
• It contained nearly
72,000 articles
accompanied by
numerous illustrations
Encyclopédie editor Denis Diderot
Deism
• Deists believed in God
but rejected organized
religion
• Morality could be
achieved by following
reason rather than the
teachings of the church
Lord Edward Herbert of Cherbury, founder of deism
Deism (continued)
Thomas
Paine
• God/the creator is the
“great watchmaker”
• The idea that the universe
operates like a watch.
• Thomas Paine is a famous
American Deist.
How Rulers Ruled
Before the Enlightenment
• Divine Rights of Kings
• The idea that rulers receive their authority
from God and are answerable only to God.
Stop
• Take a deep breath and let it out.
• Continue breathing deeply and quietly until
the teacher distributes paper to the class.
• Answer the following questions on this half
sheet of paper.
Enlightenment Questions
• 1. What do you believe is the nature of human
beings? Are people born inherently good or bad?
Can people’s nature change? Explain your answers
completely.
• 2. What would Port Hope look like if there were no
laws or police?
• 3. What would you do if you saw a person drop a
$100 bill? Explain your reasoning.
Enlightenment Thinkers
René Descartes (1596–1650)
• French philosopher and
mathematician
• Questioned the basis of
his own knowledge
• “Cogito ergo sum”
• “I think, therefore, I am.”
Voltaire (1694–1778)
• Most famous philosophe
• Wrote plays, essays,
poetry, philosophy, and
books
• Attacked the “relics” of
the medieval social order
• Championed social,
political, and religious
tolerance
Voltaire (con’t)
• Credited with the idea of freedom of speech.
• He was very critical of the French government
and the Roman Catholic Church.
• Was imprisoned in the Bastille twice.
• “I do not agree with what you have to say, but
I'll defend to the death your right to say it”.
Thomas Hobbes (1588–1679)
• Applied rational analysis to
the study of government
• Attacked the concept of
divine right, yet supported a
strong monarchy
• People are naturally wicked
and selfish (bad). People
must voluntarily give an
authoritarian figure the
power to rule.
John Locke (1632–1704)
• People have the ability to reason
and can compromise (people are
good).
• If Gov. doesn’t govern justly the
people must over through it and
establish a government that is just.
• Tabula rasa (a “Blank slate”)
Locke
(continued)
• In Treatises of Government
he attack DRo’K and
Authoritarian Government
• Believed in Natural Rights
which he defined as “Life,
Liberty, and Property.”
Jean-Jacques Rousseau
(1712–1778)
• Believed that people are good
but corrupted by society.
• Believed in Direct Democracy
(individual vote).
• People are not truly free if
they don’t make their own
decisions.
• The Social Contract
Baron de Montesquieu
(1689–1755)
• Developed the idea of
separation of powers.
• The Spirit of the Laws
states that governmental
power should be
balanced among three
branches.
Montesquieu (continued)
Three Branches of Gov.
• Executive =
Carry out (enforce) laws.
• Legislative =
Create laws.
• Judicial =
Interpret laws.
The Spirit of
the Laws
Women and the Enlightenment
• Changing views of
women’s role in
society
• Role of education
• Equality
Mary Wollstonecraft
Olympe de Gouges
Mary Wollstonecraft
• A Vindication of the
Rights of Women.
• Believed that equal
rights should be
extended to women.
• Had the same natural
rights and intellectual
capacity as men.
Wollstonecraft (continued)
• The start of modern
Women’s rights
movement
Title page of
Wollstonecraft’s
Thoughts on the
Education of
Daughters
Olympe De Gouges
• Criticized the French
Revolution
• The Rights of Women
• “Declaration of the Rights
of Woman and the Female
Citizen”
• Executed in 1793
“Enlightened Monarchs”
• Most of Europe ruled by
absolute monarchs
• Receptive to Enlightenment
ideas
• Instituted new laws and
practices
Enlightened Monarchs
• Frederick II, Prussia
• Catherine the Great, Russia
• Maria Theresa, Austria
• Joseph II, Holy Roman Empire
• Gustav III, Sweden
• Napoleon I, France
Influenced by the Enlightenment
• The following are all events that were
impacted by the Enlightenment.
The American Revolution
• Influence of Locke,
Montesquieu
• The Declaration of
Independence
Thomas Jefferson
The U.S. Constitution
• Separation
of powers
• Checks
and
balances
Painting depicting the Constitutional Convention
The French Revolution
• The American
Revolution
• The Estates
General
The Marquis de Lafayette
The Declaration of the
Rights of Man
• Adopted by National
Assembly in 1789
• “Liberté, Egalité,
Fraternité”
The Legacy of the Enlightenment
• Government
• Society
• Education
The signing of the U.S. Constitution
Frederick the Great
(ruled 1740–1786)
• Prussian ruler
• Had a strong interest in
Enlightenment works
• Induced Voltaire to come
to Prussia
Frederick the Great (continued)
• Wanted to
make
Prussia a
modern state
• Reforms
Painting titled “Frederick the Great and Voltaire.”
Catherine the Great
(ruled 1762–1796)
• Russian ruler
• Well-versed in
Enlightenment works
• “Westernizing”
Russia
Catherine the Great
(continued)
• Domestic reforms
• Peasant revolt
Maria Theresa (ruled 1740–1780)
• Austrian ruler
• Government
reforms
• The serfs
• Son—Joseph II
Joseph II (ruled 1765–1790)
• Ruled as coregent
with his mother
until 1780
• Joseph’s reforms
• Religious
toleration
• Control over the
Catholic Church
• Abolition of
serfdom
Gustav III (ruled 1771–1792)
• Swedish ruler
• Read French
Enlightenment works
• Reforms
• Absolutism
Napoleon I
• French ruler
• Military career
• Rise to power
Napoleon I (continued)
• Reforms
• Education
• Law