Enlightenment Period

1
Enlightenment Period

• 17th and 18th Centuries

2
Preview to Enlightenment

• European Colonization
• British Parliament limits Monarchy
• Scientific Revolution
• Scientific Method
• Heliocentric Theory
• Planets revolve around the sun
• Reasoning to Solve Social Problems
• Questioning of established ideas

3
Characteristics of Enlightenment

• Everything had a cause and effect
• Rationalism truth can be arrived at solely by
  reason, or rational, logical thinking
• Did not attack religion, but superstition
• Disliked Absolute Monarchy
• aka Age of Reason

4
Philosophers

• Thomas Hobbes - England
• People enter into a social contract in which
  they exchange freedom and rights for security
  and order

5
Thomas Hobbes

• Published the Leviathan
• In the beginning, people lived in anarchy
• Life is violent and dangerous
• People choose a leader to rule them
• People give Monarch absolute power
• A social contract creates stability
• People only have the right to protect themselves

6
Philosophers

• John Locke - England
• All people have natural rights
• Life, liberty, and property
• Government should protect those rights
• Government power comes from the consent of the
  people

7
John Locke

• Published Two Treatises of Government
• People have made a social contract
• But have kept
• The right to live
• The right to enjoy liberty
• The right to own property
• Rulers must preserve these rights
• If not, people have the right to overthrow such
  ruler and replace him for breaking the social
  contract

8
Philosophers

• Baron de Montesquieu France
• Separation of powers among branches of
  government Checks and Balances
• Voltaire France
• Supported natural rights but felt that few
  people really had the ability to rule freedom
  of religion and freedom of speech
• Jean-Jacques Rousseau France
• Direct Democracy but people should give up
  some of their freedom for the common good all
  people are born equal

9
Baron de Montesquieu

• Published The Spirit of the Laws
• Promoted separation of powers
• Legislative makes the laws
• Executive administers the laws
• Judicial interprets and applies the laws
• These powers should check each other
• Will later influence the U.S. Constitution

10

• Montesquieu

11
Voltaire

• French Philosopher
• Spent time in prison
• Published novel Candide
• Ridicules oppressive government, prejudice, and
  bigotry
• Later fought in cases of injustice, particularly
  against religious prejudice

12

• Voltaire

13
Jean-Jacques Rousseau

• History repeats itself
• Published The Social Contract
• People are born good, but environment,
  education, and laws corrupt them
• Free and good people will only remain if
  governed by popular sovereignty
• Choose government to live under

14

• Rousseau

15
Philosophers

• Published work in books, plays, pamphlets,
  newspapers, and encyclopedias
• At this time (1700s), the educated wrote in
  French
• Writings criticized the church, government,
  slave trade, torture, taxes, and war
• Wrote in a questioning style

16
Political Criticism

• Political and Social Institutions should be
  changed to benefit everyone instead of just
  certain groups
• Popular Sovereignty laws and government
  created by and subject to the will of the
  people
• Enlightened Despots some Monarchs began to
  adopt Enlightenment philosophies and ruled with
  the respect of subjects rights

17
Enlightenment Period

• Philosophers promoted nationalism and individual
  rights
• Revolutions inspired by nationalistic ideas
  growing out of the Enlightenment
• British Colonial America
• Spanish Colonial America
• France
• Haiti