Philosophy in the Age of reason

1. Philosophy in the Age of reason Chapter 5 Section 1 144-148

2. Progress and Reason • 1500s-1600s, Europe started to look at the world differently. • 1700s, scientists expanded European knowledge. • Joseph Jenner and Antoine Lavoisier built the framework for Chemistry. • Edward Jenner developed vaccine for smallpox. • Used reason to discover natural laws. (laws that govern human nature) • This Scientific Revolution led to what is known as the Enlightenment. • Enlightenment thinkers thought that through reason people & governments could solve every social, political, and economic problem.

3. Two Views of the Social Contract • Thomas Hobbes • Expressed his ideas in a work called Leviathan. • In it he argued that people are naturally cruel, greedy, and selfish. • Without control they would fight, rob and oppress each other. • Life without laws would be solitary, poor, nasty, and brutish. • To escape this “brutish life” people entered into a social contract(agreement). • In which they gave up the “state of nature” for an organized society. • Believed only powerful governments could ensure orderly society. • He wanted an absolute monarchy.

4. Thomas Hobbes

5. Two Views of the Social Contract • John Locke • Believed people were reasonable and moral. • Thought people have natural rights (rights that belong to all humans at birth). • Included Life, Liberty, and the Property. • In Two Treaties of Government, Locke argued that people formed governments to protect their natural rights. (He preferred limited power forms of government). • He said the government has an obligation to the people it governs. • If government fails its obligations then people have the right to overthrow it. • These ideas later spread across the world.

6. John Locke

7. Separation of Power • 1700s France • An influential thinker was Baron de Montesquieu. • Studied governments of Europe. • Studied European, Chinese and Native American cultures. • He criticized absolute monarchy. • In 1748, he published The Spirit of the Laws. • In it he wrote about governments throughout history. • Wrote admiringly about Britain's limited monarchy. • Liked the idea of separation of power in government. • Also liked “checks and balances”.

8. Baron de Montesquieu

9. Checks and Balances • Separation of power, shares the power between different areas or branches of government. • The power of one branch can always be challenged by another branch. • This way each branch has an effect on the others. • No one branch of government can get to much power. • Using the checks and balances system helps to balance the power of the government.

10. The Philosophes and Society • In France, Philosophes applied methods of science to better understand and improve society. • Thought use of reason could lead to reforms of government, law, and society. • Their ideas spread across Europe and to other continents.

11. Voltaire Defends Freedom of Thought • One famous philosophe was Francois-Marie Arouet. • He later took the name Voltaire. • He said, “My trade is to say what I think.” • Used his intelligence to expose the abuses of his day. • He liked to target corrupt officials and idle aristocrats • He detested the slave trade and deplored religious prejudice. • Voltaire’s outspoken attacks offended the French government and the Catholic Church. • He was later imprisoned and then exiled. • Always continued to defend “Freedom of Speech”.

12. The Encyclopedia • Denis Diderot • Produced a 28-volume encyclopedia. • His purpose was to change the general way of thinking. • In it he denounced slavery, praised freedom of expression, and encouraged education. • Attacked divine right and traditional religions. • Pope threatened to excommunicate all those who bought or read any of the encyclopedia volumes. • Between 1751 and 1789, 20,000 copies were printed. • Helped spread Enlightenment throughout Europe and to the Americas.

13. Rousseau • Jean-Jacques Rousseau was a philosophe. • He believed people were naturally good. • Felt like this “good” was corrupted by society. • In 1762, set forth his ideas in “The Social Contract”. • He put his faith in “general will” or the best conscience of the people. • Felt like the individual should be subordinate to the community. • His work has influenced people for over 200 years.

14. Women of Enlightenment • Women didn’t have as much freedom as men. • Did have natural rights, but were limited to areas of the home and family. • Mid-1700s, some women began to protest this. • They questioned the notion that women were by nature inferior to men. • Mary Wollstonecraft • She accepted that women’s first duty was to be a mother. • Felt like women should be able to decide what is in her own interest and have some independence. • Published “A Vindication of the Rights of Woman”. • In it she called for equal education for men and women.

15. New Economic Thinking • Physiocrats focused on economic reforms. • They rejected mercantilism which required government regulation of the economy. • Laissez Faire was a policy that allowed businesses to operate with little government involvement. • Physiocrats approved of this policy. • Mercantilists believed in in acquiring gold and silver wealth through trade. • Physiocrats believed that real wealth came from making the land more productive.

16. Adam Smith • British economist that greatly admired physiocrats. • In his work, The Wealth of Nations, he said free market should be allowed to regulate business activity. • He also believed in supply and demand methods. • He strongly approved and supported Laissez Faire. • Still thought the government had a duty to protect society, administer justice, and provide public service. • Smith’s ideas would greatly influence and help shape the productive economies in the 1800s and 1900s.

17. Review • Mary Shelley, the author of Frankenstein, was the daughter of what enlightened thinker, that worked for women’s rights during the 1700s? • Mary Wollstonecraft • Who believed that the purpose of separation of powers was to protect the liberty of the people? • Baron de Montesquieu • Who wrote and was the editor of the controversial Encyclopedia? • Denis Diderot • Which philosopher believed that people were basically good? • Jean-Jacques Rousseau • What author wrote Leviathan, and believed in social contract, but once entered into that contract was absolute? • Thomas Hobbes • Who wrote Two Treatises of Government, and believed in social contract, but that contract could be broken? • John Locke

18. Review • Frenchman Francois-Marie Arouet, who exposed abuses of government and detested the slave trade, was better known as: • Voltaire • Who was the British woman that thought women should be free to choose and that girls and boys should be educated? • Mary Wollstonecraft • What book did Adam Smith write that said a free market should be allowed to regulate business? • The Wealth of Nations • Hands Off, or a policy that allows businesses to operate without government interference is called: • Laissez Faire • When people agree to give up their natural state for an organized government, they are said to have entered into a what? • Social Contract

19. Review • What were “Lovers of Wisdom” called that used reason to lead to reforms of government, law, and society? • Philosophes • A what believed that natural laws could be used to define economic systems? • Physiocrats • Life, liberty, and property are examples of what? • Natural Rights • According to Hobbes and Locke, human nature was governed by what? • Natural laws • This person wrote Spirit of Law and came up with the idea of three branches of government: • Baron de Montesquieu

20. Bibliography http://www.usconstitution.net/consttop_cnb.html http://www.congressforkids.net/Constitution_checksandbalances.htm http://www.factmonster.com/ipka/A0777009.html