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Enlightenment. Ms. Ramos. Characteristics of the Enlightenment. Rationalism reason is the arbiter of all things. Cosmology a new concept of man, his existence on earth, & the place of the earth in the universe.
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Enlightenment Ms. Ramos
Characteristics of the Enlightenment • Rationalism reason is the arbiter of all things. • Cosmology a new concept of man, his existence on earth, & the place of the earth in the universe. • Secularism application of the methods of science to religion & philosophy.
Scientific Method • Mathematical analysis • Experimentation • Inductive reasoning. • Utilitarianism the greatest good for the greatest number. • Tolerance No opinion is worth burning your neighbor for.
Optimism & Self-Confidence • The belief that man is intrinsically good. • The belief in social progress. • Freedom • Of thought and expression. • Bring liberty to all men (modern battle against absolutism). • Education of the Masses
Legal Reforms • Justice, kindness, and charity no torture or indiscriminant incarceration. • Due process of law. • Constitutionalism • Written constitutions listing citizens, rights. • Cosmopolitanism.
Core Beliefs • Truth discovered through reason • What is natural, is also good and reasonable • People can find happiness in this life • Society and humankind can progress and improve • People’s liberty should be protected by the law Ms. Ramos
Enlightenment Philosophers Ms. Ramos
Thomas Hobbes • Leviathan • Life in the state of nature is “solitary, poor, nasty, brutish and short” • Strongest element: passion • Self-preservation basis of his thought Ms. Ramos
Man against man • To secure peace- est sovereign pwr not subject to civil law • Monarchy is most effective Ms. Ramos
John Locke • English • Natural rights • Right to overthrow govtthat does not protect “natural” rights • State of nature is not perpetual war Ms. Ramos
Hobbes vs. Locke Ms. Ramos
Baron de Montesquieu • French • Separation of powers • Checks & balances Ms. Ramos
Jean Jacques Rousseau • French • Natural goodness & individual freedom • Govt by “general will” of the people • Social Contract Ms. Ramos
Cesare B. Beccaria • Italian • Justice system • Accused had rights • Advocated abolishing torture • Govt: greatest good for greatest number of people Ms. Ramos
Common Sense • Pierre Bayle’s Historical and Critical Dictionary • demolished traditional concepts • Denis Diderot’s Encyclopedia (1751-1781), • encapsulated the whole of human knowledge Ms. Ramos
Voltaire’sPhilosophical Letters • encouraged readers to cast off inherited misconceptions • Jean-Jacques Rousseau’s Émile (1762) • Argued for new pedagogy (methods of teaching) Ms. Ramos
War on traditionDiscuss this one- Don’t copy • Voltaire: Christianity often was “l’infame,” the detestable thing • Deism • belief in nature’s God who created universe according to natural laws • John Locke’s Letter Concerning Toleration • urged openness to all religious expressions (except Roman Catholicism and atheism) • Freemasonry • blend of Egyptian polytheism with medieval guilds and brotherly love Ms. Ramos
Social ContractsDiscuss this one- Don’t copy • John Locke’s Second Treatise of Civil Government • government contract powered by consent of property owners • Montesquieu’s Spirit of Laws (1748) • laws evolved to be spirit of a nation • “constitutionalism” should protect freedoms of citizens • “separation of powers” create checks and balances • Rousseau’s Social Contract (1762) • state guided by “moral and collective body” of individual citizens • Jefferson: American Declaration of Independence Ms. Ramos
Effects of the Enlightenment Ms. Ramos
Enlightenment Ideas: • Encouraged people to use observation to make new discoveries • Rely on reason • Question traditional authority Ms. Ramos
Enlightenment Ideas • Spread from Europe to the Americas • “the philosophes,” create the mvmt of the Enlightenment • Centered in France and England, also Scotland, Italy and Netherlands • Kant: “Dare to know!” • Influenced the American Revolution Ms. Ramos