The Enlightenment
• Scientific Revolution led the way, if scientists could challenge theories on the world…
• Thinkers begin to develop new ideas
• Natural laws – unchanging principles, discovered through reason, that govern all human conduct.
Immanuel Kant• German Philosopher
• Instead of accepting the norms of society, thinkers used the scientific method to study human behavior.
• Kant came up with the term “enlightenment” to describe this period.
• Turning away from absolutism and towards democracy and individual right.
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nsgAsw4XGvU
Thomas Hobbes• English thinker in 1600s
• Wrote Leviathan, argued people were naturally cruel, greedy an selfish
• To solve this, people enter into a social contract, where people agree to give up freedom for organized society.
• He thought only absolutism could solve this.
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9i4jb5XBX5s
John Locke• Wrote Two Treatises on
Government
• He though humans were basically reasonable and moral.
• Natural rights – rights that belonged to all humans from birth.
• Governments are formed to protect the natural rights.
• If government doesn’t protect natural rights, people have right overthrow it.
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bZiWZJgJT7I
French Philosophes
• French for philosophers
• Nothing beyond the reach of human reason
• Called for reforms to protect people’s natural rights.
• Montesquieu, Voltaire, Diderot and Rousseau
Montesquieu• Studied tons of
governments
• Criticized absolute monarchy
• Decided best format would be to use three branches:
1. Legislative
2. Judicial
3. Executive
• Each branch would check and balance each others power.
Voltaire• “My trade is to say what I
think”
• Outspoken against: inequality, injustice, superstition, slavery, religious prejudice
• Arrested, prisoned, exiled, books burned.
• Definition of freedom of speech
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LAzKGkTIKpg
Diderot
• Wrote the Encyclopedia
• Collection of all the philosophes writings
• Church fought this hard, threatened anyone who bought it
Rousseau
• Most controversial philosophe
• Wrote The Social Contract
1. People are naturally good
2. Society places too many limits on people
3. Put his faith in the “general will”
• People are corrupted by the evils of society
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=81KfDXTTtXE