The Enlightenment

Politics & Philosophy

Bell Ringer

In your notebooks, answer:

• What was the Enlightenment?• How did the SR impact the

Enlightenment?

Political Enlightenment

Three Themes in the Political Realm

1. Propertyo Central featureo Gives an individual a stake in society

2. Rightso Every individual is entitled to basic rights

simply because they exist

3. Lawo That which makes 1 & 2 worko Guarantees property & rights

Political Philosophes

John Locke1632-1704

Most influential writing was “Two Treatises of Civil Government” written in 1690

Locke’s Philosophy

• The individual must become a “rational creature”

• Virtue can be learned & practiced• Human beings possess free will

o They should be prepared for freedomo Obedience should be out of

conviction, not fear

Locke’s Philosophy (cont.)

• Legislators owe their power to a contract with the people

• Neither kings nor wealth are divinely ordained

• There are certain natural rights that are endowed by God to all human beingso Life, liberty, & property

• Favored a republic

Baron de Montesquieu (1689-1755)

Most influential writing was “Spirit of the Laws” written in 1748

“Countries are well-cultivated, not as they are fertile, but as they are free.”

Montesquieu’s Philosophy

• Used England’s government as a model for: • The separation of powers

• Executive Power = King • Legislative Power = Parliament• Judicial Power = Courts

• Checks & balances

• Monarchs should be subject to constitutional limits on their power

Jean-Jacques Rousseau1712-1778

Most influential writing was “The Social Contract” written in 1762

Rousseau’s Philosophy

• Tabula Rasa (blank slate)• Best traits of human character are

products of nature• Society corrupts people, therefore,

we must fix society

Rousseau (cont.)

• In The Social Contract:

o The right kind of political order could make people truly moral & free

o Individual moral freedom could be achieved only by learning to subject one’s individual interests to the “General Will”

Rousseau - Social Contract (cont.)

o Individuals could do this by entering into a social contract - not with their rulers, but with each otheroThis social contract was derived from

human nature -NOT from history, tradition, or the Bible

o People = most free & moral under a republican form of government with a direct democracy

Philosophical Enlightenment

Marquis de Condorcet1743-1794

Most influential writing: Progress of the Human Mind (1794)

Condorcet’s Philosophy

• Expectation of universal happiness• Every individual guided by reason

could enjoy true independence• Advocated:

o Free & equal educationo Constitutionalismo Equal rights for women

Immanuel Kant1724-1804

Most influential work:Critique of Pure Reason (1781)

Kant’s Philosophy

• Investigated the structure & limitations of reason

• Believed he created a compromise between the empiricists and the rationalists (reason + experience = Enlightenment)

Denis Diderot1713-1784

Most influential writing:The Encyclopedia

(1751)(coauthor: Jean le Rond

d’Alembert)

Diderot’s Encyclopédie

• Complete cycle of knowledge that changed the general way of thinking

• 28 volumes• Alphabetical, cross-

referenced, illustrated

Voltaire1694-1778

• François Marie Arouet

• Most famous book: Candide (1759)

• Known for sharp wit that was often critical of the church and state

Voltaire (cont.)• Wrote plays,

novels, poetry, essays, & letters

• Fierce defender of civil liberties, especially:o Religious freedomo Free tradeo Freedom of speech

• Spent time imprisoned in the Bastille

Voltaire (cont.)

• Life (video)• Last words

Words of Wisdom from Voltaire

• Each group will get a quote from Voltaire

• Your job is to: o Discuss the quote & figure out what

Voltaire meanto Offer to the class your group’s

interpretation of Voltaire’s wisdom & how it relates to the Enlightenment

Homework

• Worksheet: Rousseau’s The Social Contract

• Due next class period