Unit 7: The Enlightenment and

AftermathThe Enlightenment

A. As the Enlightenment and the Renaissance took hold of society, the use of ________________ to explain and answer questions took hold. Eventually this led to the Scientific Revolution in Europe. Men such as Galileo, Kepler, and Newton revolutionized how people studied the physical world. The philosophy that emerged from this was called __________________________. Using this new idea, another popular movement began, the goal of which was to free people from oppression and poverty. This movement became known as the _________________________________.

reason

rationalism

Enlightenment

1. One of the biggest reasons that the Enlightenment began came from scientists and others beginning to ____________________________ their ideas to each other. They began to discuss different possibilities and offer solutions to problems that others couldn’t solve.

2. These men did not use race or nationality as a boundary. They accepted each other at face value and that each person had something legitimate to add.

3. Four main ideas form the crux of what Enlightenment thought revolved around: _____________________, ________________________, _____________________, and ____________, and who had the right and ability to wield those powers.

communicate

power authoritylaw

governance

B. Writers across Europe expressed their ideas through essays, which, due to the printing press, made it to the masses.

1. One of the first influential writers of the Enlightenment was _______________ who wrote the book Leviathan. His main ideas revolved around the idea that government and the ruler should be ______________________________ and ____________________. Hobbes felt that people were inherently fearful and prone to violence to protect themselves. To overcome this fear, people should allow a leader to have absolute governance over their lives. This is called a ______________________________, where freedoms are exchanged for security. However, once they enter this contract, the people should not try to remove the leader from power. While supporting absolutism, Hobbes refused to accept the concept of ______________________, which angered many monarchs.

Thomas Hobbes

all-powerfulabsolute

social contract

divine right

2. Overshadowing Hobbes was the most famous of the Enlightenment philosophers, ________________, whose’ views were expressed in his book, __________________________________. Locke believed that when we are born, our minds are a blank slate (________________________) and that how we are brought up shapes us to become the humans we are as adults. He felt that having individual _____________________ allow us to become good and productive citizens. In order to achieve those freedoms, a person should be allowed to make choices for themselves, using their own deductive ______________________. For a government, this involves not denying each person their _____________________________, which include ___________, ___________________, and ___________________. If a government does deny citizens these rights, then the people have the ability to remove said government.

John LockeTwo Treatises of Government

tabula rasa

freedoms

reasoning

natural rights

life libertyproperty

3. The Baron de _____________________________ was a French enlightenment thinker who developed the concept of separation of powers. He felt that there should be three branches of government (___________________, __________________, and _____________________,) which would prevent any one person from gaining too much power.

Montesquieu

executivelegislative

judicial

4. The French writer ____________________ focused primarily on government and religion. While he agreed with Locke on the principle of natural rights, he felt that mankind lacked the ability to ____________________ themselves. Therefore, the best type of government relied on a ________________________.

5. An Enlightenment philosopher who gained a lot of attention was ______________________________. He felt that society should revolve around the _______________ of a population, which would determine what was good for society. Unfortunately, the general will of society was not always determined by the majority of people. Therefore, society should accept that they do not know what is necessarily good for society, and that sometimes, the minority does. The majority should accept this, and not disrupt the overall workings of society.

Voltairegovern

single ruler

Jean Jacques Rousseaugeneral will

6. The Enlightenment did not just focus on government; it also lent is expertise to ____________________. These men were called _________________________ and stated that the economy would be better off if the government left it alone. This concept is called __________________________.

economics Physiocrats

laissez-faire economics

C. Across the board, many individuals accepted these philosophies. However, it also influenced many monarchs. These monarchs earned the name of ______________________ because they were accepting of Enlightenment philosophies.

Enlightened Despots

Catherine the Great of Russia

• Codified Russian Law

• Gave more rights to serfs

• Corresponded with Voltaire

• Universal education for boys and girls

• Outlawed religious persecution

Frederick the Great of Prussia

• Granted religious freedom to subjects

• Codified Prussian law so it was easier to understand

• Outlawed torture of people accused of crimes

• Influenced by Voltaire

Maria Theresa and Joseph II of Austria

• Granted rights to serfs

• Granted religious freedom to subjects

• Created an equal tax system

• Tried to have landlords pay serfs, which did not turn out well