“In the 18th century, people turned to the new science for a better understanding of the social and economic problems of the day.” Assess the validity of this statement by using specific examples from the Enlightenment era. Remember to respond to the question in 6-8 sentences (yes it can be longer) and to respond to two of your classmates answers in 4-6 sentences. Do not just agree or disagree without defending or justifying your argument.) NOTE: YOU CANNOT SAY "I AGREE WITH JOE AND BOB AND WRITE ONE RESPONSE. IT MUST BE TWO SEPARATE RESPONSES WITH TWO DIFFERENT EXAMPLES TO SUPPORT WHAT YOU SAY. Think above and beyond the common answers that you may see. Be sure to challenge your classmates with controversial tactics, actions or selections. Good Luck!!!! Go Mustangs!!!
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37 comments:
This statement is truly valid because people wanted to understand the natural world and the reason why they continued “following the leader.” People wanted to think for themselves and started disregarding the idea of following God's laws and later began to follow their "own" laws. They were in need of change in their society.
New ideas were meant to be created after the principles of learning were questioned and often discarded to be replaced by scientific methods and innovative attitudes. This had been taken for granted. In addition, authority, the lack of tolerance, censorship, economic and social restraints were major influences that led to the era of the Enlightenment. The Enlightenment included natural science and reason that demonstrated the aspects of life. Many philosophers believed that human beings are able to comprehend the operation of physical nature and mold it to achieve economic growth, moral improvement and administrative reform.
This statement is extremely valid. The world around the people of the 18th century was shrouded with vague authority and no answers to how the world worked. By breaking the mold, scientists were finally able to start explaining the world, and the questions that people had been asking forever.
Scientists in the 18th century were answering questoins that were previously unfathomable. Newton's laws helped scientists explain their newfound data. John Dalton was the first chemist who in explaining different phenomena used the theory of study of atom. He researched gases. He discovered the law of partial pressures. Science started to affect every aspect of the lives of the people during this time period. Less people turned to religion because why would they put their faith in something that they could not get any tangible reassurance from? Science was unfeeling, but it was definite. The data was irrevocable, and the people were able to understand the world around them for the first time.
This statement is absolutely valid. It is unarguably true that in order to fully comprehend the difficulties in social and economic aspects throughout the 18th century, all turned to the new science seeing that it explained the problems with the most accuracy.
For example, Galileo; he has been called the founder of modern experimental science. Galileo designed a variety of scientific instruments. He is known most for the development and improvement of the first effective use of the refracting telescope, and he discovered important new facts about astronomy. For instance he discovered before Galileo, it was thought that a heavy object would fall faster than a light one. It is written in the old books that he went to the top of the famous leaning tower of Pisa and dropped two items of different weights. They hit the ground together, proving that gravity pulls all objects to Earth at the same rate of speed. This was something that helped explain the truth after all that time.
I will warn all of you that the 18the century is in reference to the 1700's so you may want to check to make sure the examples that you have fit this criteria. Also the "New Science" is not the scientfic revolution but in reference to the Enlightenment thinking of the time period.
With respect to the time period of the Enlightenment, people truly did begin to turn away from medieval notions in favor of new social and economic ideas. This was demonstrated through the 1751 publication of Diderot and d'Alembert's Encyclopedia, which placed emphasis on man's role on Earth rather than religion. Instead of focusing on divine law, the Encyclopedia advocated the harnessing of the world's resources for the immediate betterment of society. By arguing that man's usage of reason outweighed his attempts to appease God, this work served as a contrast to the assumptions characteristic of medieval thought.
More than a hundred authors contributed to the publication of the Encyclopedia, and ideas from important philosophes were also utilized in its contents. In addition to commentary on theology, government, and politics, this work also provided articles about innovative manufacturing and agricultural advancements. In doing so, it gave insight into both the new social and economic aspects of the 18th century. Because of the commercial success of this volume, these ideas were able to spread throughout Europe and influence individuals throughout the continent.
I agree with Nick regarding his viewpoint on Enlightenment ideas. Philosophes did seek to counteract the restraints of the time period, originating the idea of social science through their discovery of new natural laws. Such laws opposed both human injustice and the idea that man should seek to enforce the will of God. Instead, they emphasized the idea of greater happiness for humankind.
Although Gardenia brings up excellent points about the Scientific Revolution, I don't agree with the statement that all individuals embraced the movement itself. While Galileo's experiments were of monumental scientific importance, they were rejected and censored by the Roman Catholic Church. In this case, religion was used against experimentation - because Galileo's Copernican theories disagreed with the Bible, the Inquisition placed his works in the Index of Prohibited Books. It wasn't until 1992 that the Church accepted Galileo's viewpoints.
European populations emerged from medieval obscurity and ignorance through rational and progressive sciences of the 18th century Enlightenment era. The movement was largely catalyzed by philosophes, influential thinkers who made monumental contributions to the social and economic fundamentals of Europe.
Jean-Jacques Rosseau’s The Social Contract demonstrates how the preservation of social and political equality is crucial to a functioning society. He proposes a “contract” between a government and the body it governs by which rights and equality must be upheld for all members of society, free of basis on social hierarchy. The Baron de Montesquieu’s Spirit of the Laws emphasizes “checks and balances,” the theory that a government functions when it is separated into divisions of power for the prevention of any political hegemony. These thinkers represent the Enlightenment principle of how a political sphere based on fairness and stability can improve the human social condition. As a result, many Europeans’ purpose in life was transformed from a quest for religious redemption to a desire for social equality and liberty. In short, the Enlightenment employed secular, rational concepts to revert the population from a religiously dominated society to a progressive one striving for humanity.
As for economic motivations, the English philosophe Adam Smith’s work The Wealth of Nations formed a systematic theory of capitalism and basically constructed the economics of Western civilization. He established the division of labor and economic liberty as two elements for national economic prosperity. Europeans could divide tasks among a population to increase production from labor; at the same time, individuals can have a personal incentive for profit and launch businesses to stimulate their own as well as a nation’s economic expansion. This was the fundamental basis which people looked upon for salvation from their economic woes. Instead of depending on governmental monopolies and regulations, Europeans began changing their methods for personal gain. In this sense, people not only contributed to the wealth of their nation but also increased their value and meaning of life. Laissez faire, indeed.
Although it is a very modern interpretation, I disagree with Brittany’s statement that less people turned to religion because it was not a tangible reassurance. Because the Scientific Revolution based its progress on the separation of the physical and spiritual worlds, it was able to gain momentum and not be regarded as just a threat to religious institutions. Therefore, I think people looked to the new sciences for these “tangible reassurances” they sought for in the natural world, but remained spiritually faithful to their beliefs. For European society surely would not survive had religion not been present to anchor a moral ideal to follow in the less “intellectually-sufficient” majority of its populations.
I agree with Ariel’s support for Diderot and d’Alembert’s Encyclopedia as a key contribution of social and economic insight in the 18th century. Had it not been for its creation, the emphasis on collective research of human knowledge would not be a catalyst of the intellectual pursuit our modern society is based upon now. They also provided a systematic organization of the Enlightenment, providing accessibility and ease for it to circulate and influence populations. Do I need to mention Wikipedia?
This statement is definitely valid. The 18th century witnessed an outpouring of human knowledge in almost every field of human endeavor, the Enlightenment. People started to question how things work around them and how the nature exist. Apparently, scientific laws are way more logical and reasonable than God's laws in explaining why things are the way they are. They finally have realized that it is possible for society to exist and in fact thrive without religious supervision. For example, Deism, a belief in which existence of God was a rational explanation of the universe and its from, grew out of Newton's theories regarding natural laws. Also, how scientific method explains laws of society and how the natural laws and how they apply to society finally came to understanding. Education was a big key to this reforms of society. Immanuel Kant separated science and morality into separate branches of knowledge because morality can't explain the nature. Many other philosophers and philosophes put major emphasis on science in their works as well.
I agree with Tiffany Le. The examples that she gave fully explains how people utilized scientific ideas to explain the nature and the social,economic problems of the society they were living in. Society improved as rational concepts took over the religiously dominated society. Adam Smith did establish the division of labor and economic liberty as two elements for national economic prosperity in his work, The wealth of Nations. She is correct on saying how it was an economic motivations in the society
I also agree with Gardenia. Like the example she gave, Galileo's theories and ideas that he found from his scientific experiments well explained how this nature works. He also figured out some astronomy facts that played a major role in creating 'science' that we use today to explain how things work. Although these ideas opposed church's idea, it was a logical and reasonable way to explain the society.
I believe that this statement is accurately valid because the European populace, during that time period, was ready to pull away from the church's ideas and start using rational reasoning to support their own viewpoints. Many of these Enlightenment thinkers wanted to understand the natural world and within it, the place and role of humankind. For example, in the book Emile, Rousseau argues about the way that parents and teachers raise and teach young children. In his perspective, Rousseau believes that children should be allowed to have the freedom to enjoy nature and play outside as well. He also states that education should be taught first in the home and that parents should not preach to their children but set a good example. As a result, children should be able to make their own decisions. Another philosopher that contributed to the Enlightenment ways of thinking is Denis Diderot. Diderot, along with the help of many others, published an encyclopedia to bring out the essential principles and applications of every art and science. Diderot wanted everyone to be able to expand their knowledge and have the ability to learn however much they'd like to. He wanted everyone to use the information they gathered from his encyclopedia and put it to use to form a better society.
This statement is valid. During the 18th century emerged "philosophes". Philosophes were a group of intellectuals and thinkers that looked into natural sciences and other subjects to answer the questions of the people and to progress society.
An example of a pholosophes were Denis Diderot and Jean le Rond d'Alembert. They collected over a hundreds of authors who contributed that came together to be know as the Encyclopédie. Jean d'Alembert, wrote the introduction to the Encyclopédie, and contributed the articles on mathematics and the sciences. The Encyclopédie was to present a state of knowledge about the sciences, art, and crafts, and to make the knowledge possessed by the few accessible to many.
I agree with Tiffany Nguyen and her example of Rousseau. In his novel "Emile" he did state that education should be taught first in the home and that parents should not preach to their children but set a good example. This lead to parents guiding their children in the right path and the children make their own decisions. Rousseau inspired a profound change within literature and society.
I also agree with Eunice Choi with her example of Deism. Deism was part of the philosophe movement. Deism applied to two ideas, that religion should be reasonable and should result in the highest behavior of its adherents and that knowledge of the natural world and human world has nothing to with religion which should be approached free from religious ideas. Through deism many modern secularism ideas developed.
The statement is clearly valid. People of the Enlightment period turned to philosophes and philosophers to grasp a further understanding of their surroundings and the universe. Philosophes challenged peoples’ morals and how society should behave. They thought of ideas that could improve how they could be governed and what their part was in being governed. Philosophes like Mary Wollstonecraft fought for equal rights amongst the females and males of the time period. This was unheard of and voiced women rights.
Philosophers such as Isaac Newton explored the nature around them and the universe. He created the 3 laws of motion and explained how gravity kept the planets in orbit. Also he discovered why things appear the color they are, because of what light they reflected it showed that color. These ideas went against church teachings and the knowledge of the populace.
I agree with Brittany’s point about how science started to affect all aspects of their lives during the time. The new discoveries really did change the way people thought and made the population decide who to believe and who was right or wrong.
I agree with Ariel and her point about the Encyclopedia of the time period. It played a large role in society and advancements in technology. It helped further push the knowledge of the time period into a more modern age.
This statement is valid because during the 18th century people started to question and wanted a better understanding of the natural world. They began to create new social and economic ideas.
Montesquieu an Islamic Philosopher disagreed with absolutism. His "Spirit of Laws" promoted education. He believed the law of education is the first impression we receive, and is what prepares us for civil life.He believed in direst democracy. However, his decided class preference was for rule by the excellent or aristocracy. He did concede that there could be a confederation of republics that would result in a country of great size , and to have a stabilized state he said
"power must check power".The spirit of the laws is affected by the general spirit of the people (their virtus), mores (their internal belief systems, attitudes, and values) and manners (externally manifested civility in the public sphere).
Print culture allowed everyone regardless of social status to learn secular ideas. it limited censorship in literature. People became aware and were able to form their own views on life.
Women also had a role during this time. In Rousseau's "Emile" he wrote that women are inferior and weaker towards men, they should be educated to be submissive to men, and they should be excluded from political issues. Mary Wollstonecraft's "Vindication of the Rights of Women" she challenged Rousseau's idea on women. She inspired the rights of women to be included in the Enlightenment. She believed the most important is education to learn how to become an individual. Women created Salons, where they discussed political issues and helped philiosophes spread their teachings.
Kant's "perpetual Peace" listed several conditions, he thought necessary for ending wars and creating a lasting peace. He opposed democracy, believing majority rule is a treat to individual liberty.
i agree with tiffany on Adam Smith's "Wealth of Nations" he criticized the mercantile system. The government favored exports and hindered imports. Smith argued that individuals should be allowed to make money in a way that is best for them. the wealth of the country consists in their wealth.
i also agree with Eunice's statement on Deism, that it played an important part during this time of the Philosophes movement. Deism is the belief in a supreme being that created the universe but does not intervene in human affairs. The creator permits the universe to run itself according to natural laws. they believed in god without the reliance on religion. Deism developed many modern secular ideas.
This statement is valid. During the eighteenth century, European thinkers challenged the church’s ideas and teachings and became curious about the world around them. These people were known as philosophes and opened doors to new social and economic ideas. Denis Diderot and Jean Le Rond d’Alembert were wonderful examples of philosophes who contributed to the enlightenment. In order to secularize learning and attenuate intellectual assumptions that remained from the middle ages and Reformation , Diderot and d’Alembert with the help of many other philosphes published the Encyclopedia. The Encyclopedia sought to explain that the future welfare of humankind was neither in pleasing God nor following omniscient commandments but instead putting use the power and resources of the earth and in living at peace with ones fellow human being. The Encyclopedia was also an important source of knowledge on the eighteenth century social and economical life and lead to new social and economic aspects. Through the Encyclopedia enlightenment ideas were able to spread throughout the continent.
I agree with Tiffany that the English philosophe Adam Smith’s work The Wealth of Nations helped people change their methods of personal gain rather depending governmental monopolies and regulations. It also provided people to have personal incentive for profit and opening new business. Smiths theory also allowed Europeans to look all around the world and find themselves dwelling at the highest level of human achievement. Through Adam Smith’s work people were able to contribute to wealth and increase their value in life.
I agree with Eunice with her reference to Deism. Deism is a belief in a rational God who created the universe, but then allowed it to function without his interference. This idea of Deism led to the mechanism of nature and a belief in rewards and punishment after death for human nature. With a wide acceptance of Deism many Deists hoped that rivalry’s and hatred among different religious groups would end. Through Deism philosphes sought for a religion without the authorities of the churches.
This statement is extremely valid. During the Enlightenment in the 18th century, most people turned to the new ideas to explain the new happenings in their social and economic lives. The philosophes were the main contributing factors in the movement and surfacing of ideas. Men such as Kant, Voltaire, Locke, Beccaria, Smith, Montesquieu, Diderot, and Rousseau were the main sources from which such ideas sparked and took hold in society.
During this time period, many people were wishing for reform in government and religion and also other ways to stimulate their businesses. Adam Smith argued in his “The Wealth of Nations” an economy with minimum governmental interference. This was supported by business owners because this kind of economy maximized potential for profit. Also, Diderot’s Encyclopedia gave people a great source of secular and non-dogmatic learning. It ignored divine law and included articles based on antiquity, reason, and humanity rather than pleasing a God. It even included articles and illustrations on building and manufacturing. All of these things were made possible for public viewing because of the rise of the printing press. These ideas truly helped people to see the world in a more rational way and radically changed their view of life and humanity.
I agree with Ariel on the great success of the Encyclopedia due to the printing press and Diderot’s ingenuity of avoiding full censorship.
I also support Josh’s points on thee important ideas of Newton, but I do not believe that it truly impacted all people, especially at that time period.
The statement is valid because in the 1700s because people wanted a societ where the government would not be corrupt. An example of people wanting better society is the Social Contract written by Jean-Jacques Rousseau because it was like a social contract.Rousseau mostly summarized that there was general will so there would be a majority of people that would have good decisions or bad. People wanted science more better because then they thought since the church has been wrong that they should listen to logic and science. The Encyclopedia by Diderot showed the achievements of science and that proved some of the church ideas about nature wrong. With the Encyclopedia in people's hands they had now so much information about nature that helped give them an understanding of the world.I agree with Ariel about the Encyclopedia that it was important at that time period. The Encyclopedia was important because if people never got it then people wouldn't have knowledge. I also agree with Tiffany N. about Rousseau arguing that parents should not take care of children. Also because Rousseau said that children should have freedom because they need to be able to do things and not be enslaved to do things.
I think this is a very valid statement because, due to the uprising of different scientific advances, people started questioning what they should believe and whether it was actually right to just take the churches word for things. The Enlightenment added on to the ideas of the scientific revolution by starting to use more logic and reason in order to provide an explanation on how things are how they are. Many during this time believed that the universe was governed by "natural law" and from this, and Newton's theories on natural law, came deism which showed that the existence of God was a rational explanation of the universe and its form. Two people that were seen as undermining the enlightenment ideas were Baron Paul d' Holdbach and David Hume. D' Holdbach argued that humans were like machines and they were completely determined by outside forces. The people of the Enlightenment did not share his view about this at all because he was an atheist which is what explained his view on this, however, even though people during this time were turning to science for explanations, they did not give up religion, many just decided to keep them separate from each other. In addition, David Hume thought that human ideas were the result of experiences, and this view undermined the enlightenments emphasis on reason which is why he was favored by many of the enlightenment thinkers. On the other hand, Montesquieu, who wrote the Spirit of Laws (the most influential book of the century), had ideas that supported exactly what the ideas of the Enlightenment were. He used logic and reason to come up with the conclusion that there were no single set of political laws that could apply to all people at all times and in every place, therefore he came up with the three branches of government and the checks and balances which meant that if one branch was getting out of hand, the other two could make sure that wouldn't happen.
I agree with Josh's statement about the fact that during the Enlightenment period, people turned to philosophes and philosophers in order to understand the world around them. People before this time had to rely on the church to give them an explanation that they would just have to accept whether or not there was proof, however, now, they would turn to the philosophers in attempt to understand what's going on, and they could give them evidence to try to show them that their belief was right.
I also agree with Tiffany Le's statement on how The Social Contract of Rousseau emphasizes social and political equality. Rousseau was an Enlightenment thinker that believed that society was the most important thing. He thought that the community was more important than the individual person. Rousseau thought that one must do whatever it takes in order to make all the members of society excel and succeed.
I believe that this statement is valid because in the 18th century, many began to question and wonder areas they were not completely certain with, setting them to seek knowledge and truth of the world around them.
For instance, Denis Diderot had developed the Encyclopedia publishing his own, and other philosophes', including Voltaire and Montesquieu works. In the Encyclopedia, the French Government were attacked in areas of religious tolerance and unfair taxes. After reading this 25-volume publication, Diderot hoped that society would rethink and act more rationally and critically. The Encyclopedia was well organized into a systematic and scientific fashion to portray knowledge and education.
At this time, there were also several physiocrats, who were economic thinkers. Though they were similar to philosophes, they had a closer knit to the government. Adam Smith, who was a Scottish economist, wrote "Wealth of Nations" arguing against government power over mercantilism. Smith believed that people should be able to pursue their own economic gains. He outlined what came to be known as capitalism.
I agree with Brandon about the Encyclopedia raising secular ideas and refraining from divine laws. The Encyclopedia was a hope to break through all the set beliefs the church had provided the society at this time. With writings of many philosophes, it helped build a collection of critiques towards politics and society.
I also agree with Tiffany Nguyen about Rousseau's considerations for children and their education at the time. He believed that at home, parents should not corrupt their children with their own bias beliefs but to let them make their own decisions and believe in what they preferred. Also, Rousseau thought it was explorations in nature that assisted children in developing emotional awareness.
The Enlightenment was an era, much like the Renaissance, though the renaissance was towards the individual, it gave a way for individuals to think for themselves and be confident.The renaissance was a jump start in history and drove away from medieval thinking and the enlightenment was the next step in individual thinking. Immanuel Kant, who greatly contributed to the German Enlightenment, had an essay named "Berlinische Monatsschrift" that emphasized the emergence of man doing things for himself without the consent and help from others. This later became the motto of the enlightenment. People then started to develop skills needed to complete everyday challenges and saw more of the world in a better perspective. Philosophers during the 18th century wrote works that emphasized mans role in the society of enlightened thinkers. thinkers
i agree with Ariel on mans role on earth rather than religion. in medieval views people did things to please God and did only things that were acceptable. Now man is entitled to what they believe and believe in their conscience. They do things that they believe will help benefit them in their lives. This turned out to become individual laws that was special to each specific person.
I also agree with Josh on the influences of philosophers and philosophes. These philosophers wrote works that emphasized the importance of self reasoning. These works also encouraged individuals to have courage in their beliefs and be able to think for themselves. By doing this man is able to have a better view of the world and make new laws for themselves.
I agree with Reina. I beleive people did turn to the philosophes and philosophers for answers on the world around them. Now that people didnt have to follow by the church's rules and they could now object, they would turn to the philosophers for the correct reasons with the evidence to back their statements and beleifs up.
Ariel brought up an excellent point on The Encyclopedia. It is very true that many authors used philosophes' ideas that were added in. This placed emphasis on man's role on Earth istead of being all about the church.
This statement is valid. Philosphes were hoping to end human cruelty by discovering social laws. This is one example of how people better understood the world in solving their social problems. In 1764, Marquis Cesare Beccaria published "On Crimes and Punishments" where he applied critical anaysis to the problem of making punishments both effective and fair. He hoped the laws of manarchas and legislatures to conform the rational laws of nature. Beccaria attacked torture and capital punishment. The criminal justice system, he thought, should ensure a quick trial and certain punishment and the intended punishment to prevent future crimes. The idea was to create a better system for a more peaceful and safe environment. This philoshopy was based on happiness in this life exploring most Enlightenment writing on these reforms.
I agree with Ariel's points on the "Encyclopedia". They allowed for advances in manufacturing, technology, etc. Knowledge was being more spread about in this book.
I also agree with Andrew when he compares the renaissance and the enlightenment and how they relate. The renaissance, was more focused in the states of nature of the individual, while the enlightenment, based on the renaissance itself, focuses more in the states of nature in the society as a whole. That is, the enlightenment was centralized in the betterment of the society.
This statement is valid because people of the 18th century used scientific thinking to solve their problems. As they began thinking they had new ideas and brought more diversity of thought. During the Enlightenment many people used scientific discoveries to assist them with their problems. One brief example of this is when the the telescope, a toy, was used to observe objects at great distance. This also brought new thoughts of religion. Instead of doing whatever the Church says is correct, people questioned faith and began to develop a mind set of their own.
I agree with Andrew because I think that the Enlightenment was a lot like the Renaissance. It definentally gave society an extra push. Both have had positive effects on lives of nearly all social classes.
I also agree with Reina. She said that the scientific revolution brought a more logical thinking into most people's lives. This caused some breaks from the Church. This also however brought a lot of fresh ideas to improve upon society.
This statement is valid since in the 18th century people started to break away from medieval times and looked towards new ideas.
In Montesquieu's Spirit of the Laws he spoke of separation of powers among the different branches of government providing for the chance of checks and balances wanting to limit on royal absolutism.
Jean-Jacques Rousseau was one of the most known philosophe however, he differed from many other philosophes. Such as believing in direct democracy rather than constitutional monarchy and also inspired people to find truth through inner emotions rather than reason. In his most famous work, The Social Contract, he explain that the attention was needed on reform of the whole community because an individual's attachment to a bigger society could the powerless people hope to achieve much of anything. Basically, Rousseau speaks about a society of the general will of the populace and through the will of the king.
I agree with Andrew's statement that the Renaissance allowed people to break away from the medieval thinking. Also how the Enlightenment was also the next step towards individual thinking. I believe the Renaissance allowed people to think more deeper and to think for themselves rather than listening to the church.
I agree with Ariel on Denis Diderot and d'Almbert's Encyclopedia. Through the Encyclopedia many Enlightenment ideas were able to spread beyond the borders of France which allowed other countries to see and to be influenced by the knowledge presented in the Encyclopedia.
In the period of the Enlightenment the people began to turn away from the previous medieval notions. They began to turn in favor of the newer social and more reasonable ideas. An example of such ideas being embraced would be Mary Wollenstonecraft's Vindication of the Rights of Wman in 1792. This work depicted women as strong capable people able to do anything just as well as men. Volatire's Treatise on Tolerance also allowed others to see the views of a mind open towards religion. The book was published explaining that one should be tolerant towards another's religion even if it were not of the same background.
I agree with Tiffany Le due to the fact that her examples given explained how people used more realistic ideas in order to explain the their surroundings. The phillosphes of the time gave a paved a steady road for the people of the time to follow. Jean-Jacques Rosseau did indeed gave his sentiments on how a state should be and allow for others to have a better view of a state with political and social equality. Adam Smith also allowed a great idea to stabalize the economic welfare of a state by introducing the idea of capitalism.
I also agree with Nick H in terms of his views on Enlightenment ideas. At the time the phillosophes did hope to go against the pre-concieved notions of the time period. They hoped for others to become more independent and think for themselves as time went on. They focused on advocating secular ideas so one could think in a more versatile way.
People did turn towards the sciences of the Enlightenment. Through logic and reason, many people began to question how kings/queens ruled and their place in society. Maria Theresa practiced logic by unifying laws and uplifting burdens from the serfs. By uplifting burdens from the serfs, the largest social class, Austria's economy improved. Maria Theresa's decisions support Rousseau's "Of the Social Contract." He wrote how men are born with freedoms and the public is the sovereign rule. Maria Theresa gave serfs more rights that any free man should have.
Peter the Great also practiced the Enlightenment sciences. Since the feudal system proved to be ineffective, he modernized Russia's society by mirroring Western Europe. In Kant's book "Perpetual Peace: A Philosophical Sketch" he stated that the general will contradicts itself because not all individuals agree with one another (general will is a method of majority rule). Peter the Great's actions support Kant's theory because as an absolutist, Peter the Great ruled with sovereignty for the benefit of the people.
I agree with Tiffany N's statement about Rousseau. Rousseau stated that men are born free, but set themselves in chains. This means that men are influenced by their environment and grow upon the things they observed as young children. With a healthy environment at a young age, children can grow to make their own more responsible decisions.
I do not agree with Brittany S's statement about Montesquieu being Islamic. He was a French political thinker of the Enlightenment. I do agree with her statements about his book "The Spirit of the Laws." Montesquieu also created the Meteorological Climate Theory. The theory states that a climate ultimately alters one's personality and/or mood. For example: people who live in the hot sun are hot-tempered. People who live in cold environments are stiff. Since he lived in France (middle Europe), the conditions of the climate were "just right" and the people had the "perfect" personality/mood. Many people utilized this theory to explain people's behavior.
This statement is indeed valid. In the 18th century, many started to drift away from medieval traditions and began voicing their opinions. Most of those people who voiced their opinions were classified as philosophes. A philosophe by the name of Mary Wollstonecraft is an example who voiced her opinion on the current status of women in her essay "A Vindication of the Rights of Women." In her essay she challenged the man's view that women are to always remain submissive and are not capable of handling anything a man could do. Her essay was opposing the ideas in Rousseau's Emile and Diderot and d'Alembert's Encyclopedia. Emile and the Encyclopedia contained views of women similar to medieval views and Wollstonecraft tried to away from this opinion.
I agree with Alinna's statement that Montesquieu believed that separating the different branches of government will limit absolute power. During the 18th century classical liberalism became popular. Classical liberalism is the belief in liberties of an individual and equality before the law. Classical liberalism looked towards society for opinions and decisions rather than to one person. Absolutism on the other hand had all the power centralized around one person.
I also agree with Eunice Cho that many people were challenging the church's ideas. An example of a person who challenged the church ideas was a person named Baron Park d'Holbach. Being an athiest, he contradicted that God affects us human beings. He believed that the environment surrounding an individual is the factor that affects him/her and their actions.
This is true because the enlightenment got people to understand and do things themselves and not rely on what the leaders said. People were now able to question the leaders on many things and were now able to do experiments to prove themselves correct. The people before had no answers to any of their questions but during the enlightenment scientists were now able to answer peoples questions on social and religious aspects. The scientists now were able to explain the world to the clueless people. Scientists like Copernicus taught people about the stars and showed people that the theories they had learned before may have been incorrect. Newton’s laws of motions showed people how the world and gravity works. People were now able to understand what was going on in the world and didn’t just believe what leaders said.
I agree with Andrew that the renaissance was very similar to the enlightenment because they both influenced people starting from the nobility to the peasants. Both the enlightenment and the renaissance effected people positively. I also agree that the enlightenment helped individuals think for themselves instead of just listening to the theories of others.
I also agree with josh that philosophers were trying to think of ideas to improve the way they were governed. They tried to see what part they played in the government and how they could affect the government. I also agree that the enlightenment was making people become philosophers and making them come up with their own theories.
The statement is valid because during the 18th century people began to look to other places to get rational and logical explanation as to why the things around them happened. The Enlightenment brought with it a slew of great thinkers who's ideas led to people looking for other ways to get their ideas. Diderot's encyclopedia emphasized man's role in life. His encyclopedia categorized all human knowledge regardless of religion.
Deism, is the belief in which existence of God was a rational explanation of the universe. Newton drew from this and created his natural laws regarding the earth.
Also, print culture was big at the time. the press was a great way to spread secular ideas across a wide area in a short amount of time.
I agree with Tiffany Nguyen on the fact that Diderot wanted everyone to learn. The encyclopedia was a compilation of knowledge that was highly accessible to people who wanted to broaden their horizons and widen their intellect.
I also agree with Brittany Sam about print culture. it indeed lowered censorship and allowed people of all social statuses and areas to read people's secular thoughts and views
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