December 17, 2012

1. Aim: How did the new world view of the Enlightenment change the way people thought about society and human relations? December 17, 2012

2. Core Beliefs of the Enlightenment • Intellectual and cultural movement of the late seventeenth and eighteenth centuries that introduced a new worldview based on: • Reason: Human reason can be used to understand all aspects of life. Everything needs to be looked at in a rational, critical, scientific way, not accepted by faith. • Scientific Method: Could be used to discover the laws of human society, not just nature and science. • Progress: Human beings can use their logic and reason to resolve political, economic and religious problems, creating better societies and better people. To what extent is the Enlightenment an extension of the Renaissance? How is it different from the Renaissance?

3. Transitional Figures of the Early Enlightenment • Bernard de Fontenelle (1657-1757) • Wrote letters and books in which he made science witty and entertaining to readers. Argued that science can lead to human progress. • John Locke (1632-1704) • Essay Concerning Human Understanding (1690): All human beings are born equal with a blank slate (tabula rasa). Human development and knowledge are determined by the education and social institutions we experience. Would Locke be an advocate of democracy? Why or why not? • Pierre Bayle (1647-1706) • French skeptic (school of thought founded on the doubt that total certainty or definitive knowledge can ever be achieved). • Writes his Historical and Critical Dictionary (1697): Argues that human religious beliefs have been extremely varied and often mistaken. Therefore nothing can be known beyond all doubt. What is the link between skepticism and the Enlightenment?

4. Rise of the Philosophes French intellectuals who become the leaders of the new Enlightenment in the eighteenth century • Why is France going to be the center of the Enlightenment in the eighteenth century? • They are aristocrats and wealthy middle class figures who write for each other, not the masses.

5. Baron de Montesquieu (1689-1755) • The Persian Letters (1721): Satire that makes fun of French culture and customs by showing them through the eyes of two Persian travelers, Usbek and Rica. • The Spirit of the Laws (1748): Applies the scientific method to analyze different political systems, argues that the French government should have a separation of powers similar to England.

6. Voltaire (1694-1778) • Early in life, he was arrested twice for insulting noblemen. As a result, he is anti-establishment and challenges social and religious institutions. • View on Religion • Deist: Believes in a God who was a grand clockmaker. Created the world, and then left it to run properly. • Strong advocate of religious tolerance. How does he defend religious tolerance in the passage you read? • View on Government • Hates absolute monarchies, but concludes that without monarchy there would be chaos. • Solution: Hope for a good monarch and attempt to influence them with Enlightenment ideas. An enlightened ruler would eliminate censorship, emphasize science and reason, promote religious tolerance, not oppress his people but also not be under the sway of the common people.