Applying Scientific & Enlightenment Principles

1. Applying Scientific & Enlightenment Principles

2. Mary Wollstonecraft Wrote: A Vindication of the Rights of Women • Mary Wollstonecraft was a well-known British social critic who believed that although a woman’s first duty was to be a good mother, a woman should also be able to decide what is best for her, and not be completely dependant upon her husband.

3. Mary Wollstonecraft • In her book, Wollstonecraft called for equal education for girls and boys. She believed that education could give women the tools to compete with men in public life.

4. Adam Smith Wrote: The Wealth of Nations • Adam Smith was a British economist who believed that the free market should be allowed to regulate business activity. • Laissez-faire – Policy allowing business to operate with little or no government interference.

5. Adam Smith • Smith believed that all economic growth was linked to the forces of supply and demand. • Smith believed that whenever there was a demand for goods or services suppliers would seek to meet it in order to try to make a profit • Smith’s ideas would gain great popularity, and would help to shape immensely productive economies in the 1800s and 1900s.

6. Denis Diderot Wrote: Encyclopedia • Another Enlightenment scholar, Diderot labored 25 years to produce his 28-volume Encyclopedia, which was a collection of articles by such Enlightenment thinkers as Montesquieu and Voltaire.

7. Denis Diderot • In the articles scholars denounced slavery, praised freedom of expression, and advocated education for all. They attacked divine right theory and traditional religions. • The Catholic Church threatened to excommunicate anyone who bought or read the Encyclopedia, and the French government said that reading the book was amoral. • Despite these efforts to ban the Encyclopedia, the book sold thousands of copies and helped Enlightenment ideas spread throughout Europe.

8. Impact of the Enlightenment • The Enlightenment had a major impact throughout Europe in the 1700s. • Greater numbers of people began to question established beliefs and customs. • Enlightenment beliefs affected leaders and the development of nations. • Many writers, such as Voltaire, were thrown into prison, and their books were banned and burned. • On the opposite side, many government and church leaders worked to defend the established systems.

9. Impact of the Enlightenment • One of the ways government and church leaders defended established ideas was by censoring the new ideas of the time. Censorship – A restriction on access to ideas and information.

10. Impact of the Enlightenment Another impact of the Enlightenment is a growth in the belief that democracy was the best form of government. • That happened because the Enlightenment inspired new ideas such as: • a sense of individualism • a belief in personal freedom • a sense of the basic equality of human beings. These concepts, along with other challenges to traditional authority, became important in the growth of democracy.

11. Impact of the Enlightenment Nationalism • As people in a country drew together to fight for a democratic government, strong feelings of nationalism arose. • In the late 1700s, Enlightenment ideas would contribute to an Age of Revolution.

12. Impact of the Enlightenment Enlightened Despot – An absolute ruler who used his or her power to reform society and bring about political or social change.

13. Maria Theresa Austria • She forced nobles and clergy to pay taxes, not just peasants. Maria Theresa also improved education for all people in her empire.

14. Joseph II Austria • Joseph II created legal reforms to benefit all of the people, called for religious toleration, ended censorship, and abolished serfdom.

15. Catherine the Great Russia • Asked for advice from nobles, freed many peasants and townspeople, built schools and hospitals, promoted women’s education, and religious tolerance throughout Russia.

16. Summary • The thinkers of the Enlightenment used human reason to suggest reforms in government and society. • Many Europeans, including several monarchs, were influenced by these ideas and tried to change things in their own nations. • These changes had an impact on all of Europe as democratic and nationalistic ideas grew and contributed to revolutions, such as the revolutions in America and France.