World History

1. The Enlightenment
(1685-1815)
An intellectual movement in Europe during the
long 18th century where it was believed that
reason was the primary source of authority and
legitimacy, and it was hoped that knowledge
would conquer fear, superstition, and prejudice.
“Dare to know! Have the courage to use your own
understanding…is the motto of the Enlightenment.”
-Immanuel Kant

2. Causes of the Enlightenment
► National Monarchies (Absolutism)
► Provided funding for philosophers
► BUT, also were the cause of political oppression and violent wars
► Protestant Reformation
► The Catholic Church was proven wrong, wars based on religious
differences caused massive suffering.…Was religion even
working?
► Scientific Revolution
► Newton’s system of “natural laws” served as justification for a
science of man. Rational analysis could be used to examine
human behavior and institutions.

3. Les Philosophes
► Well-educated, though not usually associated with Church or
University
► Believed in humanism and secularism
► Aimed for social reform
► Criticized and questioned EVERYTHING
In Denis Diderot's multi-volume Encyclopedia, an anonymous essay
entitled "Philosophe" described the philosophe as one who:
“trampling on prejudice, tradition, universal consent,
authority, in a word all that enslaves most minds, dares to think for
himself, to go back and search for the clearest general principles,
to admit nothing except on the testimony of his experience and his
reason.”

4. Main Focus: Human Nature
► People are born as “blank slates,” and learn from
experience, logic, and reason (John Locke)
► People are born in a state of freedom and equality,
yet choose to give up certain individual freedoms
in order to benefit the larger society—this is the “social
contract” (Jean-Jacques Rousseau)
► People are naturally motivated by self-interest (Adam Smith)
Once human nature was thoroughly analyzed and understood,
les philosophes could then proceed to recommend reforms in
the hope that institutions could better serve society.

5. Main Focus: Morality
No need for organized religion to determine morality.
► Most philosophes are Deists – they view God as a “divine
clockmaker,” who made the universe and left it to run on its own
► Morality is rooted in education and reason, no one is born bad
(Beccaria)
► Categorical Imperative – you should act as if your actions
become universal law (Kant)
“I grieve, because I can no longer
believe in God.”
-Denis Diderot

6. Main Focus: Governance
Governments should be ruled by reason—not divine right, and no
leader is above the law.
► Governments should be responsive to their people, and no leader
should become too powerful
► Separation of powers (Montesquieu)
► Governments should protect people’s rights to life, liberty, and
property ownership (Locke)
► Governments should promote tolerance, equality & freedom of
religion (Voltaire)
► Bad laws are at the root of crime (Beccaria)
► laws and punishments should be humane
► everyone should have the right to a fair trial
► Rejected mercantilism – government involvement in economy was
responsible for wars and was too inefficient (Adam Smith)

7. Effects of the Enlightenment
► Long-term:
The Enlightenment’s advances in philosophy and social, political and economic
theory swept away the medieval world-view and ushered in our modern Western
world.
► Immediate:
Enlightened Absolutism
► Rulers sympathetic and felt pressure to make changes
► Abolition of censorship- freedom of press
► Abolition of torture, capital punishment (some cases)
► Religious toleration
► Improved education
► Stronger economies
Age of Revolutions - Governments that don’t change are
overthrown!
► New U.S. government based on Enlightened ideas
► French Revolution takes the Enlightenment experiment even further

8. John Adams, the second president of the United
States, once remarked that:
“The arts and sciences, in general, during the three or
four last centuries, have had a regular course of
progressive improvement. The inventions in mechanic
arts, the discoveries in natural philosophy, navigation
and commerce, and the advancement of civilization
and humanity, have occasioned changes in the
condition of the world and the human character which
would have astonished the most refined nations of
antiquity. A continuation of similar exertions is everyday
rendering Europe more and more like one community,
or single family.”

9. Putting it all together…
1350 1450 1500 1550 1600 1650 1700 1750 1800 18501400
The Renaissance
1350-1600 Protestant
Reformation
1517-1648
Scientific
Revolution
1550-1700
Absolutism
in Europe
1600-1789
Enlightenment
1685-1815
Age of
Political
Revolutions
1774-1848
Industrial
Revolution
1760-1840