The American Enlightenment By: Daniela Rojzman Period 3

What is it and what were its causes? The Enlightenment was an intellectual movement emphasizing reason and individualism rather than tradition. The Age of Reason in Europe, also known as the European Enlightenment, objected the absolute power of the royal rulers and of the Roman Catholic church. Instead of basing their beliefs solely on the church, Enlightened thinkers used reason, logical thinking, and scientific proof to reach decisions.

Causes continued The American Enlightenment was influenced greatly by the beliefs of political European thinkers including John Locke, Thomas Hobbes, Voltaire, Baron Montesquieu, Immanuel Kant, Adam Smith, and Denis Diderot. Americans shaped the ideas of these European thinkers and generated a new kind of political idea for the future United States.

Where and when? The American Enlightenment took place in the thirteen American colonies during the eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries.

Some of the most influential European enlightened thinkers on the American Enlightenment are depicted here. These include John Locke, Thomas Hobbes, Francis Bacon, Rene Decartes, Rousseau and Voltaire

Moderate vs. Radical The idea of a moderate Enlightenment says that the American Enlightenment encourages economic liberalism, religious toleration and constitutional politics.   Radical Enlightenment conceives enlightened thought through the idea of revolutionary rhetoric and classical Republicanism. The American Enlightenment was BOTH as seen by the examples of deism and liberalism which expanded during the enlightenment!

Key Ideas of the American Enlightenment DEISM: The understanding of God’s existence as divorced from holy books, divine providence, revealed religion, prophecy and miracles. It instead bases religious belief on reason and observation of the natural world.   LIBERALISM: The belief that humans have natural rights and that government authority is not absolute, but based on the will and consent of the governed.

The founding Liberals Deism and Liberalism Deist philosophy James Madison, Benjamin Franklin, Thomas Jefferson, John Adams, George Washington

Enlightened Thinker: Roger Williams Roger Williams was very religious and even described as being the “most Christian of Christians.” His greatest contribution to the American Enlightenment was when he advocated the separation of church and state and detailed the roles of each and how they occupied separate realms.

Enlightened Thinker: Benjamin Franklin Franklin was in favor money-making and believed that the desire for wealth was virtuous only if it coincides with philanthropic efforts. Franklin was a defender of federalism, a visionary leader in world politics, and a strong advocate of religious liberty.

Enlightened Thinker: Thomas Jefferson Jefferson is best known for drafting the Declaration of Independence.  He substituted “pursuit of happiness” for “property” in Locke’s idea of natural rights. He captured the idea that constitutions are living documents that change as society and people do.

Enlightened Thinker: James Madison Madison is called the “Father of the Constitution” and fought for its ratification. He helped write The Federalist Papers in which he states his ideals of the large republic thesis and the argument for separation-of-powers and checks-and- balances.

Enlightened Thinker: John Adams Adams criticized the notion of unrestricted popular rule or pure democracy in the Discourses. In the Defense, Adams offers an uncompromising defense of republicanism. In the Dissertation, he faults Great Britain for deciding to introduce canon and feudal law to the colonies.

Some other influential American Enlightenment thinkers Thomas Paine Alexander Hamilton James Wilson Political activist, philosopher, political theorist and revolutionary. Wrote Pamphlet: “Common Sense” Founding father of the United States, chief of staff to General George Washington, one of the most influential interpreters and promoters of the U.S. Constitution  A Founding Father of the US and a signatory of the US Declaration of Independence. A leading legal theorist, he was one of the six original justices chosen by Washington

Key Ideas of the American Enlightenment REPUBLICANISM: a commitment to the idea that a nation should be ruled as a republic, in which selection of the state’s highest public official is determined by a general election, rather than through a claim to hereditary right. CONSERVATISM: conservatives also operated within the framework of Enlightenment ideas. Some claimed that Enlightened ideas are turned back upon themselves and shown to break down when applied more generally to human culture.

Book about Enlightened Republicanism- A book-length study of Thomas Jefferson's Notes on the State of Virginia

Key Ideas of the American Enlightenment TOLERANCE:  the belief that hatred of others can interfere with economic trade, extinguish freedom of thought and expression, erode the basis for friendship among nations and lead to persecution and war emerged and therefore resulted in more tolerance of others. SCIENTIFIC PROGRESS: to remove the need of an constantly intervening god and led to practical inventions. Examples are electricity, mathematical formula of gravity, rejection of the geocentric theory of the universe, etc.

Examples of Tolerance and Scientific Progress Scientific tools used that helped advanced theoretical knowledge, especially Boyle’s law which at constant temperature pressure and the volume of a gas are inversely proportional.  “A Law of Maryland Concerning Religion” mandated religious tolerance for Trinitarian Christians 

How did the American Enlightenment take form in the colonies for individuals? It applied scientific reasoning to politics, science, and religion, promoted religious tolerance, and restored literature, arts, and music as important to be studied in college. New colleges were founded and others reformed, to now include the studies of natural philosophy (science), modern astronomy, and math.

Outcomes of the American Enlightenment Directly led to the American revolution against Britain Basically the beginning of the American Country Led to American unity, where people come together for a common goal Led to where America is today in the world

Bibliography http://kids.britannica.com/elementary/art- 86997/The-French-Encyclopedie-was-one-of-the- main-works-of http://sageamericanhistory.net/colonies_empire/topic s/enlighten.htm http://www.iep.utm.edu/amer-enl/#H2 http://www.history.com/topics/enlightenment