1. Was absolute rule an effective way to rule during the 17th and 18th century? Explain

2. Absolutism vs. Democracy
Government by the people
Consent of the governed
Individual rights and liberties (equality*)
Absolute Monarch
Extreme power by a single monarch
No (few) rights and liberties
Citizens have no influence/say on how they are to be ruled

3. A questioning spirit...

4. The Enlightenment
“Age of Reason”
1700’s

5. Traditions and Superstitions
The “Great Debate”
Traditions and Superstitions
Reason & Logic
Rationalism
Humans could understand the world using rational principles
empiricism
tolerance
Skepticism—questioning religious truth & values
Deism—mechanic God (Voltaire) , denounced organized religion
nostalgia for the last organized religions
irrationalism
emotionalism

6. Causes of the Enlightenment
Renaissance
Reformation
Printing Press
Scientific Revolution
re-evaluate old ideas of society
sought new insight into the underlying beliefs of gov’t, religion, economics & education

7. What was the Enlightenment?
Intellectual movement
stressed reason & thought & the power of the individual to solve problems
Natural law: a universal moral law that, like physical laws, could be understood by applying reason

8. 5 Concepts of the Enlightenment
1. Reason- reason + logic = truth
2. Nature- what was natural was good and reasonable
3. Happiness- rejected joy in hereafter; seek well-being on earth
4. Progress- society and human kind can improve
5. Liberty- freedoms (democratic republic protects freedom)

11. Thomas Hobbes 1588-1679 Strong central authority Social contract
*Rebellion may
be necessary only
if there are severe
abuses

12. Hobbes The Leviathan All humans are naturally selfish and wicked
Without gov’t life would be brutish, nasty, solitary and short
Social contract- people must hand over their rights to a strong ruler in exchange for law and order
Rulers need total power because people act in their own self interest
Best gov’t= absolute monarch—impose order and demand obedience

13. John Locke 1632-1704 Two Treatises of Government, 1690
Power to the people!
Consent of the
governed
A republic is the
best form of gov’t

14. Locke
Humans were naturally good and could learn from experience and improve
Had the natural ability to govern their own affairs and to look after the welfare of society
All people are born free, equal and with natural rights: life, liberty and property
Purpose of gov’t- protect the rights of the people
Social contract- gov’t power comes from the consent of the governed- must protect their rights- and if they fail to do so, the people can rebel

15. Montesquieu 1689-1755 The Spirit of Laws, 1748 Separation of Powers
Believed in rights of the individual
Influenced writing of the constitutions in many countries—including U.S.

17. Voltaire 1712-1788 Candide (satire) Served in the Bastille
His works mocked the Church and royal court of France
Served in the Bastille
“I disapprove of what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it.”
Tolerance, reason, Freedom of Religion & Speech
Spoke out against religious fanaticism & superstition

18. Rousseau
Human beings naturally good—civilization and institutions were corrupting
Science/reason does not always = morality
1762—The Social Contract— “Man is born free, and everywhere he is in chains.”
People give up individual rights to the “general will” (will of the majority)
*This idea has been held by dictators to justify their policies

19. Beccaria 1738-1794 On Crimes and Punishment, 1764
Condemned torture and the death penalty
Accused should receive a speedy trial
Punishment fits the crime

20. Mary Wollstonecraft
A Vindication of the Rights of Women, 1792
Women’s equality with men
Favored equal education for men and women so both could contribute equally to society
Encouraged women to enter the fields of medicine and politics

21. The Legacy….=] Writers challenged long held ideas about society
Found the need to reform
Philosophers lived in “the world of ideas”- formed and popularized new theories, encouraged reforms, but were not active revolutionaries
Their theories inspired the American, French and Latin American Revolutions
Shaped Western Civilization

22. Major Ideas of the Enlightenment
Thinker
Impact
Fundamental to U.S. Declaration of Independence
Natural rights—life, liberty, property
Locke—Two Treatises of Government
Separation of Powers
Montesquieu—The Spirit of the Laws
France, U.S. and Latin America nations use separation of powers in new constitutions
Freedom of thought & expression & Religion
Guaranteed in U.S. Bill of Rights and French Declaration of Rights of Man and Citizen; European Monarchs reduce or eliminate censorship and reduce religious persecution
Voltaire
Abolish torture, punishment should fit the crime, no torture, no death penalty
Beccaria
On Crime & Punishment
Guaranteed in U.S. Bill of Rights & French Declaration of the Rights of Man and Citizen; European Monarchs reduce persecution
Women’s equality
Wollstone-
craft
Women’s rights group form in Europe & N. America
The Social Contract, Influenced democratic thought.
People give up individual rights to the “general will” (will of the majority)
“Man is born free, and everywhere he is in chains.”
Rousseau—The Social Contract

23. Enlightenment… Let’s discuss this Further….

24. Denis Diderot ( )
All things must be examined, debated, investigated without exception and without regard for anyone’s feelings.
We will speak against senseless laws until they are reformed; and, while we wait, we will abide by them.

25. Diderot’s Encyclopédie

26. The Encyclopédie
Complete cycle of knowledge…………...… change the general way of thinking.
28 volumes.
Alphabetical, cross-referenced, illustrated.
First published in 1751.

27. Pages from Diderot’s Encyclopedie

28. Pages from Diderot’s Encyclopedie

29. Pages from Diderot’s Encyclopedie

30. Subscriptions to Diderot’s Encyclopedie

31. Reading During the Enlightenment
Literacy:
80 % for men; 60 % women.
Books were expensive (one day’s wages).
Many readers for each book (20 : 1)
novels, plays & other literature.
journals, memoirs, “private lives.”
philosophy, history, theology.
newspapers, political pamphlets.

32. Popularizing the Enlightenment

33. The Royal Academy of Sciences, Paris

34. A dissection at the Royal Academy, London.
Zoology & Biology
A dissection at the Royal Academy, London.

35. Chemistry Labs & Botany Gardens

36. Natural History Collections
Cocoa plant drawing.
Sir Hans Sloane ( ).
Collected from Jamaica.

37. A Parisian Salon

38. Madame Geoffrin’s Salon (1750-1777)

39. Madame de Pompadour Mistress to Louis XV Intelligent Courtly charm
Admired by philosophes

40. Up Next….
The French Revolution