1. How do thinkers affect Nationalism?
Why were the thinkers of the Enlightenment Period influential to the concept of Nationalism?

2. Europe Pre-Revolution Time
Life back in the time called the Middle Ages, life was tough for those people that were not born into a life of priviledge.
Tradition was very strong, as sons would follow in their dad’s footsteps.
In France before the French Revolution, about 2% of the population lived in the First or Second Estate (Church and Nobles) and 98% lived in the third class (professionals, tradesmen, merchants and peasants).

3. Who would want to change?
Life was tough, but there was no way for common people to change their lives.
Common people had no voice in government and no economic power
The life that you were born in was the life you were stuck with. Education was a luxury for the upper class, government was centralized around a king or queen and no one questioned royal authority.

4. Here come the changes
As Europe moved away from the Dark Ages in the and 1700’s, philosophers re-examined society using scientific method (a rational look at things).
The Age of Reason was born out of the fact that reason and thinking could be used to discover the natural laws that govern human behavior.
A scientific approach to analyzing human life and its problems began to replace the superstitions that dominated peoples’ lives in previous centuries.

5. life is nasty, brutish and short
Thomas Hobbes
life is nasty, brutish and short
Believed that if people were left alone, they would constantly fight.
Wrote a book called Leviathan which looked at how people reacted to lack of laws and government
Believed that people should trade their individual freedoms for the security of being protected by a collective society and that a sympathetic leader should take care of them.

6. John Locke
The government should protect the rights of people, but the power should be limited
Agreed with Hobbes, in that government should establish order in society.
There is a contract with the ruler and the ruled.
Unlike Hobbes, he believed that those that governed should govern only if the people feel they are doing a great job.

7. The Philosophes
This is French for “philosophers”, and many of these guys jumped on the ideas of Locke and his interpretation of “natural rights.”
They believed that Science and Reason led to human progress
These people were often in the “Middle Class (bourgeousie). They had money, but were not part of the Noble Classes.
Had many social issues to champion ( ie - religious tolerance, freedom of speech, basic rights of men)

8. Montesquieu
He was born into a noble family. Why is this important? He got to see all the good from above. It also gave him a lot of time to think.
He observed the problems that took place in Britain and how they were resolved with a new structure of government (separation of powers).
Also theorized the idea of checks and balances on political power to make sure that one section of government was no more powerful that the another.
This feature of checks and balances is part of modern democratic governments – ie – Canada and US

9. Voltaire He was big on the idea of freedom of religion and thought
I do not agree with a word you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it.
Voltaire
He was big on the idea of freedom of religion and thought
He said that the best ruler was one that was enlightened.
In other words, use reason; not tradition for political decisions – this was more of a “scientific” approach to government
His ideas involved the making of political changes for the people, and that gov’t should defend the rights of the people

10. Man is born free, and everywhere is in chains
Rousseau
Different from the others as he came from a poor and unhappy family.
Main idea - humans were basically good, but society corrupts people.
Get rid of all the titles, and make everyone equal.
Wrote the Social Contract in which he states that people can give up some freedoms, but not to a ruler, but to others so that society can work together for the greater good.

11. Impact on Europe
Ideas spread through Europe during the 1700’s as these philosophers travelled and corresponded with each other.
A philosphe named Denis Diderot wrote all the ideas into a mass of volumes that he called “The Encyclopedia” (oh, so that’s where the term came from!)
The Church didn’t like this, as it took away from the reading of the Bible, and had very radical ideas towards reason and God.