Main Contents

I.     General Introduction

II.    British Philosophy

III.   French Philosophy

IV.    Influence

What does it mean to be

“enlightened”?

To free people from prejudice, ignorance, or superstition；

To gain knowledge and wisdom;

What is the Enlightenment

commonly referred to as?

The Age of Reason

What is “reason”?

To think logically

How did Enlightenment

thinkers differ from scientists?

They applied reason to the “human world” not just

the natural world!

The Human world includes government and law

1. Enlightenment

A progressive philosophical,

intellectual and cultural movement

Period: 17th and 18th centuries

Originating : in England

Advocates: Voltaire, Montesquieu,

Rousseau

Goal: liberty, fraternity and equality

1. Enlightenment

Features:

Strong faith in the power of reason, logic and rational thought;

Belief in using the scientific method to solve social problems;

Thinkers were against Divine Right and believed the people are the source of government’s power

1. Enlightenment the Age of Reason VS the Age of Faith

result: in Constitution—separation of

power

in Religion

in Revolution

in art and music

The American War of Independence

Industrial Revolution

French Revolution

Freedom of religion

neoclassicism

Spread of the Enlightenment

2. British Philosophy

● Thomas Hobbes ● 1588-1679

● 1651 Leviathan

利维坦 ● Human nature

● Social contract ● The best form of government: Monarchy( 君主政体）

Leviathan

Hobbes: human nature

Human beings were naturally wicked.

Human beings could not be trusted to make decisions to benefit all, only to benefit themselves.

He believed an absolute monarch was necessary to protect human beings (Humans not capable of self-rule)

Hobbes: Social Contract

The people and the leader have a Social Contract.

The only way to avoid war, chaos, disarray is a strong central ruler.

People give up their rights to an absolute ruler in exchange for protection, law, and order.

People do not have the right to rebel

John Locke 1632-1704 British Philosopher Life, Liberty, Property Works: Letter on Toleration Two Treatises of

Government The Reasonableness of

Christianity Essay Concerning Human

Understanding

John Locke Believed in democracy because he

argued the people were SOVEREIGN--the people have ultimate power

Believed people were not born wicked. Believed individual must become rational

creature. The doctrine of the divine right of kings

were nonsense. He favored a republic as the best form of

government

He influenced the Declaration of Independence.

“ among these rights are life, liberty, and

the pursuit of happiness”

Mary Wollstonecraft

1759-1797 British philosopher, author, and feminist

Mary Wollstonecraft

1792 A Vindication of the Rights of Woman

Argued women are not naturally inferior to men; they just suffer from lack of educational opportunities.

Argued that men and women should be treated as equal beings

Argued that social order should be determined by reason not by gender, race, wealth, etc.

Queen Elizabeth I (“The Virgin Queen”)

An Enlightened ruler. Never got married. Even though she believed in

Divine Right she still saw the need to rule with reason.

She settled decades-long religious tension in England

(Catholics vs. Protestants) The philosophers saw her as

an inspiration to other monarchs.

Who Were the Philosophers So Mad at?King Louis XIV 1643-1715 “The Sun King”

King Louis XIV (“The Sun King”)

Believed in Divine Right: Believed God anointed him king so he was only responsible to answer to God, not to his subjects

King Louis XIV (“The Sun King”) Ruled France as an absolute monarch in

control of every aspect of every French citizen’s life

Believed his entire kingdom revolved solely around him: called himself “The Sun King”

King Louis XIV (“The Sun King”)

Lived a lavish life funded by heavy taxes on most of his subjects

Most of his subjects lived in poverty with barely enough to eat

French Philosophy

1. Voltaire (1694--1778)

The French poet, dramatist, historian, and philosopher

He was noted for his characteristic wit, satire and critical capacity.

Voltaire 1694-1778

French Philosopher Works: Essay on the custom

and the Spirit of Nations

Candide (1758) Philosophical

Dictionary

Voltaire Voltaire used his works to express criticism

toward the Catholic Church and the French institutions of his time period.

The relationship between religion and the government: separation of church and state

Staunch supporter of individual liberties and rights.

Believed in the freedom of speech and religion.

"I disapprove of what you say, but I will defend, to the death, your right to say it.”

French Philosophy 1.  Montesquieu 1689---1755 The jurist, satirist, and

political and social philosopher

Works: a.  Persian Letters

(1721) b. The Spirit of the Laws

(1748)

● Monarchies: ruled by a king/queen guided by honor

● Republics: ruled by elected officials guided by virtue

● Despotisms: ruled by absolute dictators guided by fear

The structure of the government:

separation of powers

(3 branches of government)

In order to avoid one person gaining all the power

(NO ABSOLUTISM!)Influence on the U.S. Constitution: sets up three branches of Government, just as Montesquieu recommended.

Who wrote the

Social Contract

?

French Philosophy 3.  Jean-Jacques Rousseau 1712--1778 The Swiss-born philosopher,

author, political theorist and composer.

• Works:

• A Discourse on the Sciences and Arts

• On Education

• The Social Contract (1762)

What does Rousseau say about “The

Social Contract?”

It is a contract between the

people and their rulers

What should happen if this

contract is broken by the rulers?

The people should rebel!

The Storming of Bastille

Liberty leading the People

Rousseau’s Social Contact

The Social Contract—the illusion that all

men were equal and material

possessions did not matter.

He glorified human nature and attacked

social inequality.

He believed humans were naturally

good and corrupted by society.

Rousseau’s Social Contact He believed government forces people

to distrust each other and takes freedoms away.

He believed that the people are the source of government powers.

He believed government’s job was to help people be happy.

If government did not do its job people had the right to remove leaders

Marquis de Condorcet

Work: Progress of the Human Mind

An expectation of universal happiness;

Every individual guided by reason could enjoy true independence.

He advocated a free and equal education and equal rights for women.

Female French Philosophers

Emilie du Chatalet A French noblewoman Study mathematics

and physics Her lover—Voltaire,

learnt a lot of science from her.

Salons

启蒙思想家的政治学说集中宣传人权与法制的观点

天赋人权（否定特权）

主权在民（否定王权）

法治

三权分立（防止专制）

社会契约（否定神权）

人治

Characteristics of Enlightenment

A preference for evidence, not faith A desire for rationality, logic and reason. A rejection of emotionalism. Increased interest in science,

mathematics, geometry. An admiration for Greece and Rome and

an abhorrence for everything medieval. A preference for technology over

wilderness.

Effects of the Enlightenment

Proposed the belief that men ought to be ruled by laws, not rulers.

The philosophes argued that social progress and political freedom were restrained by the state and the church and did not reflect man’s natural goodness.

Belief in progress and man’s ability to solve problems.

Prepare intellectual justification for U. S. and French Revolutions.

The Enlightenment had some F.A.S.T. thinkers!

Fueled democratic revolutions around world (American, French)

F.

Bastille: The French Revolution Begins July

14, 1789!

Signing of the Declaration of Independence: July 4, 1776

Applied reason to the human world (government, law)

A

Stimulated religious tolerance

S.“ It would be reasonable if we all just got along, wouldn’t it?

Billy Graham,Protestant, and Pope John Paul II

Taught that our rights come from natural law NOT the governmentT.

Natural rights

Literature English Literature Alexander Pope Daniel Defoe Jonathan Swift Henry Fielding

German Literature Wolfgang von Goethe

 English Literature

1.  Alexander Pope (1688---1744) The greatest poet, satirist, essayist and critic of the 18th century. Heroic Couplet The spokesman of the Age of Reason Tuberculosis—asthma hunchback toad

Alexander Pope

Major works: An Essay on Criticism; 《批评论》 The Rape of the Lock; 《 夺 发

记》 or 《秀发劫》 Successful translation of Homer’s

epics: Iliad and Odyssey into English

Famous lines

A little learning is a dangerous thing.

To err is human, to forgive, divine.

Blessed is the man who expects nothing,

for he shall never be disappointed.

An honest man is the noblest work of God.

Charms strike the sight, but merit wins the

soul.

The Rape of the Lock

Mock-heroic poet 效嘲英雄詩 Arabella Petre A lock of hair Breach between

two families

2. Daniel Defoe (1660--1731)

Prolific novelist and political journalist.

The Life and Strange Surprising Adventures of Robinson Crusoe

《鲁宾逊漂流记》

Robinson Crusoe

An English mariner—

shipwrecked on an

island—Friday—

cannibals—sailed

home

Jonathan Swift (1667—1745)  

Churchman, political writer and poet;

The foremost satirist; 

Works:

A Modest Proposal 

《拘谨的提议》 Gulliver’s Travels

《格利佛游记》

Gulliver’s Travels

Gulliver, an honest,

blunt English ship’s

captain;

Lilliput

Brobdingnag

Laputa

Houyhnhnms

Henry Fielding (1707--1754)

Novelist, dramatist, and essayist

Father of the English novel

Major work: The History of Tom

Jones, a Foundling 《 弃 儿 汤 姆 ． 琼 斯 的 历

史 》

German Literature

Wolfgang von

Goethe One of the greatest poet,

writer, journalist, painter,

theater manager, scientist and

statesman.

Fan of Shakespeare

Faust (part I, 1808; part II,

1832)

Faust

The Lord Satan Faust A deal Offer knowledge

and experience Sell soul to the devil