The Enlightenment

The Enlightenment

by Mr. Boswell and Mr. Jackson

What is the Enlightenment?

• A intellectual movement in the 1600s and 1700s that focused on reason.

• Basically, they studied science and philosophy to make sure it fit with reason.

• This makes it a non-political revolution!

Multiple Choice

Which previous time period gave many Enlightenment thinkers their ideas about studying the world around them?

• Renaissance

• Feudalism

• Reformation

• Roman Classicalism

Key Words of the Enlightenment

• Liberty and equality

• Popular sovereignty (people choose their leaders)

• Freedom of religion, thought and press

• Constitutional Government with separation of powers

Multiple Choice

Which term means that people have to power to choose their leaders?

• Liberty

• Constitutional Government

• Popular Sovereignty

• Freedom of the press

What was government like at the time?

• During the 1600s and 1700s, most of Europe (and the world) was ruled by kings with absolute power.

• This meant there were no limits on their authority.

• Enlightenment thinkers began to challenge this idea.

Multiple Choice

During the 1600s and the 1700s, kings ruled with few restrictions on their power. What is this called?

• Permanent Rule

• Absolute Rule

• Democracy

• Dictatorship

These ideas were not new or European!

• Note: Reason, liberty, and progress are not exclusively European and modern ideas!

• Ibn Khaldun (from Morocco in North Africa) wrote about limiting the power of kings and governments serving people in the 1200s!

Multiple Choice

Which North African thinker supported Enlightenment ideas 400 years before the actual Enlightenment?

• Avicenna

• Abu Bakr

• Uthman Ali

• Ibn Khaldun

Voltaire

• A French writer, used wit and satire to criticize the French monarchy, nobility, and church control.

• He wrote against the slave trade, inequality, prejudice, and bigotry. He vigorously defended religious freedom and the freedom of speech.

Multiple Select

Voltaire wrote against which topics? (Choose all that apply)

• Slavery

• Democracy

• Human Rights

• Inequality

Jean-Jacques Rousseau

• Jean-Jacques Rousseau did not trust reason. He also stood against strong governments.

• He argued that while some government control is necessary, such rule should be kept to a minimum.

Multiple Choice

What did most Enlightenment thinkers trust but not Rousseau?

• Rights

• Democracy

• Reason

• Kings

John Locke

• English thinker

• Believed in "natural rights" such as life, liberty, and property

• Believed governments were supposed to protect people's rights

• If they didn't, people should overthrow the government!

Multiple Select

John Locke believed in natural rights. What are the "big 3?"

• Liberty

• Life

• Voting

• Food

• Property