Unit 2 Introduction

UNIT 2: Building a Democracy

Open Ended

What do you think the word "democracy" means?

Democracy

government by the people; a form of government in which the supreme power is vested in the people and exercised directly by them or by their elected agents under a free electoral system.

Age of Enlightenment

Rationalism is the belief that reason is the main way we gain knowledge. Rationalists think that reality has a logical structure, meaning it follows certain rules. They argue that there are truths that we can understand directly through our thinking and intellect.

Rationalism

A major intellectual and cultural movement that took place in the eighteenth century. It focused on the importance of reason instead of superstition and favored science over blind faith. They promoted new ideas about openness, investigation, and religious tolerance, which spread throughout Europe and the Americas.

Enlightenment

Open Ended

What is one thing you learned about The Age of Enlightenment?