The Enlightenment Period

​Ideas of the Enlightenment

Lesson 1

Main ideas

1. The Enlightenment was also called the Age of Reason.

2. The Enlightenment’s roots can be traced back to earlier ideas.

3. New ideas came mainly from French and British thinkers.

Multiple Choice

The Enlightenment was also called the Age of _____________.

• Greatness

• Ideas

• Thoughts

• Reason

​Key Terms and People

1) Enlightenment: period in which people valued the use of reason as a guide to improving society

2) Voltaire: French philosopher and writer who mocked government and religion

3) salon: social gathering in which people discuss ideas

4) Mary Wollstonecraft: British writer who believed women should have the same rights as men

Multiple Choice

Voltaire was a ______________philosopher and writer who mocked government and religion

• Mexican

• English

• French

• African

​THE AGE OF REASON

Discoveries made during the Scientific Revolution and explorers led to changes in Europe. Many scholars challenged long-held beliefs about science, religion, and government. They relied on reason, or logical thought, to explain how the world worked. They believed human reason could be used to reach three great goals—knowledge, freedom, and happiness. This time period is called the Enlightenment. It is also known as the Age of Reason.

Multiple Select

Three goals that scholars believed humans could achieve through the use of reason:

• knowledge

• power

• freedom

• religion

• happiness

​THE ENLIGHTENMENT’S ROOTS

The main ideas of the Enlightenment came from earlier eras. Enlightenment thinkers looked to the Greeks, Romans and the history of Christianity. They also got ideas from the Renaissance, the Reformation, and the Scientific Revolution. For example, the ancient Greeks observed the order in the natural world, and Roman thinkers had the idea that natural law governed how the world worked.

Multiple Choice

Enlightenment thinkers looked to the Greeks, ______________ and the history of Christianity.

• Americans

• Chinese

• Romans

• Aztecs

​Enlightenment thinkers applied these beliefs of natural laws to the human world of society and government. They questioned the Christian Church’s religious beliefs and power. They learned from the Renaissance thinkers who believed that humans had value and the scientists from the Scientific Revolution who used the scientific method.

Multiple Choice

Enlightenment thinkers questioned the Christian Church’s religious beliefs and power.

• True

• False

​NEW IDEAS

Enlightenment thinkers expanded on ideas from history to think about the world in a new way. They believed the use of reason could improve society. To do so, they had to share their ideas with others. French philosophers made many of the ideas of the Enlightenment popular. The philosopher Voltaire (vohl-TAYR) believed humans could improve their lives and poked fun at government and religion in his writings. When he was censored for his writings, Voltaire spoke out. He said, “I [may] disapprove of what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it.” This is the Enlightenment goal of freedom of thought.

​Enlightenment ideas spread. An important place for the exchange of ideas was the salon. The salon was a social gathering held to discuss ideas. Some British men and women also began to publish their ideas in books, pamphlets, and newspaper articles. The British writer Mary Wollstonecraft wrote that women should have the same rights as men. The British writer Adam Smith believed economics was governed by natural laws and should not be controlled by governments.

Open Ended

What did Enlightenment thinkers do to spread their ideas?

​

Lesson 2: New Views On Government

​Main ideas

1. The Enlightenment influenced some monarchies.

2. Enlightenment thinkers helped the growth of democratic ideas.

3. In the Americas, the Enlightenment inspired a struggle for independence.

Multiple Choice

Enlightenment thinkers helped the growth of democratic ideas.

• true

• false

​unlimited government: where one person or group holds all the power limited government: state in which power is checked by laws and institutions

John Locke: English philosopher who said government is a contract between the ruler and the people

natural rights: Locke’s idea that every person has the right to life, liberty, and property

majority rule: system in which ideas and decisions supported by the most people are followed

Charles-Louis Montesquieu: French philosopher who said government should be divided into separate branches, each branch limiting the power of the other branch

Jean-Jacques Rousseau: French writer who proposed the idea of popular sovereignty

popular sovereignty government that expresses the will of the people

In the 1600s and 1700s, kings, queens, and emperors ruled Europe. People believed God had given them the right to rule as they chose. This is unlimited government in which one person or group holds all power. Limited government is one that is not all-powerful and is checked by laws and institutions that represent the will of the people. The spread of Enlightenment ideas pushed some monarchs to make life better for commoners. They made laws they thought would make people happier. Empress Catherine the Great of Russia increased the number of schools for the people.

Multiple Choice

In Europe in the 1700s, what was the type of government in most countries?

• limited government

• unlimited government

​DEMOCRATIC IDEAS

Enlightenment thinkers challenged rule by divine right. English philosopher John Locke wrote that government should be a contract between the ruler and the people that limits the ruler’s power. Locke said that all people had natural rights, which included the rights to life, liberty, and property. He believed in majority rule, a system in which the ideas and decisions supported by the most people are followed. Government should be for the common good of the people. Frenchman Charles-Louis Montesquieu (mohn-te-SKYOO) said that government should be divided into separate branches to protect people’s freedom. Each branch is limited by the others. French thinker Jean-Jacques Rousseau (roo-SOH) believed in popular sovereignty, the idea that governments should express the will of the people.

Open Ended

What is majority rule?

Multiple Choice

_____________said that all people had natural rights, which included the rights to life, liberty, and property.

• Paine

• Locke

• Wolfe

• Queen Elizabeth

​THE ENLIGHTENMENT IN THE AMERICAS

The philosophers’ ideas spread from Europe to the British colonists in North America. The British government created new taxes to raise funds to fight the French, who also controlled land in North America. The colonists thought the taxes were unfair. Two leaders, Benjamin Franklin and Thomas Jefferson, applied the ideas of the Enlightenment to the colonists’ complaints. They wanted independence for the colonies. Jefferson supported the separation of religion and political power.

Open Ended

Why were the colonists upset with the British government?