historical circumstances that led to the Enlightenment

​The Enlightenment

By Isiah Jones

Open Ended

When powerful institutions control what people are allowed to believe, what usually causes people to push back?
(New ideas? New technology? New experiences? Explain.)

Enlightenment: Key Terms

absolute monarch	a king or queen with complete control
government	the group of people that has power to make laws and important decisions for a community, state, or nation
philosopher	one who thinks about, questions, and studies the nature of life, truth, knowledge, and other important human matters
reason	the power of the mind to think, understand, and make sense of the world
rights	something you are allowed to do because you are a person
scholar	someone that specializes in a branch of study
urbanization	the process of making an area more city-like, usually through an increase in population

Multiple Choice

Which situation best shows the power of an absolute monarch?

• A president is elected for a limited term

• A ruler follows laws written by the people

• A king shares power with a parliament that votes on laws

• A queen makes all laws herself and punishes anyone who disagrees

Multiple Choice

Which example best describes the role of a government?

• A group that teaches religious beliefs

• A group that decides fashion trends

• A group that studies science and math

• A group that makes laws and enforces rules for a country

Multiple Choice

During the Enlightenment, which person would most likely be considered a philosopher?

• Someone who memorizes laws without questioning them

• Someone who studies how to gain wealth for the king

• Someone who questions ideas about government, truth, and human rights

• Someone who commands an army

Multiple Choice

Why did Enlightenment thinkers emphasize reason instead of tradition?

• Tradition was seen as the only source of knowledge.
• Tradition provided a stable foundation for society.
• Enlightenment thinkers emphasized reason to promote critical thinking and challenge traditional authority.
• Reason was considered irrelevant to human experience.

Multiple Choice

Which example best represents the idea of rights?

• A. A king granting favors to nobles

• B. People being allowed to speak their opinions without punishment

• C. Soldiers being required to obey orders

• D. Merchants paying taxes

Multiple Choice

How did urbanization help spread Enlightenment ideas?

• A. People moved to cities, creating more chances to meet and share ideas

• B. Cities reduced the number of people who could read

• C. Urbanization strengthened absolute monarchs

• D. People stopped questioning authority

What was the Enlightenment?

Contextualization Directions (Annotate as You Read & Watch)

As you read the text and watch the video, annotate for context:

• WHO is involved? (thinkers, groups, institutions)

• WHERE are they from? (region/country)

• WHEN is this happening? (time period)

• WHY did they challenge old ideas or authority?

• WHAT did they do or argue?

• HOW did their ideas influence the Enlightenment?

👉 Only annotate information that helps explain what the Enlightenment was and why it happened.
Use your annotations to answer the questions.

Open Ended

Based on the video and transcript, what organization had the most influence on how people in Europe lived and what they thought?

Open Ended

What two major changes in ideas or society resulted from the Enlightenment, and how did those changes challenge traditional authority? Use evidence from the video or transcript.

Jigsaw – Expert Group Work

You are an EXPERT on one cause of the Enlightenment

Your Group Topic
1️⃣ Absolute Monarchs
2️⃣ Reformation & Scientific Revolution
3️⃣ Books & Literacy
4️⃣ Cities, Salons & Coffeehouses

With your expert group:

• Read your section together

• Annotate for contextualization:

  • Who is involved?

  • When / Where is this happening?

  • Why did this matter?

  • How did it help lead to the Enlightenment?

• Answer your section’s questions Choose 2–3 key ideas to teach your table

• Everyone must be ready to explain.

Return & Teach Your Table

Back at your original table:

• Take turns teaching your expert section

• Explain:

  • What this factor was

  • How it challenged old authority or ideas

  • How it helped start the Enlightenment

• While others teach, complete your notes/chart

Goal:
By the end, everyone understands all four causes of the Enlightenment.

Open Ended

Choose ONE factor your table learned about.
Finish this sentence:

“This helped cause the Enlightenment because…”

Open Ended

At your table, rank the FOUR causes from most important → least important in starting the Enlightenment

Open Ended

Why did you rank ___ above ___? What’s your evidence?