Unit 1 Vocabulary Quiz: The Enlightenment: Ideas & Thinkers

The "Enlightenment" is best described as a period when...

• rulers strengthened their power based on the idea of divine right.

• thinkers tried to apply reason and science to improve society and government.

• the main goal was to return society to a "state of nature" without laws.

• nations agreed to give up their power to a single global authority.

In the context of the unit, what is a "philosopher"?

• A thinker who seeks to understand fundamental truths about government and society.

• A historian who only records facts without interpretation.

• A monarch who rules with absolute power.

• A scientist who only performs laboratory experiments.

Enlightenment thinkers emphasized the use of "reason" to...

• follow the commands of the king without question.

• accept the social structure and traditions as they have always been.

• think logically in order to challenge and analyze the world.

• promote the idea of a single, state-supported religion.

The idea of a "social contract," as theorized by Hobbes, Locke, and Rousseau, is...

• a business agreement between a ruler and a merchant.

• an agreement where people give up some freedom to a government in exchange for protection and order.

• a constitutional right that can never be violated.

• a treaty signed between two warring nations.

According to John Locke, "natural rights" are...

• a set of privileges granted by the government.

• rights that can be taken away by the government.

• inherent rights that every individual is born with.

• rights that only apply to citizens of a particular nation.

Which of these is an example of natural rights?

• Privileges granted by a king that can be taken away at any time.

• Laws created through the separation of powers.

• Rights like life, liberty, and property that individuals are born with.

• The specific rules that only apply in a state of nature.

Which core idea is most closely associated with John Locke?

• Power should be divided into separate branches of government to prevent tyranny.

• Government authority must be based on the consent of the governed.

• An absolute sovereign is necessary to prevent a life that is 'nasty, brutish, and short'.

• The 'general will' of the people should be the basis for all laws.

Thomas Hobbes argued that people enter a social contract and accept an absolute sovereign in order to...

• Protect their pre-existing natural rights.

• Escape a chaotic and dangerous 'state of nature'.

• Establish a government based on the general will.

• Create three separate branches of government.

The philosopher Jean-Jacques Rousseau is best known for developing which key concept?

• The separation of powers into legislative, executive, and judicial branches.

• The idea that life in a state of nature is 'nasty, brutish, and short.'

• The 'general will' of the people as the source of legitimate authority.

• The use of common sense to argue for American independence.

Baron de Montesquieu's most significant contribution to political thought was the idea of...

• Natural rights that all humans are born with.

• The social contract as an escape from a state of nature.

• Using common sense to justify revolution.

• The separation of powers to prevent tyranny.