Enlightenment Flashcards
What is the Enlightenment?
The major cultural and intellectual movement of the 18th century
What are the two main takeaways of the Enlightenment?
Any problem can be solved with reason and progress cannot happen with superstition
What received social criticism during the enlightenment?
Existing institutions of religious intolerance, politics, and gender inequalities
What were the Philosophes?
Public intellectuals who used work to reform society
What did the Philosophes encourage?
Public participation!
What did John Locke believe about philosophy?
It should be pragmatic bcause moral character is derived from nature, not religion
Where do ideas and knowledge come from for Locke?
Experience, there is no apriori knowlegde, even if humans are innately good
Who wrote “Principa” of 1687?
Issac Newton
What was outlined in “Principa” 1687?
Laws of Gravity, calculus, and the unity of math and science
What was Newton’s view on knowledge?
It should be a totalizing worldview; math and science work with culture and arts for a bigger picture
Who wrote the “Philosophicaal Letters” of 1733
Voltaire
What are the three issues outlined in the “Philosophical Letters” of 1733
- Free press
- Constitutional Monarchy
- Human rights and religious tolerance
What is an enlightened despot?
A monarch who promotes reforms without giving up their supreme power
Who wrote “Spirit of the Laws” in 1748?
Montesquieu
What are the 3 takeaways of Montesquieu’s writing?
- Gov should match the climate and culture of its people
- There should be a separation of three powers
- Government should be rooted in natural law, not divinity
What concept did Jean-Jacques Rousseau beg?
Popular Sovereignty
What did Rousseau believe about the nature of people?
They have free will that can lead them to become corrupt in society
What is the General Will?
The good of community as a collective moral force that governs society
What is Enlightenment Economics?
An economic model based on the idea that economics can be moral and give people access to goods
Under enlightenment economics, what is the responsibility of the government?
setting prices and distributions
What do the people have the right to do under an enlightment economy?
Demand “just prices”
Who was Adam Smith?
Scottish economic philosopher who coined the notion of laissez faire
What did Adam Smith write?
An Inquiry into the Nature and Cause of Wealth of Nations
What is the laissez-faire model?
Goods alway sell at market demand, trade is free, and markets are guided by an invisible hand
