enlightenment and revolutionary vocab

Question 1

geocentric

Answer 1

Earth-centered; a system of planetary motion in which the sun, moon, and other planets revolve around the Earth

Question 2

heliocentric

Answer 2

sun-centered; the system of the universe in which the Earth and planets revolve around the sun

Question 3

successors

Answer 3

one that follows, especially one who succeeds to a throne or an office

Question 4

rationalism

Answer 4

a system of thought expounded by René Descartes based on the belief that reason is the chief source of knowledge

Question 5

philosophe

Answer 5

French for “philosopher”; applied to all intellectuals during the Enlightenment

Question 6

social contract

Answer 6

the concept that an entire society agrees to be governed by its general will and all individuals should be forced to abide by it since it represents what is best for the entire community

Question 7

laissez-faire

Answer 7

the concept that the state should not impose government regulations but should leave the economy alone

Question 8

salons

Answer 8

the elegant urban drawing rooms where, in the eighteenth century, writers, artists, aristocrats, government officials, and wealthy middle-class people gathered to discuss the ideas of the philosophes

Question 9

deism

Answer 9

an eighteenth-century religious philosophy based on reason and natural law

Question 10

inductive reasoning

Answer 10

the doctrine that scientists should proceed from the particular to the general by making systematic observations and carefully organized experiments to test hypotheses or theories, a process that will lead to correct general principles

Question 11

enlightened absolutism

Answer 11

a system in which rulers tried to govern by Enlightenment principles while maintaining their full royal powers

Question 12

recoco

Answer 12

an artistic style that replaced baroque in the 1730s; it was highly secular, emphasizing grace, charm, and gentle action

Question 13

scientific method

Answer 13

a systematic procedure for collecting and analyzing evidence that was crucial to the evolution of science in the modern world

Question 14

universal law of gravitation

Answer 14

one of Newton’s three rules of motion; it explains that planetary bodies continue in elliptical orbits around the sun because every object in the universe is attracted to every other object by a force called gravity.

Question 15

separation of powers

Answer 15

a form of government in which the executive, legislative, and judicial branches limit and control each other through a system of checks and balances