The Age of Enlightenment Flashcards
Understand the important thinkers, beliefs, and purpose of it.
What was the Enlightenment/other name for it?
The Enlightenment (or “Age of Reason”) was an intellectual movement in the 17th and 18th centuries where people emphasized reason, science, and individual rights over tradition and superstition.
When was the Age of Enlightenment?
17th and 18th century
What key ideas did Enlightenment thinkers believe in?
Enlightenment thinkers believed in:
Reasoning
Individual Rights
Science and Knowledge
Separation of Powers
What did Thomas Hobbes believe?
Hobbes believed humans are naturally selfish, want things for themselves. Therefore, they need a strong, powerful gov’t (social contract) to maintain order and protect people. But the gov’t also needs to give natural rights to citizens.
What were John Locke’s beliefs?
Locke is the opposite of Hobbe: he knows that people are not always wicked and can GROW + LEARN from experiences. People have natural rights to life, liberty, and property. He argued that governments should protect these rights, and if they don’t, people can overthrow them.
What did Montesquieu believe about government?
Gov’t should have separation of powers in in 3 branches: (executive, legislative, judicial) to prevent any one group from becoming too powerful. Each branch can check on another and veto anything that would corrupt gov’t.
What was Jean-Jacques Rousseau’s main idea?
People are naturally good but corrupted by society. He also supported the “social contract,” where individuals follow the law and gov’t protects them. He advocated for equality and direct democracy run by people.
What did Voltaire support?
Freedom of speech, freedom of religion, and the separation of church and state. He criticized injustice, inequality, and religious intolerance.
What did Cesare Beccaria advocate for?
Punishments should be fair, not cruel, and that the criminal justice system should focus on preventing crime, not revenge. He also supported the rights of the accused, that they need FAST TRIALS, and they are INNOCENT until proven guilty [burden of proof].
What is Adam Smith known for?
He supports “free market” or laissez-faire, doesn’t want any gov’t interference in economics, wants to let people make their own money.
Smith supports capitalism. What is this?
Citizens, NOT gov’t, run companies. Each company competes for business.
What was Olympe de Gouges known for?
She wrote the Declaration of the Rights of Woman and the Female Citizen, arguing for women’s rights, including the right to vote and participate in government. Women are = to men, and wanted to protect natural rights for women too.
What did Mary Wollstonecraft argue for?
Women should have the same educational opportunities as men and be treated as equals in society. They learn the same things, and she enhanced edu. systems for women.
Social Contract
People give power/give up some freedom to gov’t, gov’t protects their rights.
If gov’t abuses power, people overthrow/replace. Started by Hobbes, used also by Rousseau.
Consent of the Governed
Government gets its power from the approval of the people it rules. If they don’t approve, people can change it. Started by John Locke.
Checks & Balances
When a branch of the gov’t uses its’ power to stop another branch from becoming too powerful. Started by Montesquieu.
What lasting impacts did the Enlightenment have?
It influenced democracies today by promoting ideas like individual rights, freedom of speech, and the separation of powers that are used now.
How were rulers chosen before/after the Enlightenment?
Old: Divine right of Kings
New: Power comes from the consent of the governed.
What are the 3 Natural Rights?
Life, liberty, property - by John Locke. (Jefferson also added “pursuit of happiness”)
