17th Century Philosophers

The Enlightenment was an intellectual movement during the late seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, in which humanity valued reason over tradition. The Enlightenment had reformed society by implementing reason and scientific thought. During the eighteenth century, European rulers had taken the beliefs of philosophes and had used their knowledge to influence their decisions. Overall, the Enlightenment philosophy influenced Rulers and their power significantly.

Enlightened absolutists also emerged during the later Enlightenment. Enlightened absolutism was “a form of government in the 18th century in which absolute monarchs pursued legal, social, and educational reforms inspired by the Enlightenment.” (Britannica 1). The acronym T.R.A.P describes enlightened absolutism. T is for “Toleration of religious minorities”, R is for “reform of institutions”, A is for “Absolutism” and P is for “patronage of the philosophes” (Tom Richey 2:54).

The origins of 16th century witchcraft were changing social, economic and religious conditions in Europe and America. The desire to find a scapegoat for the change resulted in a genocide known as the Burning Times that lasted more than a century. 

Witches were accused of casting spells on unfortunate victims and were often sentenced to death by hanging, drowning or by being burned to death.

The Enlightenment thinkers had many of the ideas in our government that is in use today. The Enlightenment thinkers had a huge impact on both the Declaration of Independence and the Bill of Rights. Both these documents impact America and me greatly.

During the seventeenth century, England experienced periods of growth and decline due to the presence of absolutism in the government. The weaknesses of England’s absolute monarchies led to the creation of the constitutional monarchy, which remains as England’s form of government in modern times. Through influential events such as the English Civil War, the Restoration, and the Glorious Revolution, England made reforms to political hierarchies.

As a Christian educator, it is important to base educational practices on Biblical authority. Christian education should teach students to learn to act like God and to do His work (Graham, 2003). “True education is to develop knowledge of God and His created reality and to use that knowledge in exercising a creative-redemptive dominion over the world . . . “ (Graham, 2003, p. 57). Being a Christian educator, does not mean that organizational structure and curriculum occur in a vacuum. Educational philosophy and structure have been developing for thousands of years and the wise educational administrator should study and understand the history and ideas that impact the educational landscape of today.

The 16th and 17th centuries in Europe marked a time of great change among the governments of the continent. The scientific revolution and enlightenment allowed for more rulers to keep their absolute power but also be a bit more tolerant and helpful to the people they ruled. The idea of having one person in charge kept political fights out of decision making as the King did what the King wanted which lessened the blood shed. Despite having some descenters the absolutism in Europe was a period of prosperity within the European countries. Absolutism helped bring centuries of prosperity to Europe has economies, populations, and some peace grew in Russia, Britain, and France from this period of absolute monarchies.

The Enlightenment philosophers were some of the smartest thinkers who changed the way people think during the 16th and 17th century. The philosophers changed the way we live and think today. “These discussions helped shape the capitalistic, democratic world in which we live in today.” There were numerous great philosophers during this time period that taught us many different methods of teaching and understanding new observations.

Absolute monarchy is the notion that the monarch rules will unlimited power, only omitted by divine law or natural law. During the seventeenth century, absolutism was ineffective in England, while it flourished in France. Comparatively, causes of its decline in England were similar to those of its former rise in France. These being; raging war(s), nobility power, religious tensions, and need for money. Whereas, the two countries were also different in respect of how each country’s monarch went about their divine right.

Beginning the 16th and 17th centuries, new establishments allowed the intellectual monopoly that the church acknowledged for quite some time began to materialize. Religious wars provoked a great majority of Europe during this time period, and they were fueled by religious leaders’ attempts to maintain the traditionally held ideas that political and social stability was built upon religious conformity. It was argued that peace would only come if state interests took lead over religious ones, which actually led to the separation of church and state. Deep differences over religion also molded the prospects of the European world, which involved most European powers also cutting a pathway of destruction in Central Europe. Religion was extremely prevalent to the history of Europe because of its significant impact on reshaped directed masses, leaders, divisions and radicals within civilizations in this period; and has indeed been a progressive factor in making Europe what it is today and has been regressive in some respects.

In 17th century Euro-America Puritan society believed that men played a patriarchal role upon women, and that this role was instituted by God and nature. The seniority of men over women lay within both the household and the public sphere. The household, immediate family living in the same dwelling was subject to the male as head figure of the house. The public sphere also known as the social life within the Puritan community consisted of two echelons. These echelons consisted of formal and informal public. The formal public consisted of woman and indentured servants. Women were to stay within the informal public and stay in the shadows of the men. The government held large ties with the church in the 17th century. Though women were

Fernando Vidal’s The Sciences of the Soul: The Early Modern Origins of Psychology ventures into the history of psychology as an academic and attempts to explore its roots from a new perspective. Vidal deviates from the standard presumption that psychology began during the age of reason as a discipline created by William Wundt; contrary to the beliefs of many scholars who consider the enlightenment as the foreground for psychology and its development. Instead, Vidal advocates that psychology as a discipline first appeared in the sixteenth century, initially as a neologism referred to as psychologia which circulated in various university philosophy textbooks used by Protestant scholastics. Vidal goes on to further illustrate how during the sixteenth

In the 17th Century, men and women were viewed and treated very unequally especially compared to today's time period. Of all factors in the hierarchical arrangement like class or race, gender was considered the most distinct of them all which caused it to be the most arguable. Men and women had their own rules and responsibilities that were given to them by what has always been traditionally practiced. Society created a box in a way, that each sex was to remain in and it was looked down upon for anyone to stray from that theoretical box.

Witchcraft in the 17th Century Witchcraft in Europe during the 17th century was common. It mainly took place in Germany, but also took place in England. Witches were associated with evil; it was believed witches inherited magical powers from Satan in exchange for the witch’s soul. Some of these magical powers included outrageous claims such as flying, being able to transform and cursing bad luck on others. It was extremely dangerous to be accused of being a witch as the most common punishment was death, often by beheading or even being burnt at the stake.

During the 16th century the world was changing. People started to think differently. Governments started changing, people were migrating and people were debating. In Europe there were many enlightened thinkers. Leonardo da Vinci finished Mona Lisa during the 16th century. Michelangelo carved his Statue of David. (World History Timeline: 16th Century ) Around the world people were starting to think for themselves. Unfortunately rulers, kings, and leaders didn’t like that. So, in order to prevent rebellious actions towards their governments, leaders created strict laws. Most people didn’t like that, so they chose to move. As they traveled, they carried ideas with them. Some Europeans were exploring the world. They reached land that they haven't seen, and their ideas spread. (World History Timeline: 16th Century) People were influenced by others, religious ideas and structures spread as well. Different types of religions were spreading. Religions such as Christianity, Buddhism, Islam and many more. A significant religious leader in the Catholic Church was Pope Julius II. His papacy was marked by an active foreign policy, beautiful projects of buildings, and patronage for the arts. (European Religion During the Early 16th Century) Europeans reached a foreign land, which is known as Indonesia. They arrived in Indonesia in the beginning of the 16th century and discovered valuable goods in Maluku. They were determined to dominate the spice trade at its sources in India and the