1) Why did the philosophes place freedom of expression at the center of their system of values?
The theories of the enlightenment were centered around five basic concepts: reason, science, progress, liberty, and toleration. These lead themselves into thinking of the world in Realist terms. We must look at the universe and understand it from what we can see. A common train of thought was that humanity had grown far too comfortable depending on history and facts as they were retold. One no longer thought for themselves. Progress had been constrained by social and political institutions that did not reflect humanities natural goodness and capacity for material and moral improvement. Humans were prone to relying on emotions rather than reason
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when the discussion of impoverishment shifted towards a politico-economic outcome rather than the manifestation of a natural order, poverty was regarded as necessary. It was terrible for those forced to live in it, but it kept the economy running by providing lots of cheap labor. Poverty also often meant uneducated. An uneducated public was easy to control and ignorant of the effects that the aristocracy were having. The uneducated are likely to work for low wages, even more so if they are already impoverished. This allows the wealthy to exploit large groups of people without much effort or money. There was an enforced idea that God had placed oneself into such a position and it was not their job to raise themselves up, but to accept and be content. Poverty was seen as a necessary evil, a kind of darkness that contrasted the wealth of the central civilization. For one very wealthy man, there are many, many, poor but it is their burden to bear to balance the order of things.
3) The French Revolution destroyed the French monarchy in order to strengthen the French state. Explain this paradox. The French polity, previously an absolute monarchy with feudal privileges for the aristocracy and catholic clergy, underwent radical change to forms based on the enlightenment principles of republicanism, citizenship, and rights. The revolution was aimed at the destruction of aristocratic society, and the structure it supported in an effort to create a more autonomous
The Enlightenment period, also known as The Age of Reason, was a period of social, religious, and political revolution throughout the 18th century which changed the thoughts of man during this “awakening” time. It was a liberation of ignorant thoughts, ideas, and actions that had broken away from the ignorant perception of how society was to be kept and obeyed thus giving little room for new ideas about the world. Puritan society found these new ideas of thought to be extremely radical in comparison to what they believed which was a belief of strong rational religion and morality. Enlightened society believed that the use of reason would be a catalyst of social change and had a demand of political representation thus resulting in a
The Enlightenment was a time of change in Europe. There were many new ideas, and various influential thinkers that inspired new invention and also inspired revolutions. All of these thinkers had different views on people and government and different views of people and how they act. Many of these authoritative individuals thoughts still influence us even today. Many of their ideas are used in government and also as guidelines for people to live their lives by.
The French Revolution was a period of far-reaching social and political change in France that lasted from 1789 to 1799. Before the revolution there was a period of time called the Enlightenment. The Enlightenment was a philosophical movement in which followers considered that human reason brought a move from theory to practice and criticism to reforming education, household administration, social reactions and politics. Voltaire, a French philosopher and contributor to the Age of Enlightenment, expressed these ideas utilizing his intelligence, wit and style to mark his name as one of France’s greatest writers. The Enlightenment influenced the French Revolution to a great extent by introducing new ideas that encouraged questioning of authority and religion, advancing people’s outlook on commodities, and forcing citizens to compare their need with the Republic’s needs. This further brought an uprising of people wanting more such as equality and civil rights. In the process to do so there were 250,000 casualties in the Reign of Terror followed the Thermidorian Reaction which implemented an oligarchy government called the Directory. Royalist riots prompted the Coup d’etat of Fructidor which brought Napoleon into Directory which he later overthrows and creates an Authoritarian Republic.
The Enlightenment period, also known as The Age of Reason, was a period of social, religious, and political revolution throughout the 18th century which changed the thoughts of man during this “awakening” time. It was a liberation of ignorant thoughts, ideas, and actions that had broken away from the ignorant perception of how society was to be kept and obeyed thus giving little room for new ideas about the world. Puritan society found these new ideas of thought to be extremely radical in comparison to what they believed which was a belief of strong rational religion and morality. Enlightened society believed that the use of reason would be a catalyst of social change and had a demand of political representation thus resulting in a time
The Enlightenment was a period in the eighteenth century where change in philosophy and cultural life took place in Europe. The movement started in France, and spread to Great Britain, Italy, Spain, Portugal, and Germany at more or less around the same time, the ideas starting with the most renowned thinkers and philosophers of the time and eventually being shared with the common people. The Enlightenment was a way of thinking that focused on the betterment of humanity by using logic and reason rather than irrationality and superstition. It was a way of thinking that showed skepticism in the face of religion, challenged the inequality between the kings and their people, and tried to establish a sound system of ethics. The ideas behind the
The Enlightenment era was a new intellectual movement that stressed reason and thought and the power of individuals to solve problems. Even though different philosophers approached their goal differently, they achieved it none the less. They all approached their goal differently due to their different upbringings, their different backgrounds, and most importantly their different environments. A few among the many enlightened thinkers were Thomas Hobbes, John Locke, Baron Do Montesquieu, and Jean Jacques Rousseau. While some of their idea’s are not used in modern society, they were all instrumental to the modern society we live in today.
French Revolution: Final Essay The French Revolution accomplished many things. The clergy and nobility began to struggle to keep their power in the resolutions losing some authority over the people. The peasants and san culottes got more rights in the first revolution but they did not get any political power.
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.
The French Revolution was a huge turning point in European history, and characterized the modern European society we know today. The French Revolution was a moment of demarcation in government between the pre-modern and the modern world. This essay will examine the effects of the French Revolution by analyzing the changes in government before, during, and after 1789.
Many historians credit the French Revolution as being the beginning of modern politics. The revolution single-handedly crushed the monarchical way of politics, the aristocratic domination up to that point in France, and the dominance of the church in French politics. The revolution abolished the feudal system and was one of the biggest steps towards modernity throughout history. The French Revolution was a successful endeavour on the part of the French people because it reformed social tradition and the hierarchy of French aristocracy by making all men equal, the Enlightenment ideals which the revolution was based on came through to a great extent.
The time of the Enlightenment was a time of great change, reform, and the emergence of great minds such as Isaac Newton, Johannes Kepler, Galileo Galilei, and even Copernicus. These men cleared the path to thinking in a new way and brought about the change necessary for the Scientific Revolution. The Enlightenment allowed people to think more critically and even was the time in which the “Experimental Method” was consolidated by Galileo Galilei (1564-1642, Buckler, J., Crowston, p.592 para. 6). It allowed people to begin to think “out of the box” if you will. Monarchies and the power of the king before this time ruled over the general population unthreatened and very rarely did opposition come to stand. Quite often if opposition did stand
During the eighteenth century there was one central political cause for the French Revolution. King Louis XVI was a weak ruler who endured a lavish lifestyle. He disregarded the people’s needs, leaving much of the French population in discontent. Prior to the revolution the form of government was Absolute monarchy led by Louis XVI. The problem with absolute monarchy was that people were denied basic rights, and a say in government because the divine right theory was abused. The King ruled by the divine right of theory which
Liberté, égalité, fraternité was the cry of freedom that countless people used to propel them through, and to the end of the French Revolution. This long period of social, political and economic change in France lasted 10 years, starting in 1798 and ended with Napoleon Bonaparte. The French Revolution greatly affected all of Europe at the time and continues to represent the embodiment of revolution to this day. This constant struggle between the heavily taxed, burdened, and unrepresented third estate and those higher created an environment of monumental change for everyone. In the years leading up to the French Revolution, new beliefs and ideas were reaching every corner of Europe creating the thought that men should live free of oppression. However, in France the leader Louis XVI lead like a tyrant leaving the people impoverish and angry. Through the analysation of numerous circumstance present during the Ancien Régime, such as an inferior fiscal leadership, massive debt, and the forthcoming of new ideas during the Enlightened period, it can be concluded that the means for this revolution were justified as it is in our essence to revolt for a change.
In 1789, the old regime came to an end with the beginning of the French Revolution. The patchwork quilt of the old French system had been swept away. While the changes of the French government and society were not sudden, the mentality and the philosophy of the people changed suddenly to allow for the practical changes to come around. Looking at who is to be a citizen, religious minorities, and women, the ideal for a new system came suddenly from the enlightenment, which allowed practical changes in French society at a slower pace.
The French Revolution began as an expression of rebellion against centuries of absolute rule in France. After an interim of experimental liberalism under the rule of Jacobins and Girondins and then the infamous reign of terror, the people of French were drawn to a man who promised them a return to stability, and honor through the expansion of empire. France and it’s people had long yearned for this sens eof honour, it had seemed, and could finally sens eit in a lasting rpesence under the rule of their prodigious, unbeatable general, Napoleon Bonaparte. He would soon take the reigns of civil government as well and become yet another Absolutist ruler, yet this