Letters from a Peruvian Woman

Enlightenment, a stage in life where one should strive for. According to the text “What is Enlightenment” written by Immanuel Kant, enlightenment is “Sapere aude!” (Kant 105), which translates to “dare to know.” One reached enlightenment once they have achieved maturity and freedom. Throughout Immanuel Kant’s work “What is Enlightenment,” (Kant 105) he suggested that mankind developed a dependency on others for answers. Immanuel Kant believed that humankind is lazy and full of cowardice. Kant believed that humans depend too much on others by basing their decisions and thoughts solely on the words of others. Due to dependency, humankind developed a habit of laziness throughout time. This habit eventually serves as the main barrier prohibiting one from being enlightened because one is too lazy to seek the truth or oneself. Kant suggested that in order to each enlightenment, one must not be afraid to take the first step and use one’s own judgment and understanding. One must separate oneself from immaturity, and to achieve that, one must have fearlessness and vigor. Kant also speaks of freedom and suggested that one should have the freedom to express their opinion and act on it, one should be able to criticize what is wrong and change it.

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 enlightenment was an intellectual movement that brought an age of reason to the world that occurred during the 17th and 18th centuries. First, this

In her novel, Letters from a Peruvian Woman, Francoise de Graffigny, illustrates that an abducted woman from Peru can become enlightened. Graffigny successfully presents a satirical view of living conditions of French women as the novel talks about language, literature, philosophy, education, and other topics. Her protagonist, Zilia, is abducted and transported to France where she becomes curious and interested in the ideas of enlightenment while she initially adheres to her Incan beliefs. She transcends those beliefs and arrives at personal enlightenment, which can be shown from her first letter to her last.

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.

Enlightenment in France in the 18th century took on many different meanings, and Francoise De Graffigny’s view–told to us through her novel Letters from a Peruvian Woman– portrays the Enlightenment as an expression of skepticism of religion, individualism, and virtue. In this novel, Zilia is a Virgin of the Sun from the Incan culture in the 1700s. She is torn from her home by the Spanish, and finds herself in France (De Graffigny 92). While living with a French pirate, Déterville, his mother, and his sister Céline, Zilia is intrigued to learn about the foreign European culture to hopefully one day share with the Peruvian Empire she calls home. Throughout her journey on the ocean and in France, she faithfully documents everything she experiences in letters to her dearest love–and fiancé–Aza. De Graffigny captures this fictional story in a series of letters to critique France without naming names, and with the use of analogies to disguise the story as real. Passed off as translation of a series of letters, De Graffigny uses this story to pioneer the novel form. Impressively fluent in irony, (GIVE EX). She is also able to write this story while giving more insight to the readers than the characters do. By doing this, the reader is able to read in between the lines and appreciate the irony behind the words. Her direct criticism of France was a dangerous act in an authoritarian society such as France at the time.

The Enlightenment was a European intellectual movement that sparked a new way of thinking. In the 18th century, people were questioning whether the church should have the excessive amount of power it had. Since the British had the power in America, colonials were beginning to be enlightened similarly to Europeans. One of

2. What is the Enlightenment? A movement led by French intellectuals who advocated reasons the universal source of knowledge and truth.

Sor Juana again demonstrates her superior knowledge and capabilities in employing complex Latin language into her argument. As suggested by Stephanie Kirk, “Latin wielded a symbolic power throughout the early modern period” (Kirk 83). Therefore, Sor Juana’s use of Latin language when speaking directly to the patriarchy is ironic as she flaunts her immense knowledge to those who originally restricted her from pursuing education. Ultimately, Sor Juana’s “To the Gentleman in Peru” is a poem filled with critical language and addresses issues of gender roles and the limitations of “woman” in Colonial Mexico.

The Enlightenment was an eighteenth-century movement within Western philosophy. This movement was not necessarily about ideas, but more about recognizing problems of human conditions of the state and the need of reforms. It also strongly supported the questioning of different traditions such as institutions, customs, and morals. The Enlightenment influenced many different events in history, one example being the colonial independence movement.

The Enlightenment was a life changing time period for Americans. I believe that the best definition to ascribe to the Enlightenment would be "to shed light on". Whether it is a subject, object, or opinion, all of the definitions made sense to me. One of the reoccurring themes we hear about in this era is religion.

The Enlightenment also known as the Haskalah movement began in the 18th century. In his 1784 essay entitled: “Answering the Question: What is Enlightenment?”, Immanuel Kant (1959) described the Enlightenment as ‘‘man’s release from his self-incurred tutelage. Tutelage is man’s inability to make use of his understanding without direction from another. Self-incurred in this tutelage when its cause lies not in lack of reason but in lack of resolution and courage to use it without direction from another. Sapere aude! Have courage to use your own

Peruvians enjoy a free government and one of the richest histories in the world. Peru’s history has legendary beginnings and leads to a revolution. Furthermore, the Peruvian government allows civil liberties and freedoms. Come and go back in time to the Incas and lead through until Peru’s founding government.

The theme of enlightenment can be written in many different ways, regarding how different authors view it. Some authors view it as finding “hidden knowledge” while other authors see it more as in a coming of age/maturing sense. Religion also influences how an author might view enlightenment, especially Buddhist authors who believe enlightenment is the art of finding the “hidden knowledge”. As one will see, in the books, “Siddhartha” by Hermann Hesse, “Frankenstein” by Mary Shelley, and “the Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy”, by Douglas Adams, the authors all seem to take difference approaches to enlightenment. Hermann Hesse in his work “Siddhartha” is a strong advocate for seeing enlightenment as “hidden knowledge”, Mary Shelley in “Frankenstein”