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The Enlightenment : The Rise Of The Enlightenment

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The Enlightenment was an era that existed sometime between the seventeenth and nineteenth centuries. This era inspired individuals to question the norm in areas related to social, political, and spiritual relationships. The rise of The Enlightenment was stemmed from an increase in literacy rates among the population, along with things such as increased physical mobility and the printing press. Intellectuals from this era relied on new ways of thinking that included empiricism, rationalism, and skepticism. They believed that knowledge came from experience and observation by way of reasoning. Intellectuals wanted to change the way they were governed. They wanted a more natural way to govern themselves that was observable and not an organized religion tied to a politically corrupt world. This way would consist of fairness that would follow the natural rights of man and not allow one person to have more power over another. Philosophers such as Thomas Hobbes believed that people were selfish by nature and without law and government the world would be chaotic and war ridden. Another English intellectual like Hobbes was John Locke, who believed that people could be educated to understand the world, and the people would give up a portion of their personal freedom to the government for security by using active participation. Locke argued that the government was formed to protect the people and should also protect mans natural right such as life, liberty, and property. A French

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