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The influence of enlightenment on American society
The historical contribution of thomas jefferson
The historical contribution of thomas jefferson
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It was during and after the American Revolution that many of the main ideas of the Enlightenment were used as the guidelines to help influence things such as the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution. The United States was founded on key figures such as Thomas Jefferson, who was greatly influenced by the Enlightenment ideas, which helped shaped the country as well. Great Britian had its own Enlightenment before America, whih was developed by thinkers like John Locke, and many others. In the 17th century, they rid of the king. Although the monarchy had soon been restored, and that created open minds toward change in many places. English Protestants struggled to express themselves in ways that had widened the of freedom of speech and press. The English and French Enlightenments exchanged influences through many happenings.
“The Philosophes, the early Enlightenment thinkers in France such as Montesquieu, Voltaire, and Diderot, set down some early principles of the movement: the only justification for the state is the promotion of the good life for its citizens; men should be rational, should be allowed to direct their lives by knowledge, reason and experience; the ability to use reason makes men equal; and with the use of reason, progress is sure to come (Artz 33).” Many of the most notable leaders of the American revolution were extremely influenced by English and to an extent, the French Enlightenment thought. Jefferson and Franklin both spent time in France, which was an ally because it was an enemy of England, and absorbed the influence of the French Enlightenment there. The language of natural law, inherent freedoms, and self-determination which inspired them so much that the American formation was the product...
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...ed the freedom to created branches of religion. The colonies were still very religious but they used the freedom given from the enlightenment ideas for their freedom to choose. Instead of following one religion, there were many choices in the colonies and people chose how to establish and maintain their connection to God.
Without the Enlightenment principles used as the basis of this country, it would be much different that it is today. These important values are still active today through freedom of speech, freedom of religion, and many other natural rights. Jefferson, Madison, Locke, Newton, and other Enlightenment philosophers put their ideas forward that went on to be key contributors in the most important documents in America such as the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution.
Works Cited
http://www.wsu.edu/~brians/hum_303/enlightenment.html
One of the most influential Enlightenment thinkers was John Locke, an English philosopher and physician. His work and ideas had a incomputable impact on modern day society. He was known as “Father of Liberalism” due to his opinions of freedoms and liberty. According to Locke, the people were entitled to have control over themselves as long as it adheres to the law. The Second Treatise on Civil Government by John Voltaire went to prison twice and spent multiple years in exile.
The Enlightenment had the most immediate impact on the founding fathers who were framers of the United States Constitution. Europeans often called the Enlightenment century as the Age of Reason. The Enlightenment is a period of uproar in America’s thirteen colonies in the early eighteenth century. It provoked a cry for a new government with a Constitution to assure liberty. It influenced the founding fathers because we needed structure such as human rights, civil rights and separation of church and state. The Enlightenment thinker’s affected the new nation. During this period, the Enlightenment began the revolution of change in thinking.
1789 was a year that would be imprinted on the minds of Western Europeans for the rest of history. The beginning of a new country who had fought for their rights… the United States of America. Spielvogel states, “To many Europeans it proved that the liberal political ideas of the Enlightenment were not the vapid utterances of intellectuals… The premises of the Enlightenment seemed confirmed; a new age and a better world would be achieved.” (Spielvogel 567). The Revolution embodied the living aspect of the Enlightenment Ideals in Western Europeans minds. They seen what the ideals looked like in action, and they started to build upon that idea to implement in their own lives When the Continental Congress drafted the Declaration of Independence, they took some of the core ideals from the great Enlightenment thinkers to create the living embodiment in the United States. The American Revolution may not have influenced Western Europe physically, however, it has influenced them in ways such as the French Revolution. The origins of the French Revolution can be traced back from two different areas. The Estates (classes), and a wave of bad agricultural years that led to a rise in the poor. However, according to Spielvogel, “The actual influence of the ideas of the philosophes is difficult to prove… but once the Revolution began, the
“Democracy; racial and sexual equality; individual liberty of lifestyle; full freedom of thought, expression, and the press; eradication of religious authority from the legislative process and education; and full separation of church and state” (Jonathan Israel, A Revolution of the Mind: Radical Enlightenment and the Intellectual Origins of Modern Democracy). They wanted to create a new political framework that used those principles as the basis of the most important documents that founded the US. The reason to create this new political forms came from the need to calm the civil unrest, suppress rebellions and guarantee stability on the whole country. Those documents are still effective nowadays thanks to those political revelations that thorough the Revolutionary War made this country one of the most powerful in the
The Enlightenment political thought helped the Glorious Revolution of 1688 in England. James II wanted to strengthen his royal power alone and weaken the militia while raising his own army. The Enlightenment helped the English opponent to come forth and overthrow their king with the help of the Prince William of Orange and his wife Mary. They then reestablished the monarchy and accepted the Parliaments Bill of Rights. With the Enlightenment period, individuals helped get their words out and they learned to questions their ideals and beliefs. With the Glorious Revolution of 1688, the individuals were able to overthrown their king and establish the representative government and that a well-regulated militia under the locals control was best for everyone. The Enlightenment political thought helped the Glorious Revolution to establish a representative government and take control on what’s best for
John Locke’s ideas on creating a government by the people and Voltaire’s ideas on practicing any religion shows how many enlightenment philosophers wanted people to live peacefully with others and the society. The ideas of many philosophers helped shape the capitalist, democratic world in which we live today. Today's government was created with a legislative and executive branch, like what Locke suggested and women have more rights, such as getting education and jobs that are same as those of men. Enlightenment philosophers main ideas on increasing human rights and equality helped create a better society during the Enlightenment period and
The Enlightenment had the most far-reaching impact on American culture. The Enlightenment stemmed from the Scientific Revolution. The Scientific Revolution caused people to start thinking on their own and stop believing in, or at least question, the Bible. Although the Enlightenment started in England, it quickly spread through the colonies. The Enlightenment was key in helping set in motion the thought process that would eventually lead to the colonists to revolt against British rule. Enlightenment is the backbone of today’s democratic government. The Great Awakening had a bearing in that it gave people humanitarian beliefs to build on, but in the war for freedom that ensued, it was Enlightenment that fueled their fire.
The Enlightenment period in Europe was a shift in the way that society thought about power and liberty. The ideals of this period helped to inspire the revolutions of the 18th century. The American colonies desired liberty from foreign rule, the French wanted to increase the power of the people in their class structure, and the Haitians fought for representation for the millions of slaves on their island. While the ideas of the enlightenment were not fully employed in each of these revolutions, they brought the nations closer to a fully representative government, rather than one of absolute power.
There are many different ways in which the Enlightenment affected the Declaration of Independence and the U.S. Constitution. One way was the by the idea of a Social Contract; an agreement by which human beings are said to have abandoned the "state of nature" in order to form the society in which they now live. HOBBES, LOCKE, and J.J. ROUSSEAU each developed differing versions of the social contract, but all agreed that certain freedoms had been surrendered for society's protection and that the government has definite responsibilities to its citizens. Locke believed that governments were formed to protect the natural rights of men, and that overthrowing a government that did not protect these rights was not only a right, but also an obligation. His thoughts influenced many revolutionary pamphlets and documents, including the Virginia Constitution of 1776, and the Declaration of Independence.
The Enlightenment period can be accredited to having an impact on the radicalism of the American Revolution. “During the eighteenth century, many educated Americans began to be influenced by the outlook of the European Enlightenment.” Enlightenment thinkers were particularly fond of rationalism and reasoning as a government of human life. John Locke, a philosopher and author of this period, brought up in Two Treatises on Government the idea that the government and the governed should have a mutual agreement. This agreement, known as Locke’s “social contract” held that men should surrender themselves to be governed, and in turn, the government would recognize the natural rights of men. Life, liberty, an...
The Enlightenment was present during the 17th and 18th centuries when thinkers explain both the physical universe and human behavior using reason and science, and Jefferson believed that by learning the “laws of nature”, humanity could be improved. He was well educated with the history and political philosophy of Great Britain, and he also read the statements of independence from fellow revolutionaries like Thomas Paine and George Mason. In drafting the declaration, Jefferson followed the arrangement of the English Declaration of Rights, written after the Glorious Revolution of 1689. Many believe Jefferson got his ideas from the writings of English philosopher John
The Enlightenment challenged what was previously thought to be the way of life. Prior to the Enlightenment whatever you were born into that was it, you were stuck and had no say in if you could receive power or money, you were the king’s subject, but the Enlightenment changed the role of the people from subject to citizen. This switch gave the people abilities that were never seen before 1450. It became a change and with the movement from subject to citizen, questions started surfacing and with those questions came action, and with that action came a new era for human rights. Human rights were improved across the board, from African Americans to women to the citizen. Without the Enlightenment some powers that needed to be changed like that of slavery may never had been
The Enlightenment encouraged people to question divine right, the God-given authority rulers claimed to have (Enlightenment, Its Origins and the French Revolution 15). Finally, it made the third estate realize how the taxation was simply greed. It made their eyes open to the fact that they were paying taxes so the state, clergy, and nobles wouldn’t suffer financially.... ... middle of paper ...
The Enlightenment is held to be the source of many modern ideas, such as the primary values of freedom and reason. The views of philosophers such as Voltaire are considered to be the source of many essential changes in countries such as America and France. His views on religion, government, and freedom are what people remember most because they have not died out in today’s society.
The key and perhaps the most important change in the Enlightenment was the shift from religion-based government to reason-based government. This can be seen mainly as the result of the Scientific Revolution. Before, religion was the basis of government because it provided a set of morale codes for people to follow and it helped explain the unexplained. During the Scientific Revolution, prolific thinkers such as Isaac Newton, Galileo Galilei, Johann Kepler, and Francis Bacon began discovering and explaining things previously attributed to the Christian God. Therefore, when science and reason started to explain things more accurately than religion, it resulted in a shift in which they took over as the basis of government.