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Transitions of the Scientific Revolution and the Enlightenment Periods

analytical Essay
1673 words
1673 words
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Transitions of the Scientific Revolution and the Enlightenment Periods The Scientific Revolution and the Enlightenment of the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries were times of great emphasis on reason and questioning of faith. The scientists and philosophes of these eras discovered and taught new ideas that often contradicted what the church and former thinkers had taught and believed before them. Most of the intellectual, political, economic, and social characteristics associated with the modern world came into being during the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries.1 During the Scientific Revolution, people began to question beliefs that they had always taken for granted. Scientists changed people's views of the world they lived in through discoveries such as the theory of the heliocentric universe. During the Enlightenment, philosophes challenged beliefs formerly held by the church and government by insisting that human reason would lead to the solution of all problems. They believed that man should live his life, make his own decisions, and believe what he wanted based on his own experiences and what he believed to be true. These two revolutions lead to a movement away from the church and faith, and towards a belief in more scientific and mathematical explanations for the way things worked. One of the aspects of the Scientific Revolution was the popularization of the belief in a sun-centered universe. Before this time, both Aristotle and Ptolemy supported the theory that the earth was the center of the universe and that the stars and planets revolved around it. Also, the realm of God was believed to lie just outside of this universe. This was known as the geocentric theory and the Catholic Church also strongly supported... ... middle of paper ... ...s or herself. The former influence that faith and the church had on everyday life was questioned during these eras and a strong turning from former beliefs was widely evident as the thinkers of this time proposed new ideas on logic and reason. 1 Perry M. Rogers, ed. Aspects of Western Civilization: Problems and Sources in History (Upper Saddle River, N.J., Prentice Hall, 1998) 3. 2 Rogers. Aspects of Western Civilization 11. 3 Rogers. Aspects of Western Civilization 12. 4 Rogers. Aspects of Western Civilization 14. 5 Rogers. Aspects of Western Civilization 9. 6 Rogers. Aspects of Western Civilization 16. 7 Rogers. Aspects of Western Civilization 3. 8 Rogers. Aspects of Western Civilization 4. 9 Rogers. Aspects of Western Civilization 29. 10 Rogers. Aspects of Western Civilization 31. 11 Rogers. Aspects of Western Civilization 35.

In this essay, the author

  • Compares the scientific revolution and the enlightenment periods, which were times of great emphasis on reason and questioning of faith.
  • Explains that the scientific revolution was the popularization of the belief in a sun-centered universe. aristotle and ptolemy supported the geocentric theory.
  • Explains that galileo, like copernicus, doubted the theories of philosophers and scientists, such as aristotle. he disagreed with the bible's teachings. sir issac newton developed the law of gravitation.
  • Explains that rene descartes was another contributor to the downfall of former teachings. he believed that progress could be made if mathematics was used in all fields of knowledge.
  • Explains that scientists during the scientific revolution changed many of the beliefs that were accepted before them. galileo, for example, was ordered twice to appear before the iquisition for his support of copernican theory.
  • Explains that the enlightenment of the eighteenth century was also known as the age of reason. philosophes believed that everyone has natural rights and that one must control one's destiny in order to have a better life on earth.
  • Explains adam smith's theory of the "invisible hand" that guided the economy in capitalism.
  • Analyzes how immanuel kant was an influential philosophe of the enlightenment period. he argued that man should not be subject to pre-existing beliefs and should be free to think and believe what he chooses.
  • Explains that voltaire, another philosophe, was against organized religion but was a believer in the concept of deism. he believed that god created humans, but then gave them the power of reason to determine their own lives.
  • Explains that the enlightenment consisted of reasoning, thought, and doubt of old beliefs. the concept of deism was universal among most philosophes.
  • Explains that former beliefs were constantly challenged throughout the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries. in the enlightenment, philosophes strayed from the teachings of the church and said that everyone has the ability to control their own destiny.
  • Explains perry m. rogers' aspects of western civilization: problems and sources in history.
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