The Enlightenment was a time of social growth that was driven by four philosophers; Thomas Hobbes, John Locke, Charles Montesquieu, and Jean-Jacques Rousseau. Each of the four philosophers had different views on how to, the government should be ran and organized. The way today’s government is based upon some of the things that the each of them believed and stated. An example of an enlightenment would be the European movement of the 17th and 18th century that was influenced by Hobbes, Locke, Montesquieu, Rousseau.
To begin with, in the US Constitution according to Document F, there are three powers of government. This idea was adopted from Charles Montesquieu’s theory that the best way to run a government was to have a balance of power among
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three branches. That is to say, at the time of his thesis it did not work for the government of England but it now currently works for the United States. In addition, Document D states that Montesquieu felt that if branches were not separate there would be no liberty amongst the branches and the people. Charles Montesquieu’s thesis of the way a government should be ran has impacted the way the government is ran today greatly, and has been the way adopted by America today. Generally speaking the US Constitution adopted that one aspect of Montesquieu’s theory, and his theory was mostly correct that no one branch overpowers the other creating a balanced democracy. Secondly, according to Document C John Locke believes that all men have the right to life, liberty and property. This idea by Locke was adopted by the US government when the US Bill of Rights was created. His thesis that all men have the right of life, liberty and property agrees with Document F in which Thomas Jefferson said that, those rights were inalienable. In other words Thomas Jefferson and John Locke, believed that everyone has the right of life, liberty and property and that no power or government can take those rights away from man. John Locke’s enlightenment idea, has affected today’s world greatly by his idea of rights now being in the US Bill of Rights, and all men have these rights that can not be taken away. In conclusion of this statement, every man has the right of life, liberty and property and it can not be taken away no matter what. The last and final way that The Enlightenment has affected today’s government and the ways of ruling is, by according to Document B Jean-Jacques Rousseau claims that every man shall have the pursuit of happiness, as long as it does not harm others.
This idea was adopted into the US Declaration of Independence created in congress. Rousseau agreed with John Locke’s statement of the fact, that no man shall have to give up his rights to a higher authority. Some of Rousseau’s ideas were also embodied within the US Constitution, it starts with “We the people” which was Rousseau’s will that people would come together as one and create a general will according to crf-usa.org. Jean-Jacques Rousseau’s idea of how a government should be ran, has been incorporated into not only the US Constitution, which is a big part of how America is run. His ideas have also been incorporated into the US Declaration of Independence, which has created America’s freedom from the English. The ideas of Rousseau have a big impact to how the government in the US operates the way it does today. In closing of this idea to how The Enlightenment impacted the US government, every man is entitled to the pursuit of happiness as long as it does not harm anyone as stated by Rousseau, the US Constitution, and the US Declaration of …show more content…
Independence. The ways the government is ran in the United States is based upon what Jean-Jacques Rousseau, John Locke, Charles Montesquieu and Thomas Hobbes, had written during their time.
The writings that were created by them during their time, have shaped the basis of the US government. Locke’s belief that all men have the right to life, liberty, and property was incorporated into the US Bill of Rights. Montesquieu’s thesis that the government should be divided into three powers and no one power can overpower the others, is the way the US government is ran in order to created laws for the people. Finally, Rousseau’s idea that people have the right to happiness was included in the Declaration of Independence, and his idea of people coming together as one to create a general will was generalized in the US Constitution within the first line. It is important to know how the Enlightenment ideas impacted the world socially and politically because, it tells one about how their government came to be and how it operates. In conclusion, each philosopher played a different role to how the government is ran, and their ideas made a huge impact on the
world.
Rousseau, however, believed, “the general will by definition is always right and always works to the community’s advantage. True freedom consists of obedience to laws that coincide with the general will.”(72) So in this aspect Rousseau almost goes to the far extreme dictatorship as the way to make a happy society which he shows in saying he, “..rejects entirely the Lockean principle that citizens possess rights independently of and against the state.”(72)
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
The Enlightenment was the time period that followed the Scientific Revolution and was characterized as the "Age of Reason". This was the time when man began to use his reason to discover the world around him rather than blindly follow what the previous authority, such as the Church and Classical Philosophers, stated to be true. The Enlightenment was a tremendously broad movement that dominated much of the European thinking during the 18th century, however, several core themes that epitomized the movement were the idea of progress, skepticism against the Church, and individualism.
The year 1776 brought about extreme reshaping for the colonies of what we now call the United States. Contributions from at least three philosophes during the Enlightenment period were instrumental in the formation of the foundation of a new government for the colonies. In addition to a freer-thinking people, The Enlightenment values of Montesquieu, Voltaire and Rousseau became a model for this new government of liberty, equality, and a new form of justice.
The Enlightenment itself ignited the changes in perspective that were needed to provoke improvement in society and set new standards for our future. These standards spread rather rapidly across Europe and eventually to America and challenged the old order. These ideas of rational thinking over religion and authority delivered a vast political change throughout the world which can still be felt today. These revolutionary thoughts of rationalism brought on freedom of speech and the demand for equality in society. This was not only the igniter to the French revolution but was also, how many governments including the United States based their modern
A time period known as The Age of Reason or The Enlightenment was when philosophy, politics, science and social communications changed drastically. It helped shape the ideas of capitalism and democracy, which is the world we live in today. People joined together to discuss areas of high intellect and creative thoughts. The Enlightenment was a time period in which people discussed new ideas, and educated people, known as philosophers, all had a central idea of freedom of choice and the natural right of individuals. These philosophers include John Locke, Voltaire, Adam Smith, and Mary Wollstonecraft.
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.
This nullifies any freedoms or rights individuals are said to have because they are subject to the whims and fancy of the state. All three beliefs regarding the nature of man and the purpose of the state are bound to their respective views regarding freedom, because one position perpetuates and demands a conclusion regarding another. Bibliography:.. Works Cited Cress, Donald A. Jean-Jacques Rousseau “The Basic Political Writing”.
In the village of Salem, Massachusetts 1692 witch hysteria broke out across the village. Out of all the accusations 20 innocent people were killed. 19 by hanging and one was stoned to death. Despite many theories to explain the village frenzy the most probable explanation is that they were lying. The other possible answers are because of the Puritan beliefs and Ergotism.
...d (Locke, 4). By exploring these two ideas of the social contract between a government and its people, as well as the natural rights of man, Locke created many waves in England, as well as impacted several important intellectuals who would later be responsible for the American and French Revolutions.
During the 18th century, a movement called the Enlightenment changed political, social, and economic theories. This movement was important because people began to question human life and move away from medieval thinking and turn to more modern thoughts. These new, modernized thoughts were important because many philosophes challenged old ideas. The movement was even called “the age of reason”. During the enlightenment, political, social, and economic theories change as philosophes challenged absolutism, religion lost prestige, women and the middle class gained social equality, and as capitalism replaced mercantilism.
Locke believe that people can be reasonable and moral. He explained that all men will have natural rights which are liberty, life, and property. He said the people have the right to a revolution if the government did not protect these rights. Montesquieu believed that the government should be divided according to its powers, creating 3 branches of government. These branches were the legislative, judicial, and executive branch. He explained that under this system each branch can check and balance each other’s power out, which would help protect the people’s liberty. Voltaire believed many things like equal privileges for all classes, freedom of speech and press, and hated censorship of any kind. But Voltaire did not believe in democracy he believed that an enlightened despot was the best type of government. Rousseau believed that civilization caused selfishness, cruelty, and began wars and misery. He also believed that all people should have the right to receive an education no matter what class of society he or she belonged in. He added on saying that schooling should not began till the age of twelve and believed that educated citizens should be allowed to elect their
...fear. Locke’s idea that everyone is born free is good for societies that have no established governments because even in his time there was a government. In biblical times his idea would be right on but the transformation of people’s ideas has lead the changes in natural freedom. No one can control where they are born so they may be born in a not so free state. Finally Rousseau’s idea that man is naturally good but corrupted by institutions is somewhat flawed because everyone makes choices to do or not do so people become corrupt through the choices they make in life. Through all this no one philosopher has the right answer to human nature but when we combine their ideas we get a solid way to a good solution that benefits many.
We find the Rousseau argued about the freedoms of men quite a bit in his work The Social Contract. He argued that the power of the government should be reconsidered and rethought because any government which does not care about the fundamental rights and equality of any citizen has broken the social contract that is the very heart of political authority. He writes the quote “Man was born free, and everywhere he is in chains” (Modern Age, pg.35) to describe his feelings towards that government but it would be wrong to assume Rousseau to be a thorough-going individualist. He believed that if the social contract was followed by every member of society, then everyone would be bound to obed...
The enlightenment was a movement of the late 17th and 18th centuries stressing reason and individualism. During the Enlightenment the scientific revolution was occurring in that time. The enlightenment was led by Thomas Hobbes, John Locke, Voltaire, Baron de Montesquieu, and Jean Jacques Rousseau. The most important philosopher during the Enlightenment was Voltaire. In Relations to Voltaire, freedom of speech, religion, and civil rights should be given to everyone. Voltaire was frustrated with people who disregarded the fact that many people were experiencing great suffering and tragedy. He believed that fair trial, freedom of speech, freedom of religion,