The Philosophers of the Enlightenment GH2/Napp

Do Now:

Declaration of the Rights of Man and the Citizen—1789

Approved by the National Assembly of France, August 26, 1789

Articles:

1. Men are born and remain free and equal in rights. Social distinctions may be founded onlyupon the general good.

2. The aim of all political association is the preservation of the natural and imprescriptible[inalienable] rights of man. These rights are liberty, property, security, and resistance tooppression. . . .

4. Liberty consists in the freedom to do everything which injures no one else; hence theexercise of the natural rights of each man has no limits except those which assure to the othermembers of the society the enjoyment of the same rights. These limits can only be determinedby law. . . .

Source: The Avalon Project at Yale Law School (adapted)

State two ideas presented in the Declaration of the Rights of Man:

______

Outside Information: Which Enlightenment philosopher clearly influenced the second statement of the document? ______

Primary Sources:

“In every government there are three sorts of power; the legislative; the executive, in respect to things dependent on the law of nations; and the executive, in regard to things that depend on the civil law…

When the legislative and executive powers are united in the same person, or in the same body of magistrates, there can be no liberty; because apprehensions may anse, lest the same monarch or senate should enact tyrannical laws, to execute them in a tyrannical manner.”

~ The Spirit of the Laws (1748)

Montesquieu was a French political thinker (1689-1755)

  1. What branches or sorts of power exist in every government? ______
  2. When can there be no liberty? ______
  3. According to Montesquieu, why can there be no liberty when one person controls all of the different sorts of power? ______

"The problem is to find a form of association which will defend and protect with the whole common force the person and goods of each associate, and in which each, while uniting himself with all, may still obey himself alone, and remain as free as before."

~ The Social Contract (1762)

Rousseau was a French philosopher of the Enlightenment (1712-1778)

4- What is the main idea of the document?

______

Multiple-Choice Questions:

Speaker A: The story of history is the story of class struggles. Revolution is necessary to overthrow the ruling class and eventually create a classless society in which no one will be exploited.
Speaker B: The royal power is absolute and the prince need render account of his acts to no one. Where the word of a king is, there is no power. Without this absolute authority, the king could neither do good nor repress evil.
Speaker C: Government should leave business alone. It should let the natural law of supply and demand determine what gets produced, how much gets produced, who does the work, the price of goods, rates of pay, and all other economic questions.
Speaker D: Men are born and remain free and equal in rights. It is the duty of every government to preserve and protect these natural inalienable rights.
Which speaker expresses the views of John Locke and Jean Jacques Rousseau?

  1. A
  2. B
  3. C
  4. D

Writers of the Enlightenment were primarily interested in

  1. changing the relationship between people and their government
  2. supporting the divine right theory
  3. debating the role of the church in society
  4. promoting increased power for European monarchs

DRAMATIC MOMENT (learner.org)

In 1751, the first volume of the French Encyclopedie appeared in Paris. Its editor, ayoung writer named Denis Diderot, founded this project on the idea that peoplewere not stuck with their lot in life, but could take charge and improve their existenceby replacing blind faith in authority with their own ability to reason. This idea was atthe core of 18th-century Enlightenment thinking. Diderot gathered over 200 experts tocontribute articles in every field for his ambitious enterprise. The purpose of theencyclopedia was to make available to people the sum total of technical, scientific, andphilosophical knowledge known to mankind at that time.

These books included new classification systems of animals, explanations of surgicalprocedures, tactics of war, and diagrams of machinery and weaponry that before hadbeen understood only by those directly involved in the specific professions. It alsoincluded trade secrets known only to the guilds in times past. Now with the encyclopedia,the knowledge was made public for anyone who could read to use.

The Encyclopedie was exciting to the thinking people of Paris, because it gave them freeaccess to a wealth of knowledge, in a way which bypassed traditional authority. Peoplecould purchase and read these books, and think about the ideas they contained, in theprivacy of their own homes. In the past, both the government and the Church hadcontrolled what information people had. In the new encyclopedia however, the Kingand the Church only appeared as subjects of articles. They were presented as no moreimportant than any other topic, for Diderot had organized all the subjects in animpartial, alphabetical order. This was revolutionary and disrespectful! No wonder theauthorities were worried!

Undaunted, the determined editor Diderot issued the second volume towards the endof the year. The first volume had contained controversial articles on religion. The nextvolume had an entry written by a young churchman, which was violently condemnedby the Church. The churchman was forced to flee the country for his life. Diderot hadgone too far! The government was now angry, and the King revoked permission topublish any further volumes. Its young editor went into hiding, but vowed to continuehis work.

You are the teacher.

1-Write three critical questions for the first paragraph of the reading.

______

2-Write two critical questions for the second paragraph of the reading.

______

3-Write three critical questions for the third paragraph of the reading. ______

4-Write three critical questions for the fourth paragraph of the reading.

______

Critical Thinking Questions:

  • Why would an encyclopedia be considered revolutionary in the 1700s?
  • Is an encyclopedia revolutionary today? Defend your point of view.

Review Questions:

1. Filial piety and the five relationships are most often associated with
(1) Hinduism (3) animism
(2) Daoism (4) Confucianism
2. Marco Polo and Ibn Battuta are best known for
(1) exploring the Western Hemisphere
(2) leading religious movements
(3) opening trade between Africa and Japan
(4) providing extensive information about lands and people
3. By closing Japanese harbors to most foreigners in the 1600s, the Tokugawa shogunate attempted to
(1) protect Japan from European influence
(2) increase Japanese agricultural production
(3) eliminate Japan’s influence on Southeast Asia
(4) destroy traditional Japanese culture / 4. • Stained glass windows assist people in understanding Biblical stories.
• Taller and larger cathedrals emphasize the grandeur and glory of God.
These statements best describe elements of
(1) the Four Noble Truths
(2) Chinese pagodas
(3) Gothic architecture
(4) Greek ideas
  1. Enlightenment thinkers encouraged the improvement of society through the
(1) teachings of the church
(2) use of reason
(3) development of absolutism
(4) establishment of a rigid social hierarchy