Eighteenth-Century Society and
Culture
The West
CHAPTER 17
The Aristocracy
• Included titled noblemen, who had great
wealth and power, as well as lesser gentry
• Formed a cohesive social group, with
similar economic and political interests
• Most aristocrats’ income came from land
ownership
• Wealth increased during eighteenth century,
often via agrarian entrepreneurship
The Political Power of the
Aristocracy
• Pursued strategies to increase or preserve their
power and influence
• Exercised legislative power in England and in
much of central and eastern Europe
• Under absolute monarchs, the aristocracy
controlled the institutions of royal government
• Possessed judicial authority across Europe, locally
and nationally
The Cultural World of the
Aristocracy
• Lifestyle emphasized learning, refinement
and cultural appreciation
• Evolution of “polite society” - possession of
manners and social graces
• Patronage of music, literature and visual
arts
• Development of neoclassical architecture
and classical music
Encounters with Rural
Peasantry
• Transformations in the economic and
physical relationships between peasants and
their landlords
• Deteriorating financial conditions of
peasantry led to legal challenges to
seigniorial system
• Increasing crimes against property of
aristocratic landlords
The Social Position of the
Bourgeoisie
• Social and economic distinctions between
wealthiest bourgeoisie and the gentry began
to fade
• Emergence of a new, distinct social and
cultural identity among the middle and
lower ranks of the bourgeoisie
• Evolution of the “public sphere”
The Bourgeois Critique of
Aristocracy
• Contrasted aristocratic luxury and idleness with
bourgeois thrift and work ethic
• Considered aristocrats to be sexually promiscuous
and immoral
• Contrasted the decadent internationalism of
aristocratic culture with the wholesome patriotism
of the bourgeois
• Foundation of demands for meritocracy and the
expansion of political rights
The Enlightenment
• Defining intellectual and cultural movement of the
eighteenth century
• Evolved from seventeenth century skepticism and
scientific method
• Emergence of a cosmopolitan and international
Republic of Letters
• Constituted an approach to obtaining knowledge,
rather than to a defined set of beliefs
Themes of Enlightenment
Thought
• Elevation of reason above all other
philosophical methods, including religion
• Development of religious tolerance and
criticism of superstition
• Belief in the continuing improvement of
human civilization
• Pursuit of social justice
Enlightenment Political
Thought
• Baron de Montesquieu (1689-1785) promoted the separation of powers
• Jean-Jacques Rousseau (1712-1284) promoted popular sovereignty, but not
democracy
• Thomas Paine (1737-1809) - asserted the
existence of inalienable human rights and
promoted republicanism
Gender, Sexuality and the
Enlightenment
• Emergence of the theory of separate male
and female spheres - the ideology of female
domesticity
• After 1790, certain writers began to
promote the idea of gender equality
• Opposed religious restraints upon sexuality
as arbitrary and contrary to nature
The Spread of Enlightened
Ideas
• Increased literacy and expansion of printing
• Development of public libraries, museums, book
clubs, and scientific and literary societies
• Emergence of salons, and coffee-house culture
• Spread of freemasonry
• Enlightened ideas spread among the aristocracy
and the bourgeoisie
The Limits of the
Enlightenment
• Religious and spiritual literature continued
to flourish
• Emergence of sensationalist, popular press
• Further widening of the cultural gap
between social élites and the lower classes
• Persistence of popular blood sports and
superstitions, in the face of enlightened
criticism
Enlightened Absolutism
• Several monarchs, particularly in central
and eastern Europe, used their absolute
power to implement Enlightenment reforms
• Introduction of religious tolerance
• Abolition of judicial torture and capital
punishment
• Establishment of compulsory education
• Elimination of serfdom
The Enlightenment and
Revolution
• Fostered parliamentary reforms and
expansion of the voting franchise in Britain
• Contributed a critical spirit and political
inspiration to the French Revolution
• Applied by advocates of colonial
independence in the Americas
• Fostered a critique of European imperialism
and colonialism
Enlightenment and Western
Identity
• A uniquely Western phenomenon
• Foundation of “Western values” - individual
liberty, civil rights, toleration and rational
decision making
• Enlightened ideas have never been fully
accepted within western society
• Promoted a clear sense of western European
identity, with respect to the rest of the world
Change and Continuity in the
Eighteenth Century
• Façade of social and political stability
• Growth of a distinct bourgeois political, social and
cultural identity
• Increasing resistance to aristocratic privileges
among bourgeoisie and lower classes
• Intellectual challenge of the Enlightenment to both
monarchy and aristocracy