Enlightenment Poster Project
The Enlightenment was an intellectual movement that stressed reason and thought and the power of
individuals to solve problems. The Enlightenment, also known as the age of reason, reached it’s height
in the mid 1700’s and brought great change to many aspects of Western Civilization.
Directions: You by yourself or with one partner will research the following individuals and fill out the
chart on each of them. Once you are finished with that you will create a poster highlighting the
philosopher (thinker) of your choice.
Requirements:
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Informational Sheet needs to be complete for all thinkers
Poster needs to be neat and colorful
Poster needs to demonstrate an analysis of how this thinker influenced/changed Western
Civilization
Poster needs to have a quote from the thinker that you think sums up their major contributions
to Western Thought
Needs to be cleverly illustrated and eye-catching.
Thinkers
 Thomas Hobbes
 John Locke
 Voltaire
 Baron Montesquieu
 Jean Jacques Rousseau
 Cesare Beccaria
 Mary Wollstonecraft
Your informational sheet needs to have the following information for each thinker and be organized so I
can easily see it:
1. Personal history: Place of birth, where did they do most of their writing, where did they live
their lives
2. Major works: What did they write and what was it primarily about
3. Major quotes: What one or two quotes best sums up their work
4. Impact on Western Thought: How did they impact western thought?
5. Examples of their thought in American founding documents: What American founding
documents did they influence i.e. Declaration of Independence