The Enlightenment
The European Age of Reason
1689-1789
Origins of the Enlightenment
 The ideals of humanism from the Renaissance
permeate society.
 Rediscovery of classical texts influences the new
philosophers.
 The Scientific Revolution convinces many that the
world can be understood through natural laws.
 The Wars of Religion persuade many that
toleration is the only way for civilization to
survive.
The Doctrine of Progress
 Philosophes believed in
the progress of human
beings.
 Human beings were
basically good, but
corrupted by society;
therefore, human
institutions needed reform
 Marquis de Condorcet
(1743-1794) made
argument in Progress of the
Human Mind
John Locke (1632-1704)
 Two
Treatises
on
Civil
Government:justified supremacy
of Parliament; natural rights
 Essay
Concerning Human
Understanding (1690): tabula
rasa (“blank slate”)
– considered one of most
important
Enlightenment
works
– all human knowledge is the
result of sensory experience:
thus, human progress is in the
hands of society—education!
Deism
 secular world view: first time in human history;
marked end of age of religion
 natural science and reason
 deism: God created universe and then stepped
back and left it running (like a clock) – prime
mover
 Grew out of Newton’s theories regarding natural
law
 Thomas Paine, Age of Reason: advocates deism
 Voltaire also advocated deism over Christianity.
Voltaire (1694-1778)
 François Marie Arouet
 Ardent critic of the Old
Regime
 Wrote essays, letters,
plays.
 Candide (1759) satire
criticizing religious
persecution and
superstition.
Voltaire in England
 Voltaire in imprisoned in France after his
ideas offend French authorities.
 He lived in England from 1726 to 1729.
 He comes to admire the English toleration
of political ideas and religion.
 Returning to France, he published Letters
on the English (1733), admiring English
constitutionalism and criticizing French
absolutism.
Voltaire and Tolerance
 Voltaire supported toleration in religion and
politics, an idea he saw in practice in
England.
 Voltaire defended Jean Calas, a Hugeunot
accused of murdering his son lest he convert
to Catholicism.
 He published his Treatise on Tolerance in
1763, convincing authorities to reverse their
conviction of Calas in 1765.
The Enlightened Despots
Catherine the Great
 Least “enlightened” of
the Enlightened Despots
 westernization:
architecture, sculpture,
music--supported
philosophes
 reforms:reduced torture,
limited religious
toleration, some
education improvement,
increased local control
The Enlightened Despots
 Joseph
II (1765-1790) – greatest of the
Enlightened despots (“greatest good for greatest
number”)
 Abolished serfdom in 1781, freedom of press,
freedom of religion & civic rights, more equitable
justice system, made German official language (to
assimilate minorities), increased control over
Catholic education, expanded state schools, left
empire in economic and political turmoil: Leopold
I rescind many laws (e.g., serfdom)
The Enlightened Despots
 Frederick the Great
– Became a reformer during 2nd half of his reign;
ruler was the “first servant of the state”
– Religious freedom, education in schools and
universities, codified laws, promoted industry
and agriculture, encouraged immigration
– Social structure remained heavily stratified:
serfdom; extended privileges for the nobility,
Junkers became heart of military; difficult
upward mobility for middle class leadership.
Baron de Montesquieu (1689-1755)
 French attorney and
philosophe.
 Believed in no single
political system.
 In Spirit of the Laws
(1748) advocated
separation of powers
amongst executive,
legislative, and judicial
branches.
Diderot and the Encyclopedia
 Denis Diderot (1718-
1784) edited the
Encyclopedia published
in 28 vols. Between 1751
and 1772.
 Voltaire, Rousseau and
Montesquieu contributed
articles.
Jean-Jacques Rousseau (1712-1778)
 Born in Geneva to
Calvinist family
 He believed rationalism
and civilization was
destroying rather than
liberating the
individual; emphasized
nature, passion—
influenced early
Romantic movement
Jean-Jacques Rousseau
 Natural Education
– Rousseau believed that in there natural state,
humans were virtuous, free, equal, and happy.
– Civilization had corrupted them.
– Natural education would free children of
corruption
– Set forth ideas in Emile (1762).
– Children would learn through experience
(nature, emotional experience), not books.
Jean-Jacques Rousseau
 General Will
– Rousseau advocated radical contract form of
government in The Social Contract (1762)
– Desired freedom, but rejected individualism
and focused on his role in society.
– People’s opinion would form the “general will”
to be carried out by a small government.
– He did not favor democracy, but felt that
sovereignty laid in the people.
Economic Philosophes
 François Quesnay
(1694-1774) –
“physiocrats”: opposed
to mercantilist economic
theory.
 advocated reform of the
agrarian order.
 Adam Smith (17271790): Wealth of
Nations (1776): The
“Bible” of capitalism;
laissez faire “let do”
François Quesnay
Women Philosophes
 Gender theory: women
played important role in
organizing salons.
 Salons of Madame de
Geoffren and Louise de
Warens
 Mary Wollstonecraft –
Vindication of the Rights of
Women (1792)
 Olympe de Gouge
Declaration of the Rights of
Women
Mary Wollstonecraft
The Later Enlightenment:
 Baron Paul d’Holbach (1723-1789): humans were
machines governed by outside forces
– freewill, God, and immortality of soul were foolish myths
– severe blow to unity of the Enlightenment
 David Hume (1711-76): emphasized limitations of human
reasoning (similar to Rousseau)
– human mind is nothing but a bundle of impressions; later became
dogmatic skeptic that undermined Enlightenment
 Immanuel Kant (1724-1794): Separated science and
morality into separate branches of knowledge.
– Science could describe natural phenomena of material world but
could not provide a guide for morality
High Culture - Travel
 Elites began to travel for pleasure in greater
numbers than ever before.
 The “grand tour” of Europe became a must
for the cultured.
 People wished to see the ruins of antiquity
and the new urban centers throughout
Europe.
 Coffee houses offered a meeting place for
people to discuss philosophy and the issues
of the day.
The Salons
 Groups organized by
women, such as
Madame de
Pompadour, of
wealthy families.
 Gave a forum to which
philosophes could share
their ideas.
 Allowed women a
place were they could
be taken seriously.
 Often, the etiquette of
the gatherings made
things ‘artificial.’
Publishing and Reading
 Publishing and bookselling became a major
commercial enterprise in the 18th century.
 Newspapers and journals became a part of
the daily life of most urban Europeans.
 Newspapers began to write more about
political issues, particularly in England and
during the Revolution in France.
 There was also a large market for “bad
books” describing scandals and sex.
The Arts:
Neoclassicism to Romanticism
 Literature
– The Novel
• Novel had its origins in mid 18th century
England with the rising demand for fiction
from the middle class.
• Pioneers included Samuel Richardson and
Henry Fielding.
• A wide range of topics were covered in
novels; they shadowed the plays of the time
in dealing with family and social issues of
the day
The Arts:
Neoclassicism to Romanticism
 Poetry
– For 140 years from 1660 to 1800 neoclassical
poetry reigned England.
– Also known as Augustan poetry, neoclassical
used strictly, structurally balanced verses, witty
and elegant language with restrained and
controlled emotion, the idea being to create a
more refined verse.
– Amongst the most famous neoclassical poets
were John Dryden and Alexander Pope.
The Arts:
Neoclassicism to Romanticism
Poetry
– However, in 1798 poets William Wordsworth and
Samuel Taylor Coleridge published an anthology
Lyrical Ballads, opening the Romantic period of poetry.
– Romantic poetry was the complete opposite of
Neoclassical.
– Romantic poetry used simple language to create the
impression that the poet were speaking out loud and
usually spoke about common, everyday aspects of life
and nature.
– Later famous romantic poets of the time were William
Blake, Lord Byron, John Keats and Percy Bysshe
Shelley.
The Arts:
Neoclassicism to Romanticism
 Poetry
– Johann von Goethe (1749-1832)
• Prolific German writer and poet
who’s work encompassed
Neoclassical and Romantic elements.
• He inspired the literary movement
known as Sturm und Drang (Storm
and Stress), emphasizing strong
emotion experience.
• His great works include The Sorrows
of Young Werther (1774) and Faust
(1801 and 1831)
The Arts:
Neoclassicism to Romanticism
 Music
– Symphony
– Began moving from “light” neoclassical
works to more powerful and extended works.
• Franz Joseph Hayden
• Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
– Powerful extended symphonies that reflected
the emotion of the Romantic movement.
• Ludwig von Beethoven
The Arts:
Neoclassicism to Romanticism
 Visual Arts
– Neoclassical Art is a severe and unemotional
form of art harkening back to the grandeur of
ancient Greece and Rome. Its rigidity was a
reaction to the overdone Rococo style and the
emotional charged Baroque style. The rise of
Neoclassical Art was part of a general revival of
interest in classical thought, which was of
major importance in the Enlightenment and the
American and French revolutions.
Jacques-Louis David (1748–1825)
 The most famous painter in
Europe in the late 1700s
and early 1800s. He
breathed new life into
history painting with his
rigorously constructed
compositions
 David could be petty,
graceless, and abrasive.
Intensely competitive, he
was confident and even
boastful of his talent.
Jacques-Louis David - The Lictors Bring to Brutus the Bodies of His Sons
Jacques-Louis David – Oath of the Horatii
Benjamin West, The Death of General Wolfe (1770)
Benjamin West, Penn's Treaty with the Indians (1771)
The Arts:
Neoclassicism to Romanticism
 Romanticism might best be described as
anticlassicism. A reaction against Neoclassicism, it
is a deeply-felt style which is individualistic,
exotic, beautiful and emotionally wrought.
 Although Romanticism and Neoclassicism were
philosophically opposed, they were the dominant
European styles for generations, and many artists
were affected to a lesser or greater degree by both.
Artists might work in both styles at different times
or even combine elements, creating an
intellectually Romantic work using a Neoclassical
visual style, for example.
Jacques-Louis David – Bonaparte Crossing the Alps
J.M.W. Turner - Snowstorm: Hannibal and His Army Crossing the Alps
Popular Literature
 Designed for those who could barely read or
what was going to be read aloud.
– Three main forms:
• Religious and superstitious works
• Almanacs
• Entertainment – satire, tales, fables.
 Oral traditions continued with stories of
daily life.
Mass Education
 Religious wars increased literacy and
education across Europe (particularly in
Protestant nations)
 Schooling was designed to maintain the
social order and piety.
 Many peasants opposed sending their
children to school when they could help the
family work.
Mass Education
 Education in Western Europe was driven by
demand and the needs of the community.
 In Prussia and Austria, education became a
state function
– Austria – Habsburg General School Ordinance
of 1774.
• Schools in every parish.
• Train teachers
• Education was said to be compulsory
– Prussia – Frederick the Great enacted similar
reforms with less enthusiasm.
Recreation for the Masses
 The spread of pubs and taverns became
popular.
 Festivals continued to be of importance.
 First “spectator sports” become popular.
– Blood sports such as boxing and cock fighting
mixed with gambling popular with commoners.
– Horse racing also popular.
– Growing separation between elite and masses in
entertainment.