Chapter 10: Revolution and
Enlightenment
Section 1: The Scientific Revolution
Background to the Revolution:
Middle Ages, scientists relied on a few ancient
authorities like Aristotle but there are several reasons
why philosophers abandoned old views and
developed new ones:
1) Renaissance humanist discovered works by Ptolemy,
Archimedes, and Plato that had disagreed with
Aristotle
2) invention of new instruments like the telescope and
microscope
3) printing press spread ideas
4) the study of mathematics
A.
Revolution in Astronomy:
The Ptolemaic System: A geocentric model of the
universe; earth was fixed and motionless; beyond the
spheres was Heaven, where God and saved souls
resided
Nicholas Copernicus wrote On the Revolutions of the
Heavenly Spheres. In the book he introduced the
heliocentric model of the universe, where planets
revolved around the sun, moons revolved around
planets, and apparent movement of the sun was
caused by the earth spinning
Johannes Kepler discovered the laws of planetary
motion. Kepler’s First Law: orbits of planets was
elliptical not circular; sun off-center
– Galileo:
•
•
•
first to use a telescope: discovered mountains on the
moon, four moons revolving Jupiter, and sunspots.
Wrote The Starry Messenger; said planets were
composed of material substance rather than just orbs
of light; widely read made Europeans aware of the
works of Copernicus and Kepler as well.
Galileo was put on trial for heresy because his writings
threatened church teachings that the heavens were
fixed and unchanging and that seemed to contradict
the Bible
–
Isaac Newton:
• explained motion in the universe and tied
together the ideas of Copernicus, Kepler, and
Galileo
• wrote Principles of Natural Philosophy; in the
book Newton defined the laws of motion; crucial
to his whole argument was the universal law of
gravitation; this law states that every object in
the universe is attracted to every other object by
a force called gravity.
Breakthroughs in Medicine and
Chemistry:
•
Anatomy was based on the work of
Andreas Vesalius; wrote On the
Fabric of the Human Body; in the
book, he discussed what he found
dissecting human bodies; presented
an accurate description of the organs
and structure of the body
•
William Harvey wrote On the Motion of
the Heart and Blood; showed that the
heart was the beginning point for the
circulation of blood in the body; also
proved same blood flowed in both veins
and arteries and makes a complete
circuit as it passes through the body.
– Chemistry:
•
•
Robert Boyle worked on the properties of gases;
Boyle’s Law: the volume of a gas varies with the
pressure exerted on it
Antoine Lavoisier: invented system of naming
chemical elements
– regarded as founder of
modern chemistry.
•
Women and the Origins of Modern Science:
–
Margaret Cavendish: wrote Observations Upon
Experimental Philosophy; in the book she was
critical of the growing belief that humans,
through science, were masters of nature
–
Maria Winkelmann: discovered a comet; was
refused a teaching position because of her sex
•
Descartes and Reason:
– Rene Descartes’s wrote Discourse on Method;
in the book he emphasized the importance of
the mind and reason; mind and matter were
completely separate; famous quote: “I think,
therefore I am”; Descartes has been called the
father of modern rationalism: the belief that
reason is the chief source of knowledge.
•
The Scientific Method: a systematic procedure for
collecting and analyzing evidence; developed by
Francis Bacon; Bacon believed scientist should
use inductive reasoning to learn about nature –
proceed from the particular to the general
Section 10.2: The Enlightenment
“The Thinker”
•
Path to the Enlightenment:
•
Philosophers saw the success
scientist had using reasoning to
discover physical laws (Scientific
Revolution) therefore philosophers
were confident they could use
reasoning to discover natural laws
and influence society (Enlightenment)
•
John Locke wrote Essay Concerning
Human Understanding; in the book he
argues that everyone is born with a
blank mind (tabula rasa = blank tablet)
and people are molded by their
experiences; if people were exposed
to the right influences, then people
could be changed and a new society
created.
?
?
?
Tabula Rasa
?
?
?
Philosophes and Their Ideas
–
Montesquieu:
• wrote The Spirit of The Laws: in this book
Montesquieu tries to use the scientific method to
find natural laws that govern the social and political
relationships of human beings
•
While studying England’s monarch,
he found it to have three branches
of government: the executive, the
legislative, and the judicial. The
government functioned through
separation of powers each checking
and limiting the others powers; this
system provided the greatest
security for the state
Voltaire:
•
wrote Treatise on Toleration; in the
book he promoted religious
toleration
•
Theory: the universe is a clock
and God is the clock-maker
•
also wrote against corrupt officials, inequality, and
the injustice of the slave trade; his writings
offended the government and church; he was
imprisoned and exiled for his writings; his books
were censored and burned therefore Voltaire
becomes an ardent defender of the freedom of
speech
Diderot:
•
wrote the Encyclopedia; a 28 volume
collection of knowledge he edited; its
purpose was to “change the general way of
thinking”
•
articles supported religious toleration, and
called for social, legal, and political
improvements
Toward a New Social Science
–
Economics:
• The Physiocrats: group who was interested in
identifying the natural economic laws that
governed human society; argued that if individuals
were left alone to pursue their own economic
interest, all society would benefit
•
Laissez-faire economics: let
people do what they want;
no interference by government
• Adam Smith wrote The Wealth of
Nations. He believed in laissez-faire and
he argued the government had only
three roles:
1. protect society from invasion
2. defend citizens from injustice
3. maintain public works projects
Cesare Beccaria
•
wrote essay On Crimes and
Punishments; in the book he argues
punishments should not be exercises
in brutality; also opposed capital
punishment
The Later Enlightenment:
–
Rousseau:
• wrote Discourse on the Origins of the Inequality of
Mankind; in the book he argues that people had
adopted laws and government to protect private
property and in the process become enslaved to the
government
• wrote The Social Contract; he argues an entire
society agrees to be governed by its general will;
self-interest must be given up for what is best for
the entire community
• wrote Emile; a novel that argues
that an education should foster
children’s natural instincts
Social World of the Enlightenment:
–
The Growth of Reading: more books were published
and many books were directed at the middle class and
women; magazines and newspaper began to be
published in the early 1700s
–
The Salons: drawing rooms of the wealthy upper
class’s; invited guests and took part in conversations
about the ideas of the philosophies; these gatherings
helped spread the ideas of the Enlightenment
Religion in the Enlightenment:
– Methodism – new religious movement
started by John Wesley; stressed the
importance of hard work and encouraged
behaviors that led to spiritual
contentment