The Philosophes
&
The Enlightenment
Europe 1700
The Enlightenment was an
18th century intellectual and
cultural movement that tied
together certain key ideas,
especially in the area of
government, and was the link
between the scientific
revolution and the
application of reason.
The
“Enlightened”
Individual:
The Philosophe
► Not really original thinkers as a whole,
but were great publicists of the new
thinking  CHANGE & PROGRESS!
► They were students of society who
analyzed its evils and advanced reforms.
Enlightened Thinkers believed…
•Man’s intellect was apart from
God
•Original sin was irrelevanthumans were innocent at birth and
full of potential
•God existed to create the universe
but was no longer involved in its
operation- “natural law” took over.
The following areas influenced
the Enlightenment:
• Political stability in Britain
• Locke’s concept of tabula rasa
• The discoveries of Newton
• An expanding print culture
Writers, critics, and thinkers,
many of whom were French,
who dedicated themselves to
exposing social problems,
proposing reforms based upon
implementing natural laws,
and advocating toleration
were known as Philosophes.
Voltaire (1712-1778)
► Francois Marie Arouet.
► Essay on the Customs
and Spirit of Nations,
1756
► Candide, 1759
► Philosophical
Dictionary, 1764
Voltaire was the best known
and influential of the
enlightened thinkers criticized
the French government and
abuses of society, was against
the intolerance of organized
Christianity, and championed
religious tolerance. His most
famous work of satire is
Candide.
Baron de Montesquieu
(1689-1755)
► Persian Letters,
1721
► On the Spirit of
Laws, 1758
Baron de Montesquieu wrote
The Spirit of the Laws in an
attempt to apply the methods
of the natural sciences to the
study of government. His most
influential ideas was that of
the division of power in
government to protect the
rights of individuals.
Montesquieu’s Philosophy
► Three types of government:
 Monarchy.
 Republic.
 Despotism.
 A separation of political
powers ensured freedom and
liberty.
Jean Jacques Rousseau (17121778)
► A Discourse on the
Sciences and Arts,
1750
► Emile, 1762.
► The Social Contract,
1762.
Jean-Jacques Rousseau wrote The
Social Contract, dealing with
political theory and government. He
suggested society is more important
than its individual members and that
sovereign power in a nation resides
in the general will of the community,
not in the ruler.
He believed in a “natural education”
for children and distrusted reason
and science.
Rousseau’s Philosophy
► The Social Contract was derived
from human nature, not from
history, tradition, or the Bible.
► People would be most free and
moral under a republican form of
government with direct
democracy.
► Rousseau’s thinking:
 Had a great influence on the
French revolutionaries of 1789.
 His attacks on private property
inspired the communists of the
19c such as Karl Marx.
Denis Diderot (1713-1784)
► All things must be
examined, debated,
investigated without
exception and without
regard for anyone’s
feelings.
► We will speak against
senseless laws until
they are reformed;
and, while we wait, we
will abide by them.
Denis Diderot’s goal was to
bring together all the most
current and enlightened
thinking about science,
technology, mathematics, art,
and government in a series of
books called an
Encyclopedia.
Diderot’s Encyclopédie
Pages from Diderot’s
Encyclopedie
Subscriptions to Diderot’s
Encyclopedie
The Encyclopédie
► Complete cycle of knowledge changes
the general way of thinking.
► 28 volumes. (17 of text, 11 of
drawings.)
► Alphabetical, cross-referenced,
illustrated.
► Published between 1751-1772.
► 60,000 entries. 150 authors.
► 1500 livres a set. ($37,000)
Mary Wollstonecraft (1759-1797)
► Women were not
naturally inferior to
men, but appeared to
be only because they
lack education.
► She believed both men
and women should be
treated as rational
beings and imagined a
social order founded
on reason.
In her Vindication of the Rights of
Women, Mary Wollstonecraft,
defended equality of women with
men on the grounds of both
genders sharing the same
capacity of human reason. She
accused other individuals of
attempting to limit the
experience of women by
upholding their traditional roles.
Adam Smith (1723-1790)
► Scottish
philosopher.
► “father of modern
economics” and is
still among the
most influential
thinkers in the field
of economics today.
Adam Smith wrote The Wealth of
Nations in which he explained the
concept of laissez-faire, supply
and demand, and the limited role
of government in economics.
He also embraced the four-stage
theory, which Europeans used in
the 19th century to justify their
dominance.
John Locke wrote the Second
Treatise of Civil Government which
stated that people set up civil
governments to protect life, liberty,
and property. He formulated the
theory of “natural rights”. He also
argued for limited government; it is
a contract between the people and
the ruler who promises to
safeguard their natural rights.
John Locke’s Philosophy
► Human beings possess free will.
 they should be prepared for
freedom.
 obedience should be out of
conviction, not out of fear.
► There are certain natural rights that
are endowed by God to all human
beings.
 life, liberty, property!
► He favored a republic as the best
form of government.
Deism is the belief in which God
was a cosmic watchmaker who
created the universe and then
let it run according to natural
laws of the universe. Much of
the educated elite in western
Europe and North America
embraced this idea.
Female Philosophes
► Emilie du Chatalet,
a French noblewoman
(1706-1749).
► Wrote extensively about
the mathematics and
physics of Gottfried
Wilhelm von Lebnitz and
Isaac Newton.
► Her lover, Voltaire, learned much of his
science from her.
A Parisian Salon
The Salonnieres
Madame
Geoffrin
(1699-1777)
Mademoiselle
Julie de
Lespinasse
(1732*-1776)
Madame
Suzanne Necker
(1739-1794)
Madame Geoffrin’s Salon
An Increase in Reading
Reading During the
Enlightenment
► Literacy:
 80% for men; 60% women.
► Books were expensive (one day’s
wages).
► Many readers for each book (20 : 1)
 novels, plays & other literature.
 journals, memoirs, “private lives.”
 philosophy, history, theology.
 newspapers, political pamphlets.
The American “Philosophes”
John Adams
(1745-1826)
Ben Franklin
(1706-1790)
Thomas
Jefferson
(1743-1826)
life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness