The Enlightenment was an intellectual movement that was predominant in the Western world during the 18th century. Strongly influenced by the rise of modern science and by the aftermath of the long religious conflict that followed the Reformation, the thinkers of the Enlightenment were committed to secular views based on reason or human understanding only. The thinkers of the Enlightenment “proclaimed a new age free from superstitions such as witchcraft” (Strayer, 43. Column II).
Jean-Jacques Rousseau, Mary Wollstonecraft, and Marquis de Condorcet were three of these thinkers. Though many of their beliefs were different, these three provided an intellectual basis for beneficial changes affecting every area of life and thought for years to come.
Perhaps one of the single most important Enlightenment writers was the philosopher-novelist-composer-music theorist-language theorist and all-around brilliant guy, Jean-Jacques Rousseau (1712-1778).
Rousseau felt that the current state of the government deprived human beings of their natural freedom and fostered a selfish individualism, which undermined concern for the common good. He thought that civilization was corrupt and, rather than teaching “self-reliance and generosity, civilization fostered individual possession, greed, and envy” (Strayer, 44. Column II).
He wanted the state to be a genuine democracy that bound people together in freedom, equality and civic devotion.
The Essay on Age of Enlightenment and Candide Voltaire Candide
Candide is an outlandishly humorous, far-fetched tale by Voltaire satirizing the optimism espoused by the philosophers of the Age of Enlightenment. It is the story … An Analysis of Candide, and Voltaire’s Controversial Convictions … voices. yahoo. com/an-analysis-candide-voltaires-controversial-695221. ht…? Dec 13, 2007 – One of Voltaire’s premier criticisms in ...
Rousseau distrusted the aristocrats and he believed they were betraying decent traditional values. He opposed the theater, shunned the aristocracy, and argued for something dangerous- democratic revolution. Rousseau argued that inequality was not only unnatural, but that, when taken too far, it made decent government impossible. He emphasized the emotions of individuals and became a contributor to both the Enlightenment and its successor, romanticism.
Rousseau tried to explain the human invention of government as a kind of contract between the governed and the authorities that governed them. He thought that the only reason human beings were willing to give up individual freedom and be ruled by others was that they saw that their rights, happiness, and property would be better protected under a formal government rather than an anarchic, every-person-for-themselves type of society. He argued, though, that this original contract was deeply flawed. The wealthiest and most powerful members of society “tricked” the general population, and so installed inequality as a permanent feature of human society. Rousseau “gave expression to social and political aspirations of the poor and dispossessed” (Strayer, 44. Column II).
He was one of the first people do express these aspirations and believed that, rather than having a government which largely protects the wealth and the rights of the powerful few, government should be fundamentally based on the rights and equality of everyone. Another individual who played a large role in the age of Enlightenment was Mary Wollstonecraft. Wollstonecraft was a prominent feminist whose main focus was on intellectual reform and changing the education of women. She believed that if men were placed in the same position as women then they too would develop the same characteristics that women possessed. Most of Wollstonecraft’s ideas reflected the concerns of elite women and demanded equal education, property rights, and marriage rights. It was the work of Wollstonecraft that set the rallying point of first wave theory and activism. Rousseau and Wollstonecraft had many of the same beliefs but also had a few specific differences. They both believed that children should be allowed to grow freely and learn to use their education practically. Children would then grow up to be free- thinking adults that would keep society from becoming materialistic and oppressing.
The Essay on Mary Wollstonecraft Education Women Children
The neglected education of my fellow-creatures is the grand source of the misery I deplore. -Mary Wollstonecraft, A Vindication of the Rights of Women. Rousseau and Wollstonecraft believed that children should be allowed to grow freely and learn to use their education practically. Children would then grow up to be free thinking adults that would keep soceity from becoming materialistic and ...
Nonetheless, these two individuals vehemently disagreed on who should receive such an education. Rousseau thought that only males should have this education because they are stronger should receive such and education. Wollstonecraft believed everyone, no matter what sex, should be able to be educated to reform and better society as a whole. Though both their ideas were considered extreme, they are both apparent in the public education system of today. Rousseau’s theory of natural education was not intended for all children. He felt that girls should be limited motherhood, and how to be a wife. To Rousseau, women exist in order to serve man, because they are weaker. Wollstonecraft stated that women should be taught medicine in order to take care of parents, infants, and husbands properly. Rousseau was applauded for advocating human rights and natural education but when it concerned women he broke no new ground. Wollstonecraft upheld Rousseau’s philosophy of natural education to encourage individual freedom to benefit society. However, she detested his treatment of women. Marquis de Condorcet was a philosophe who was actively engaged in the political life of his nation. He was a prophet of human progress, a mathematician, and an educational reformer (The Human Record, 157.).
He was also the only prominent philosophe to participate directly in the French Revolution. Condorcet was very active in the pre- revolutionary campaigns for economic freedom, religious toleration, legal reform and the abolition of slavery. Condorcet was a very extreme and radical philosophe. The Enlightenment brought forth a strong emphasis on reason and knowledge and Condorcet was one of the advocates of these thoughts. He had a strong belief in the perfectibility of humanity. Condorcet said that change is progress and, through progress, humanity can be improved. According to Condorcet, the perfection of mankind is attainable and for that reason he was impelled to reach it. “If we consider the human creations based on scientific theories, we shall see that their progress can have no limits” (Andrea, 160. Column I).
The Essay on Women’s Education
Education is an important factor in a persons life now in the 21st century as well as it was in the past. The only differences between now and the past were the people that were able to receive a full education. In the present century, every one is entitled to the right to peruse an education. But in the past, men had the choice to receive a full education in a university, while women had the ...
He felt that perfection could be reached if the ‘savages’ were colonized and educated. In this way, the perfection of Humanity is speeded forward towards completion. He also believed that, as time went on and humans progressed, “the average length of human life will be increased and a better health and a stronger physical constitution will be ensured” (Strayer, 46. Column I).
Equality was another ideal that Condorcet advocated. Believing in the improvement of society, he questioned the beginning of prejudices and divisions within the society and thought that many of these divisions should be eliminated. “The day will come when the sun will shine only on free men born knowing no other master but their reason; where tyrants and their slaves will exist only in the history books and theaters” (Andrea, 159. Column II).
During the Enlightenment, many philosophers denounced war as barbaric and an affront to reason. They felt that human nature was essentially virtuous and that human beings were capable of benevolent feelings toward each other. In addition, philosophers continued to view women as intellectually and morally inferior to men. Condorcet, however, wrote Plea for the Citizenship of Women in 1791, and argued for female emancipation. He was one of the very few exceptions of the time. Rousseau believed that nature had granted men power over women, and regarded traditional domesticity as a woman’s proper role. Mary Wollstonecraft’s work, Vindication of the Rights of Woman protested against the submissiveness and subordination of women, and their limited opportunities. Mary Wollstonecraft, Marquis de Condorcet, and Jean-Jacques Rousseau were all very influential in an age that implied a method of thought, attitude, and a desire to question values and explore new ideas. Though their ideas were different, they all rejected theology as an avenue to truth and sought to understand nature and society through reason alone. In addition, they questioned all inherited opinions and traditions. Thinkers of the Enlightenment aspired to create a more rational and humane society. Some of the ideas of these three are still alive today. Wollstonecraft, Condorcet, and Rousseau all believed in human freedom and equality and their values and ideas have been embodied in many institutions such as education, many facets of modern government, and philanthropy.
The Essay on The Enlightment and the Role of Women in Society
The Enlightenment and the Role of Women in Society The Age of Enlightenment was a large cultural movement of educated individuals around the 17th and 18th centuries. The purpose of the Enlightenment was to challenges ideas that were rooted in faith and tradition, mold society using reason, and advance knowledge through a new scientific method. Different societies rose during this time period and ...
Bibliography:
Andrea, Alfred and Overfield, James. The Human Record: Sources of Global History. 1998. Houghton Mifflin Company. New York.
Strayer, Robert W. The Making of the Modern World: Connected Histories, Divergent Paths: 1500 to the present. 1995. St. Martin’s Press. New York. World Book Encyclopedia. 1967 edition.
