Another significant intellectual idealist with whom his ideas was evident in the declaration of France and greatly influenced the French Revolution was Rousseau. His idea of the social contract and general will of the people can be found in number six of the declaration of France . This idea was so paramount because it said the government must obey the general will of the people and takes general will over individual rights. It allows for government to be created for a general will rather than divine right. The French Revolution expanded mass participation for the general will of the people in political life and radicalized the democratic tradition which was inherited from the English and American experiences
“How far do you agree that Cromwell created a ‘revolution in Tudor government’ from 1536-1553?” Cromwell’s skill and status allowed him to play a crucial role in directing the reformation and other areas of government, ultimately leading to the creation of a ‘revolution in tudor government’. Elton believes that Cromwell was the mastermind of the revolution, though others, such as J.J. Scarisbrick, believe that many overestimate Cromwell whilst underestimating Henry, believing that Henry was the initiator, even if it was Cromwell who carried out his ideas. This shows that even if Cromwell was not fully responsible for the ‘revolution’ in Tudor government, he most certainly played a large role in sculpting it. Religious reforms were key in establishing a new form of government, and therefore, to a large extent it would be suggested that Cromwell was instrumental in creating a revolution. By 1536 the Royal Supremacy in church and state was established and widely accepted, allowing Henry to exert his power more thoroughly, and ultimately creating a revolutions the king could take full control of the kingdom.
Locke's influence can be seen in documents such as the Declaration of Independence, the Constitution and the Federalist Papers. Locke’s philosophy of government, freedom, and natural rights challenged the power of England’s monarchy in Europe over the colonies in America. Although the foundations of these documents are highly influenced by John Locke's ideology, there are parts of these documents that stray away from his views. In this paper I will examine certain parts of the Declaration of Independence, The Constitution, and the Federalist Papers and argue that for the most part, if John Locke were alive today he would be pleased with these documents but I will also highlight parts of these documents that would concern him. The first document I will analyze is The Declaration of Independence which I consider to be the most influenced by Locke's ideology of any document the founders drafted.
DBQ 6: Enlightenment Thinkers and Their Impact on European Rulers The Age of Enlightenment was a time where cultural and intellectual ideas from Western Europe brought reason, analysis, and individualism to the rest of Europe and replaced former traditional authority. The Age of Enlightenment was most frequently known as the Age of Reason because it reformed society from the authority of the church to a society of science and skepticism. The Enlightenment philosophy was promoted by local enlightenment thinkers that stressed liberty, freedom from the church’s authority, and worked to abolish serfdom. A number of the Enlightenment philosophers influenced society by publishing texts. New ideas and beliefs spread through Europe and worldwide and marked a change from only having religious texts to also providing intellectual texts.
What is Enlightenment? The term “enlightenment” is defined by “a movement in the 18th century that advocated the use of reason in the reappraisal of accepted ideas and social institutions”. Before the seventeenth and eighteenth century, the state and the church were the primary institutions that influenced how people perceived society as well as how they were governed. Dogma, blind faith, and superstition plagued the prominent notions of society and therefore logic and reasoning were obsolete. In the beginning of the seventeenth century, a counter revolution began which was established on the principles of reason, logic, criticism and freedom of thought.
What were the ideas expressed during the Enlightenment? How did they spread?- A philosophical movement in eighteenth-century Europe that fostered the belief that one could reform society by discovering rational laws that governed social behavior and that were just as scientific as the laws of physics. 3. What were Benjamin Franklin’s achievements?- Some of Benjamin's greatest achievements are later in life when he became a premier statesman. He was elected to the Pennsylvania Assembly in 1750 where his principal duties were voyaging to London to represent the colony before the English parliament.
Machiavelli may have been mostly looked through the frame of religious and moralist lenses, but the impact of his principles has been widespread and lasting in politics. Surprisingly, regardless of these innovative ideals, Machiavelli
Good and evil are hidden deep within the pages of history, and are the results of the behavior and leadership of single or multiple actors. These actors play a key role in the decision making process in the life of governments-- in other words they had the power and ruling authority over societies. The rise and the fall of civil societies and government is a direct result of the players who control the fate of so-called “civilized societies.” The ultimate truth lies on the core of functioning of the legitimate governments and on the ongoing fight of the people for justice, peace, and happiness. The 18th century enlightenment, an era that celebrated free inquiry, political liberty, and progress, saw the development of the theory of the social contract. 1This theory postulated a new political and social principle, which held that relations among individuals in a society, and between individuals and government, are governed by a social contract.
Stanley James Granz writes about the origins of postmodernism in his book A Primer on the Postmodern: “Many historians place the birth of the modern era at the dawn of Enlightenment... it became the God of human intellectual quest to unlock the secrets of the universe in order to master nature for human benefit and create a better world”. (Granz, 1996) It is important to familiarize ourselves with Enlightenment in order to understand postmodernism. The term is used within the European philosophy and refers to the time we know now as the Age of Reason. An example of the quizzical, curious state of minds of people living in this era can look no further than the first encyclopaedias, which were compiled and published during this period. Rather than be content with what history had taught them, they would seek the truth, rather than settle for superstition and fear.
These classical thinkers derove their reasonning from personnal observations. These reasonings for enlightenment thinkers refer to the rationalle of people such as Thomans Hobbs, John Locke Voltaire, Galileo Galilei and Sir Isaac Newton among others. This rationalism is based on deductive logic. Deductive logic involves reasoning from the general to particular and applying theory to a particular case. The scientists create a a theory and then make some observations that either refute or support the theory.