They wrote that people had the right to change the government. This was a revolutionary idea in the world of kings. It turns to idea of government upside down in the 1700’s.
They wrote that people had the right to change the government. This was a revolutionary idea in the world of kings. It turns to idea of government upside down in the 1700’s.
Enlightenment thinkers were concerned with how man would be without the constraints of authority and tradition. They believed that reason and rationality should guide individuals and society, advocating for freedom, equality, and progress. They sought to establish a society based on principles of individual liberty and governance by consent.
Paris
Enlightenment thinkers believe that individuals should have a say in the laws and policies that affect them. Taxation without representation denies people the ability to participate in the decision-making process, which goes against the principles of political equality and consent of the governed. This lack of representation was seen as unjust and oppressive by Enlightenment thinkers like John Locke and Thomas Paine.
Thinkers of the Enlightenment sought to establish laws based on reason, logic, and natural rights. They aimed to create laws that would protect individual freedoms, limit the power of the government, and promote equality and justice in society. Overall, they advocated for rule of law and the protection of basic human rights.
Enlightenment thinkers believed in the idea of individuals having inherent rights and freedoms. They saw democracy as a way to ensure that these rights were protected and that government power was limited and held accountable to the people. They believed that a democratic system would help prevent tyranny and foster a more just and equitable society.
Enlightenment thinkers
Government
Madame Geoffrin was a prominent salon hostess in Paris during the Enlightenment, known for hosting gatherings where intellectuals, writers, and philosophers would discuss new ideas and theories. Her salon facilitated the exchange of ideas and helped to spread Enlightenment ideals throughout French society. Geoffrin's patronage and support of thinkers like Voltaire and Diderot were key in promoting Enlightenment ideas in Paris.
The central belief of the Enlightenment was the power of reason and rationality to improve society, challenge traditional authority, and promote individual freedoms. Enlightenment thinkers emphasized the importance of science, empirical observation, and the pursuit of knowledge to advance human progress and social change.
The great thinkers from the Age of Enlightenment were concerned with how people were capable of self government. Self government is not without government and if people are capable of governing themselves, they are certainly capable of forming governments (artifices), to establish Justice, ensure domestic Tranquility, provide for the common defense and promote the general Welfare of the self governed. From John Locke, to Adam Smith to Thomas Hobbes and Thomas Paine, the great thinkers of the Enlightenment were concerned with how people would be with government. From Thomas Jefferson to Benjamin Franklin, from George Washington to John Adams the great thinkers of the Age of Enlightenment were concerned with how governments should be with people.
Jean-Jacques Rousseau would agree with this idea. He believed that individuals were inherently good but were corrupted by society and institutions, such as governments, that placed restrictions on their freedom and corrupted their natural state of being.