Unit 4

 Humanistic ideas that were developed in Europe during the Renaissance allowed many to reason. Would eventually lead to the growth of individualism with intellectuals who were interested in science and politics. Traditional authorities were increasingly challenged, populations grew in cities, and conversations of reform and new advancements became a part of the new norm.

• Intellectuals began studying older classical works about planetary motion and human anatomy. Intellectuals like Copernicus, Galileo, and Isaac Newton became large figures in the world of science, as they quietly challenged the Church and the commonly accepted lies associated with it.
• The rediscovery of the ancient Greek and Roman works and observations of the natural world caused many Europeans views of the world to change. Observations along with logic became the way to formulate theories and laws.

The Scientific Revolution was started after discrepancies and flaws were found in the ancient Greek and Roman texts, so intellectuals began experimenting to prove the writings.

Francis Bacon published the scientific method, a series of steps that allowed one to create, test, and prove a hypothesis, in 1621. Bacon believed that all knowledge is derived from observation, he also believed that all information should be tested, a style of reasoning where limited evidence is needed to prove something true, and generalizations are made based on observations, known as inductive reasoning.

Rene Descartes published his style of reasoning, also using the scientific method, called deductive reasoning. In deductive reasoning information is collected, patterns are recognized, and then the scientific method is used.

 Women, especially in France, started having conversations about their beliefs/rights in salons and coffeehouses. Many Enlightenment thinkers did not support rights of women. 

• Rousseau believed that women were inferior to men and did not require education to complete their social duties of having children and taking care of the home.

  
  

  Mary Wollstonecraft wrote A Vindication of Rights of Women as a response to Rousseau who tried limiting women's rights. She argued that women were inferior not naturally, but because women lacked the education and opportunities that men had. 

  
  

  
  

  
  

   

Traditional political theories were supported by Thomas Hobbes, an Enlightenment thinker, published his book Leviathan that shared his theory that humans are innately selfish, and will always act in ways to gain wealth or power for themselves. He supported traditional  authoritarian governments representative of an absolute monarchy.

John Locke opposed Hobbes. He believed that all people are born without any innate ideas or knowledge, born a “blank slate”. Locke also believed in natural rights, revolving around the ideas of life, liberty, and property for all men. Many thinkers who agreed with Locke advocated for a constitutional monarchy rather than an absolute monarchy, like Hobbes.

 During the 17th century, Europe saw a low in its population, caused by wars, disease, and famine. The Thirty Years’ War caused mass casualties and destroyed many resources, leading to food shortages.

• 18th century saw a balance between the population and the food supply.

The Agricultural Revolution caused a significant increase in agricultural productivity and the switch to commercial farming made possible by new tools and technologies.

• The seed drill and horse-drawn plow led to greater efficiency and productivity in farming,
• The Columbian Exchange gave Europe access to new crops like potatoes and corn.
• Small landholdings were consolidated into larger ones through enclosure of common lands.

The Agricultural Revolution produced more food with less workers, causing more people to move to cities in search of work.

• The Industrial Revolution saw a growth in the factory system, leading to more people moving to cities in hopes of working in factories.

Censorship became very prevalent during the 18th century in Europe, mainly from the religious institutions controlling the flow of information and ideas. Despite the rampant censorship, the increase of printed materials allowed intellectuals to distribute information. Many used false names when they published their works.

The daily lives of people did not change much during this time, despite new scientific ideas about how the world works. 

• Women began including themselves in the Enlightenment movement, being taught by their husbands, who wrote to advocate for their rights which remained almost entirely unaffected during this time.

Neoclassicism emerged, it was a new version of the Classics. Neoclassicism focused on characteristics of the ancient classics, but the hues used in the art were often muted. Most pieces have something historical or political as the focal point.

As more people started living in cities, a consumer economy was developed, and the working class rose. Leisure activities expanded to the middle class during this time period. People of the middle classes now visited the theater, opera, and museums, as well as to coffeehouses and other public gathering spaces, which greatly contributed to the spread of information among people of the middle classes.

 In many states royal absolutism was almost a given, so many philosophes thought that the best way Enlightenment ideals could shape politics would be through a powerful monarch who embodied the ideals brought by the Enlightenment, such as religious toleration being granted to religious minorities, laws being simplified, and the elimination of the death penalty leading to the form of leadership known as Enlightened Absolutism.

Frederick the Great was an absolutist leader who had access to a very large military, so one of his first acts was to seize the Habsburg territory of Silesia which would double Prussia’s population and significantly increase its power in one of the most significant battles of the Seven Years’ War. Frederick II was besieged from all sides, and only came out of the battle do to a change in power caused by Peter III calling off his attack. The struggle he endured made him consider a new kind of rule that used more humane policies informed by Enlightenment thoughts. He abolished torture as a legitimate means of punishment and believed that monarchies were the best form of government, but thought that they only work if the monarch doesn’t abuse their power.

The Thirty Years’ war brought more religious tolerance to all religions across Europe with the Treaty of Westphalia which unified Europe moderately on its religious front. 

Politically, the turmoil only grew. Louis XIV was a land hungry absolute monarch. He was opposed by the Grand Alliance, which consisted of England, Spain, and the HRE whose goals were to prevent France expanding across the continent.

• At the same time, the Triangular Trade brought some unification throughout Europe, because everyone benefited from the transcontinental trade.

The Scientific Revolution brought a heliocentric view of the universe through thinkers like Copernicus, Galileo, and Newton, as well as the scientific method with its systems of inductive and deductive reasoning.

The Enlightenment brought ideas like social contract theory, through Locke and Rousseau, natural rights through Locke, free market and trade through Smith, and beliefs of skepticism deism and atheism.