THE STUDENT WILL EXAMINE THE
INTELLECTUAL, POLITICAL, SOCIAL, AND
ECONOMIC FACTORS THAT CHANGED THE
WORLD VIEW OF EUROPEANS.
STANDARD 13
a. Explain the scientific contributions of Copernicus, Galileo, Kepler, and
Newton and how these ideas changed the European world view.
b. Identify the major ideas of the Enlightenment from the writings of
Locke, Voltaire, and Rousseau and their relationship to politics and society.
Scientific Revolution
the period in Europe between 1300- 1600 was a time of great change in Europe. The Renaissance inspired the arts; inspired curiosity in many fields. began to question what had been accepted for hundreds of years.
The Reformation prompted followers to challenge ways of
thinking about God and salvation. While these
revolutions were taking place, another revolution was
beginning in Europe that would change the way people would
look at the physical world.
Copernicus-
Copernicus was a Polish cleric and astronomer who had problems about the accuracy explaining the movement of the sun, moon and earth of the geocentric theory.
The geocentric theory stated that the earth was at the
center of the universe and the planets and sun revolved
around the earth. This idea came from the Greek
philosopher Aristotle in the 4th century.
After studying planetary movements for more than 25 years, Copernicus concluded
that the stars, earth and other planets indeed revolved
around the sun. This theory came to be known as the heliocentric theory.
This theory did not fully explain why planets orbited
the way they did and Copernicus feared that his ideas would be rejected by
scholars and clergy because they went against religious
views.
He did not publish his ideas until 1543, the last year of his life. His book was called On
the Revolutionary of the Heavenly Bodies. It did not cause a stir at first but over the next 150 years, many
scientists built on what he had started.
Tycho Brahe
A Danish astronomer; carefully recorded planet movements for many years. He produced mountains of accurate data but his followers would have to prove it mathematically
Galileo
Galileo was an Italian scientist who built on these new theories of astronomy. built an object that would allow him to enlarge far off objects - telescope in 1609 to study the far off heavens.
In 1610 he published a book that recorded his findings.
Some of those findings include that Jupiter had 4 moons and the sun had dark spots. He also came out and said the
earth’s moon was rough and uneven which went against
what Aristotle had said.
Aristotle said the moon was made of a pure, perfect
substance. Galileo’s beliefs fell right in line with those
of Copernicus.
Galileo conflicts with the Church
Galileo’s findings frightened both Protestant and Catholic leaders. If the church could be wrong about these findings, couldn’t people begin to question other church teachings as well?
Earth Center of Universe – palm of God’s hand
In 1616, the Catholic church warned Galileo not to defend
the findings of Copernicus. He remains silent but continues to study. In 1632 he published a
book titled, Dialogue Concerning the Two
Chief World Systems.
The pope is outraged by this and summons Galileo to Rome to
stand trial before a court during the Inquisition.
A Roman Catholic tribunal (court) for investigating and prosecuting charges of heresy – most active in
Spain during the 14oo’s.
In 1633, he stood before the court and under the threat of
torture, knelt before the Cardinals and read a
confession. In it, he agreed that the ideas of Copernicus
were false. Galileo was never again a free man living in
Florence under house arrest until his death in 1642.
His books and ideas continued to spread across Europe. In 1992, the Catholic church
acknowledged that Galileo had been correct
in his findings.
Kepler
Kepler (German) mathematician, astronomer, and astrologer. His ideas laid the foundation for Newton’s theory of universal gravitation.
Newton
Isaac Newton was an English scientist in the mid-1600s that brought the thoughts of Kepler, Copernicus and Galileo into a single theory of motion. He studied mathematics and physics at Cambridge University.
He was certain that all physical objects were equally affected by
the same forces.
His law called universal gravitation said that every
object in the universe attracts every other object.
The Enlightenment
The Enlightenment, was a new intellectual movement that stressed reason and thought and the power of individuals to solve the problems. It is also known as the Age of Reason, the movement reached its height in the mid-1700s and brought many changes to western civilization.
Enlightenment Thinkers/ Writers
JOHN LOCKE
He was an English political thinker of the 1600s. He held a more positive view of human nature. He said people could learn from their experience and improve themselves. He said people were reasonable and had the ability to govern their own affairs.
He criticized the absolute monarchy and favored the idea of
self-government.
He said all people are born equal with three natural rights.
1. Life 2. Liberty
3. Property
purpose of a government - Locke was to protect these
rights. If a government does not protect these rights, the
citizens have the right to overthrow it. His idea that a government’s power comes
from the consent of the people is the foundation of modern
democracy. His ideas helped inspire struggles for liberty in
Europe and the Americas.
Voltaire
He is said to be the most brilliant and influential of the philosophers. His name was Francois Marie Arouet but used the pen name Voltaire.
He often used satire against his opponent which were commonly the clergy, aristocrats and the
government.
His tongue made him enemies in the French court and was
sentenced to prison twice. After his second stint in prison, he was exiled to England for two
years.
Voltaire - Although he had many enemies, he never stopped
fighting for freedom of speech, freedom of religion, tolerance, and reason. He used his quill
pen as if it were a deadly weapon against the worst
enemies- intolerance, prejudice, and superstition.
One of his most famous quotes on liberty is as follows:
“I do not agree with a word you say but will defend to the death your right to say it.” –Voltaire
Rousseau
Jean Jacques Rousseau was the son of a Swiss watchmaker who was passionate about individual freedom. He said that civilization corrupted the people’s natural goodness.
He believed that the only good government was one that was freely formed by the people and guided by
the “general will” of society- a direct democracy. Under this type of government, people agree to give up certain freedoms for the favor of
common good.
In 1762, he wrote a book titled The Social Contract. His view of the social contract differed from that of Locke who believed it to
be a contract between the people and their government.
Rousseau said it was an agreement among free
individuals to create a society and a government.
Rousseau said it was an agreement among free
individuals to create a society and a government. Locke and
Rousseau agreed that legitimate government came from the consent of the governed.
He believed in a broader form of democracy than Locke did and
argued that people were created equal and titles of nobility should be abolished. His ideas inspired
many leaders of the French Revolution who overthrew the
monarchy in 1789.