Key Terms – The Enlightenment

Thomas Hobbes Social Contract John Locke Tabula Rasa Natural Rights Baron de

Montesquieu Separation of Powers

Voltaire Deist Jean Jacques

Rousseau Noble Savages Physiocrats Laissez faire Enlightened Despots

Thomas Hobbes (1588-1679)

Hobbes → political philosopher who supported absolutism

Believed that individuals entered into a social contract with governments.

Social Contract → belief that people, out of fear of violent death, forfeit particular freedoms for security

John Locke (1632-1704)

Locke → political philosopher who believed that people are born with reason and natural rights.

Locke posited that people are born as blank slates or “tabula rasas” and that the way they are treated and educated ultimately shapes who they will become.

Natural Rights

Locke believed that human nature is governed by natural laws.

Believed that reason is what allows people to know what is truly good for them.

To obey natural laws, people need to have and exercise natural rights → rights one is born with. right to life, liberty, and property. Government must protect these rights and if they do

not do so, the citizens have a right to remove it.

Baron de Montesquieu (1689-1755)

Montesquieu → political philosopher who denounced despotism and argued for the separation of powers.

Separation of powers → the breakdown of governmental powers and duties across multiple people or groups.

He believed that Parliament was the best example of good government.

Francois Marie Arouet, a.k.a. Voltaire (1694-1778)

Voltaire → political philosopher who believed that few people were capable of governing themselves hence monarchy was the ideal system.

Voltaire was a deist → believed that there was a planned order to the universe and that reason was the only way to find truth.

Jean Jacques Rousseau (1712-1778)

Rousseau → political philosopher who believed that reason and civilization ruined humanity, glorified the idea of the noble savage.

He believed that the creation of government destroyed what could have been ideal societies.

Rousseau's Theories

Rousseau believed that if civilization and reason had not met humanity, the noble savage would have endured and humanity would have been better off.

Noble savage → precivilized people who are considered generous, free, spontaneous and sincere

Believed that members of this society would enter into a contract with one another where they forfeit some freedoms.

The general will would determine the common interest. This general will can be determined by the majority or

a small group with a better sense or idea of how to manage things

Physiocrats

Many people used enlightenment thinking on the field of economics.

These people would be known as physiocrats. These thinkers believed that governments

should not regulate economic activity very closely. Laissez-faire economics → belief that governments

should leave economic activity alone and allow natural law to govern it.

Enlightened Despots

Rulers would adopt the enlightenment philosophies and would be considered enlightened despots.

Examples of enlightened despots are: Frederick the Great → worked closely with Voltaire,

made promises to end serfdom but failed to do so. Catherine the Great → Russian czarina who also

sought to end serfdom and would attempt to do so but would recant after pressure from nobles.

Maria Theresa → weakened the control of the Catholic Church, gave serfs more freedom, evened out the tax system in Austria.