Dbq on Whether or Not Enlightenment Thinkers Based Ideas

DBQ When looking upon any thinkers in recorded history, we must analyze the influences, assuming there are some, that provide a foundation or stemmed the creation of the thinkers line of thought or view on a subject.For instance, the philosophes of the Enlightenment are often assumed to have formulated their ideas single-handedly but if we were to analyze their thoughts we would see tout ensemble of them stem from other ideas, or directly oppose thinkers views from the scientific Revolution, such as the relationship or similarities of Hu military manity and Nature, the use of the Scientific manner, and the ongoing debate on godliness and its place in tender-hearted affairs.To begin with, the extensive use of the new accepted Scientific Method, or the new form of investigation that stemmed from it made the Enlightenments revolutionary government ideas possible. These documents support this fact, Document single, Rene Descartes The hold forth on Method, Document five Holbachs T he musical arrangement of Nature, Rouseeaus Social Contract and newtons Principia Mathematica.For instance In Rene Descartes The Discourse on Method he states his four steps of headspringing which started with he could never accept what was truth accept what he had already determined to be, secondly divide into as many possible parts as he could, third start with the simple and work your way into the complex, and finally omit nobody and be legitimate of your work by painstaking records and reviews. These steps, when transferred into the research of finding the epitome of government, the inter consummations of a community, and human nature itself allowed a complex and encompassing view on the philosophes society and government.Also, by using this method a more realistic or practical form of philosophy was created. Whereas in Greek philosophy near ideas where looking at a current government or in Platos case creating an entirely new one with illogical and impractical theorems, the Scientific Method allowed thinkers to piece by piece respond to societys and humanitys flaws and they realized government is the greatest fountainable compromise in a mans life.It began to be understood that at the forefront of Mans separation from base beasts is the ability to live in a society influenced by morals, reason, and ambition as opposed to the animalistic instinct of their lesser cousins in the animal kingdom. (Doc 1) In Baron dHolbachs The System of Nature Holbach states The enlightened man, is his matury, in his perfection, who is capable of pursuing his own happiness, because he has larn to examineExperience t apiecees Nature acts by simple, uniform, and invariable laws. According to Holbach man may pursue happiness due to his reason, as opposed to Natures infinite cycle man may change. Doc 5) Another resolving of the Scientific Revolutions Scientific Method is Rousseaus The Social Contract in which he outlines the requirement of man to participate in a socie ty of his fellow man. Rousseau states What man loses by the mixer contract is his natural liberty and unlimited right to everythingwhat he gains is civil liberty and proprietorship of all he possesses. The implications of this idea would stem a new frame of mind, one that required self-realization and an individuals logic, a once radical hypothesis was now shared by many philosophers.However, in order to keep society from imploding on itself some freedoms must be curtailed, which was the basis of the so called social contract the largest compromise in human history and what allowed the pursuit of happiness, and the achievement of ones full potential. (Doc 8) Adding to this frame of thinking, and perhaps a major reason it existed is detailed in Newtons Principia Mathematica it states, Nature does nothing in vain.. for Nature is pleased with simplicity, and affects not the pomp or superfluous causes. Applying the idea that nothing happens without a cause in Nature to Man, drove the philosophes to analyze human nature, and it may be said that all ideas of human nature stem from Newtons no reaction without cause statement, mirrored by the scientists of the Scientific Revolution (Doc 2). The opposition to thinkers of the Scientific Revolution from the Enlightenment thinkers is often in unearthly matters. In support of religious belief is Galileo and Pascal, opposing it are Didrot and Holbach. In support of religion Galileo wrote in his Discoveries and Opinions of Galileo, ..It appears that nothing physical which sense-experience set before our eyes.. ought to be called into question upon the testimony of Biblical passages For the Bible is not chained in every expression to conditions as strict as those which govern all physical effects. In this statement Galieleo attributes the breaks of logic in the Bible and theology as a whole, To the fact that it is simply expressions, or that due to lack of complete omniscient human infering things may be explained by t he presence of a divine spirit.Which leads straight into Pascals Pensees in which he states What is a man in the infinite? This simple statement sums up Pascals reasoning of religion, he is trying to get across the fact that no matter what cosmos will never fully understand every process in Nature or the Universe, and as such it is only logical that something must understand everything, which would mean that something would have had to created it, and thus the presence of idol is explained.This was more or less the view of other Scientific Revolution thinkers, the common consensus was that science, even in its greatest form would never be able to fully explain everything it is just not humanly possible, and as such a divine force, great than man must have a place in the creation of things. Another Scientific Revolutionary view was that science could explain Nature, which is created by God and allow the church to piece out the moral and theological concepts of religion and societ y.This train of thought was contradictory to Enlightenment thinkers, who believed it was their job to piece out every last piece of human society, and improve upon it. So when the topic of religion was introduced, having a certain bias due to the Catholic Churchs introductory actions they were more than happy to either discount religion altogether, or introduce the idea of religious adjustment and freedom.Pascal was a deeply religious man himself, and having played out most of his clip trying to justify religion, can theoretically be seen as an expert on the topic. (Doc 4) One such example of an atheistic beingness view is that of Baron dHolbach in his The System of Nature he states In his perfection (the enlightened man) is capable of pursuing his own happiness, because he has learned to examine and think for himself and not to take the truth upon the authority of others. This frame of mind of Holbach that man is the epitome of life and perfection, as well as each individual mu st not take orders or value the ideas of others unless weighed and examined according to their own logic directly goes against the concept of most religion, and especially the Catholicism of France, the region Holbach resided in after moving from Germany. Simply put Christianity has two main ideals no one is perfect, and due to the imperfection of man faith must be place in God to forgive and allow certain truths to come to light.Holbach himself was an atheist, and stated that often and it was considered widely known he had no belief in a higher power. (Doc 5) Supporting Holbachs viewpoint is Diderot in his Encyclopedia Diderot states Reason is in the estimation of the philosopher what grace is to the Christian. Grace determines the Christians action reason the philosophers. It is quite apparent that Diderot is not attracted to what he sees as a sort of blind un-investigated faith of a Christian, ideas like this oppose the religious tolerance of the Scientific Revolution, however , some Enlightenment thinkers believed religion had a place in society.One such Enlightenment philosophe, Thomas Paine, supported religion, mainly in the way he stated in his Declaration of the Rights of Man and of Citizens that no man ought to be molested on account of his opinions, not even on account of religious opinions. Essentially, religion was a choice and as such man had according to his natural rights, the ability to choose a religion provided it would not harm or imperil the commonwealth, and in theory freedom of religion works well, and benefits the whole.However, as shown in countless examples ages of strict government mandated religions would oppose this religious freedom, but nevertheless, Paine did support religion and the freedom of choosing one as a Natural Right. Finally, the separation of man from Nature which allowed the age of Enlightenment and the economic success during the philosophes time was a direct result of the Scientific Revolution. Rousseau and Locke s ideas stemmed from men like Newton and Descartes.The scientists focus on natures and development of ideas about possible uses and the complete reason of Natures processes, such as Francis Bacons idea that nature was there for experimentation and practical implications which morally justified the brutal Imperialism of the period. Another judgment concept based of a Scientific Revolution idea is shown in this Imperialism simply, Man is greater than Nature, and as such must have certain contracts with one another to fully achieve his potential.In Jean Jacques Rousseaus The Social Contract he states As soon as the multitude is thus united in one body, you cannot offend on of its members without attacking the whole This details the mutual protection of numbers in a society, and society is what separates man from Nature, as society is a concept produced from logic and reason, and during the Scientific Revolution, logic and reason where also said to be what separated Man from Nature (D oc 12) Furthering this idea is John Locke in his Second Treatise on Government he writes Political power is that power, which every man having in the state of nature, has given up into the hands of society, and therein to the governors. that it shall be employed for their good and preservation of their property. This proves the fact that society is a compromise which goes against our instinct but preserve more people as a whole, and by going against our instinct using logic, humanity is superior in every way to nature. Locke was a prominent physician and philosopher who had, since college, been interested in what at the time was considered modern philosophy. Doc 7) These ideas stemmed from Descartes four steps of reasoning (Doc 1) and Newtons statement To this purpose the philosophers say that Nature does nothing in profitless (Doc 2) In conclusion, in many cases ideas are formed from pieces of many other ideas, to say the thinkers of the Enlightenment stood on the shoulders of men of the Scientific Revolution is true to a point. Yes, they did use a combination of their ideas in the Enlightenment but in many cases their ideas directly opposed them, or expanded upon them. So, while the Enlightenmnt thinkers may be indebted for the Scientific Method most of their ideas are new or conflicting concepts when compared to the ideas of the Scientific Revolution.