Crash Course European History - Lecture Notes

Introduction

• Theme: Political change and warfare in the 17th century amidst the Little Ice Age.
• Shift in perception: Earthquakes and eclipses linked with human events.
• Example: 1648 Istanbul earthquake seen as a portent.

The Enlightenment

• Enlightenment as a transformative period.
• Focus on rational investigation of traditions and ideas.
• Key questions:
  • How do different social classes relate?
  • How should trade and manufacturing function?
  • What is the role of government over ordinary people?

Everyday Life and Commodities

1. Political and state-building changes.
2. Increase in abundance and novelty in Europeans' daily lives.
3. Commodities introduced:
   • Coffee, tea, chocolate, tobacco.
   • Example: English housewife confused by tea.
4. Impact of new foods from the Americas:
   • Potatoes, corn improving calorie availability.
5. Observations from travelers:
   • Non-hierarchical social orders in Asia.
   • Less quarrelsome interactions.

Critique of Society

Montesquieu

• Published "Persian Letters" in 1721.
• Critiques French society through amusing observations.

Voltaire

• Known for humor and criticism of aristocrats.
• Key work: "Candide" (1759).
• Advocated for the examination of societal injustices.

Educational Reform

Jean-Jacques Rousseau

• Author of "Emile" (1762).
• Proposed education reform focused on practical skills.
• Valued middle-class virtues: hard work, practicality, and domesticity for women.

The Enlightenment Salon

• Social gatherings to discuss new ideas, hosted by women.
• Early forms of intellectual influencer culture.

Texts and Enlightenment Ideals

• Encyclopédie by Denis Diderot:
  • Discussions of natural rights and women's status.
  • Encouraged practical inventiveness.
• David Hume's promotion of reason over religion.
• Deism: God exists but doesn’t interfere in daily life.

Activism and Abolition Movements

• Growing awareness and criticism of slavery during the Enlightenment.
• Guillaume Raynal and Olaudah Equiano spoke against the cruelties of slavery.
• Adam Smith’s economic theories:
  • Critique of mercantilism.
  • Advocacy for free trade and the division of labor.

Social Contracts and Individual Rights

Rousseau's "The Social Contract"

• Concept of collective community and general will.
• Calls for obedience to the state.

Kant's Philosophy

• "Dare to Know": Call for individual reasoning.
• Emphasis on rational judgments.

Enlightenment and Jewish Women

• Jewish women organized salons promoting Enlightenment ideas.
• Moses Mendelssohn optimistic about Jewish futures in Europe.

Conclusion

• Enlightenment challenged previous perceptions and injustices.
• Shifted views on natural disasters from divine acts to worldly explanations.
• Legacy of Enlightenment thought as a movement towards better societies, despite its imperfections.