Renaissance and Enlightenment

Renaissance

• Considered a prolific period in artistic achievement.
• Guided by Humanism:
  • Contrasted with medieval arts focused on divine and religious elements.
  • Valued reason, human spirit, practicality, and restraint.
• Inspired by classical antiquity, transforming divine to natural values.
• Sparked cultural shifts leading to the Age of Enlightenment.

Age of Enlightenment (17th - 18th Century)

• Intellectual and philosophical rejuvenation impacting politics, science, and arts.
• Expanded upon the Scientific Revolution through empirical beliefs.

Key Philosophers and Scientists

• Michel de Montaigne: Relied on reason; important non-fiction prose writer.
• Francis Bacon: Developed inductive reasoning, leading to empiricism and modern scientific method.
• René Descartes: Introduced Cartesian skepticism with "Cogito, ergo sum."

Important Concepts and Developments

• Printing Press:
  • Enabled widespread education beyond the wealthy.
  • Facilitated the Republic of Letters, promoting intellectual discourse across borders.
• John Locke:
  • Proposed "tabula rasa," emphasizing experiential learning.
  • Father of liberalism.
• David Hume:
  • Focused on experience over innate ideas.
  • Questioned the cause and effect relationship.

Political Thought

• Montesquieu:
  • Advocated separation of powers in government to ensure checks and balances.
• Jean-Jacques Rousseau & Voltaire:
  • Criticized social structures and the Catholic Church.
  • Advocated for freedom of speech and religion.

Social Changes

• Encouraged questioning of gender roles and authority.
• Prominent women:
  • Marie de Gournay and Anna Maria van Schurman advocated for women's education.
• Movements for the abolition of slavery began forming.

Economics

• Adam Smith: Father of modern economics and capitalism.
  • Emphasized manufacturing, labor division, specialization, and free trade.
  • Highlighted potential pitfalls of a free market.

Impact

• The Enlightenment encouraged rationality, novelty, and scientific progress.
• Laid groundwork for capitalism, the Industrial Revolution, and modernism.
• Known as the "Age of Light."