Honors World History Enlightenment Study Guide

Enlightenment

An intellectual movement emphasizing reason, individualism, and skepticism of authority.

Age of Reason

This period is called the Enlightenment or the Age of Reason.

Time Period of Enlightenment

It roughly spanned the 17th to 19th centuries. 1750-1914.

Thomas Hobbes' view on Human Nature

People are naturally selfish and violent.

Thomas Hobbes' view on Social Contract

People give up freedoms to a strong government for protection.

Thomas Hobbes' view on Government

Supports an absolute monarchy to maintain order.

John Locke's view on Human Nature

People are reasonable and have natural rights.

John Locke's view on Social Contract

Government exists to protect natural rights.

John Locke's view on Government

Supports democracy and the right to overthrow unjust governments.

Montesquieu's main contribution

Advocated for separation of powers into executive, legislative, and judicial branches.

Montesquieu's checks and balances

Prevents tyranny through checks and balances.

Rousseau's view on Human Nature

People are naturally good but corrupted by society.

Rousseau's view on Social Contract

Governments should be based on general will (the majority's interest).

Rousseau's view on Government

Supported direct democracy.

Natural Rights proposed by John Locke

Life, liberty, and property.

Absolute Monarch

A ruler with total control (e.g., Louis XIV).

Enlightened Monarch

A ruler who embraced Enlightenment ideas (Queen Elizabeth 1).

Limited Constitutional Monarch

A king/queen with restricted power by a constitution (e.g., England after the Glorious Revolution).

Oligarchy

A government ruled by a small elite group.

Aristocracy

Government controlled by the nobility.

Theocracy

Government based on religious rule.

Anarchy

A society without government.

Sovereignty

Supreme power or authority over a territory.

Monarchy

Government ruled by a king/queen.

Subject

A person under the rule of a monarch.

Nation-State

A country with a shared culture and government.

Citizen

A legally recognized member of a nation with rights and responsibilities.

Theistic Frame

History is shaped by divine will.

Chaos Frame

History is unpredictable and random.

Decline Frame

Societies worsen over time.

Progress Frame

Societies improve over time.

Cyclical Frame

History repeats itself.

Analyzing a historical frame

Use evidence and logic to evaluate claims.

Avoiding oversimplification

Consider multiple perspectives.

Cause and effect relationships

Assess cause and effect relationships.

Intuition and Authority

Intuition and Authority.

Historical context of Hobbes, Locke, Montesquieu, and Rousseau

Wars, revolutions, and scientific discoveries shaped their ideas on government and human rights.

Copernicus

Heliocentric theory (Sun at the center).

Galileo

Used telescopes to confirm heliocentrism.

Kepler

Laws of planetary motion.

Newton

Laws of gravity and motion.

Influence of economics on revolutions

Seven Years' War and English Civil War led to high debt; Heavy taxation led to American and French Revolutions.

Humanism

Focus on human potential.

Secularism

Focus on non-religious matters.

Stephen Pinker

Violence has decreased over time.

Tocqueville

Democracy has strengths but risks tyranny of the majority.

Tyranny of the Majority

When the majority oppresses minorities.

Social Contract

Agreement between people and government.

Checks-and-Balances

System that prevents government abuse of power.

Triangular Trade

Europe → Africa: Manufactured goods; Africa → Americas: Enslaved people (Middle Passage); Americas → Europe: Raw materials (sugar, tobacco, cotton).

Transatlantic Slave Trade

Race-based, lifelong, and hereditary; Both Europeans and Africans were involved in its continuation; Driven by economic gain and justified through racism.

Transatlantic Slave Trade timeline

Began: 15th century; Ended: 19th century (Britain: 1807, U.S.: 1865).

Causes of the Age of Exploration

Desire for wealth, trade routes, and knowledge.

Renaissance

Rebirth of art and science (14th-17th century).

Protestant Reformation

Religious reform that led to Protestantism.

Athenian Democracy

Direct democracy.

Roman Republic

Representative democracy.

Feudalism

Land-based hierarchy.

Magna Carta

Limited monarchy's power (1215).

Parliament

Elected legislature.

Queen Elizabeth I

Limited monarchy.

King Louis XIV

Absolute monarchy.

Plato

Philosopher-king rule.

Aristotle

Mixed government.

Mary Wollstonecraft

Women's rights.

Haitian Revolution

First successful revolt from enslaved people to establish an independent nation (1804).