AP World Englightenement Vocab Words

Enlightenment

A period in the 1700s when people started using logic and science to solve problems, rather than relying on tradition or religion.

Natural Rights

Rights you are born with (Life, liberty, and property) that the government cannot give or take away.

Philsophes

French intellectuals and writers of the Enlightenment who applied reason to the study of politics, science, and history. They heavily influenced society

Reason

The power of the mind to think clearly and logically. Thinkers believed logic should govern society, not superstition.

Social Contract

An agreement where people give up some absolute freedom to the government in exchange for protection and order.

Empiricism

The idea that all knowledge comes from experience and observation (what you see and test), the basis of the scientific method.

Separation of Powers

Dividing government into branches (Legislative, Executive, Judicial) so no single group becomes too powerful.

Deceleration of Independence

The 1776 document that put Enlightenment ideas into action, arguing people can overthrow a government that violates their Natural Rights.

State of Nature

A hypothetical scenario describing what human life would be like without any government or laws.

Levithan

A book by Thomas Hobbes arguing that because people are naturally chaotic, they need an all-powerful ruler to keep order (A Leviathan)