Enlightenment Figures, Philosophies, and Key Works

These flashcards cover key figures, philosophies, and concepts from the Enlightenment period.

Thomas Hobbes

Advocated strong centralized authority (absolute monarchy); believed humans are naturally selfish and brutish.

John Locke

Proposed natural rights to life, liberty, and property; argued for government based on consent of the governed and the right to revolution.

Baron de Montesquieu

Introduced the concept of separation of powers and checks and balances in government.

Jean-Jacques Rousseau

Developed social contract theory emphasizing the general will; argued that civilization corrupts natural goodness.

Voltaire

Advocated for civil liberties including freedom of speech and religion; promoted separation of church and state.

Denis Diderot

Focused on knowledge dissemination and was critical of religious dogma; known for the Encyclopedie.

David Hume

Emphasized skepticism about human reason, valuing experience and empiricism.

Immanuel Kant

Promoted rational morality and autonomy; famously stated 'Dare to know'.

Enlightenment Universalism

The belief that universal truths are discoverable by reason and that human rights apply equally to all.

Positivism

The philosophy that knowledge should be based on empirical evidence rather than metaphysical considerations.

Darwinism

The theory of evolution by natural selection that challenges ideas of a divine rational order.

Empiricism

The theory that knowledge comes primarily from sensory experience.

Social Contract Theory

The doctrine that government legitimacy comes from an agreement among individuals.

Deism

The belief in a rational, non-intervening Creator, common among Enlightenment thinkers.

Civil Liberties

Personal freedoms that protect individuals from government overreach.

Materialism

The belief that nothing exists except matter and its movements and modifications.