World History: Period 3 Vocabulary List 1

Immanuel Kant

Enlightenment philosopher who stated that immaturity was not being able to use one's intelligence without the guidance of another: directly targeting the Church and its followers

The Enlightenment

intellectual movement during the 1600s-1700s centered in France that spread rationalism and empiricism; set the framework to abolish slavery and serfdom, as well as expanding the idea of suffrage

Humanism

intellectual movement focused on human issue rather than religious ones

Scientific Revolution

intellectual movement that occurred in Europe during the 1600s where the idea of natural laws formed

Natural Laws

laws that are derived from nature rather than rules from society

Empiricism

belief that all knowledge is deprived from sense and experience

Suffrage

the right to vote

Voltaire

French Enlightenment philosopher that was exiled to England for three years; urged readers of his work to "ecrasez l'infame" (crush infamy) as he criticized repression and bigotry; believed the English parliamentary system was better than French Absolutism

Infamy (as described by Voltaire)

all and any forms of repression, fanaticism, and bigotry

England's Parliamentary System

system that employed the House of Lords and House of Commons; mix of monarchy and representative democracy

Parliament

body of representatives that makes laws for a nation; legislative

House of Lords

upper house of the British parliament that consisted of the aristocracy chosen by the king

House of Commons

lower house of the British parliament that consisted of representatives elected by the people

Mixed Constitution

government that combines elements of monarchy and representative democracy to prevent one person from having absolute power

John Locke

English Enlightenment philosopher that believed all knowledge comes from a sense of perception and that human mind at birth is a "tabula rasa"; against Absolutism and stated that man is only restricted by the laws of nature

Tabula Rasa

concept from John Locke stating that the human brain starts as a blank state and gets influenced by its environment; personality is determined by environment rather than bloodline

Denis Diderot

French Enlightenment philosopher that made attacks on Catholicism, causing him to be threatened with censorship and imprisonment; main contributor to the Encyclopedia as he focused on practical information rather than theories

Encyclopedia

work containing factual information on many subjects

Absolutism

European form of government popular in the 1600s-1700s where the ruler had complete control

Censorship

suppression or ban of certain works/ideas

Natural Rights

idea that humans are born with complete freedom and only are restricted by natural laws

Social Contract

agreement with the government and governed; governed give away some natural rights to be in a society

General Will

concept referring to the will of the people as a whole/common good

Republic/Representative Democracy

form of government in which citizens select representatives to govern them and make laws

Direct Democracy

form of government in which citizens vote directly for laws and officials rather than through representatives

Separation of Powers

the division of power among the legislative, executive, and judicial branches of government