The source of the enlightenment, like rationalism, was made up of Christian sceptics, they put forward individualism, belief in science, experimentation, reason along with education as a catalyst for social change as the basis of their movement. John Locke is sometimes called the ‘father of the enlightenment’, his belief systems and writings display classic characteristics of an Enlightened individual. Locke dispelled contemporary beliefs that the ideas of good, evil and god are innate, he said they could not possible be innate. Instead, he argued that some beliefs might appear innate because they are learned and reinforced so early in life that they appear innate. “Locke’s Essay concerning understanding 1690…was regarded by Voltaire, rightly, as the first natural history of the mind” Locke fell into the Enlightenment, he was not revolting against rationalism, on the contrary, when at Oxford he was keener to study Descartes than Aristotle. Voltaire’s admiration for Locke and contempt for Descartes do therefore not necessarily make sense. Although Locke’s philosophy moved on somewhat from Descartes, in allowing free will via the concept that everybody has a positive nature, one that allows for the ability to reason, Locke was not trying to disprove Descartes findings, but simply further them to a more reasonable level.
Where the new scientists in the latter part of the seventeenth century, such as Newton, Galilleo and Bacon had to be cautious in their activities for fear of heretical charges from the Church, later followers of the Enlightenment did not have to be so wary. For many regions the idea of the Enlightenment appealed to the elite and the rulers, because it emphasised the need for paternalism. In L’esprit des Gois Montesquieu explored despotism and established that the power of a ruler should be unrestrained yet mediated by a corporate body. The Enlightenment was thus different from the rationalism in that it found support among non-intellectuals, it provided a framework for society, where all men were born with equal personal rights, free trade should be encouraged and fiscal systems and laws needed to be rational. Rationalism could not have inspired a country to take on its ideas, however because of the nature of the enlightenment, after its revolution France was to become the most egalitarian and anticlerical state in Europe at least in its ideals.
The Enlightenment certainly was not purely and ideological and spiritual movement, it was the first intellectual movement to capture the imagination of society as a whole. “Indeed it may be helpful to see the Enlightenment as precisely that point in European history when… the secular intelligentsia emerged a relatively independent social force.” The most important point in Porter’s statement, is that these people were a ‘social force’, this meant they were influencing society through their teachings, writings and ideas. The phrase Enlightened Absolutism was coined not by eighteenth century scholars, but by modern historians who decided that the domestic reforms required after the wars in Europe coincided conveniently with the plethora of absolute rulers at the time. The Enlightenment saw the concept of patrimonial and legal despotism as the most desirable form of rule as it was the most reasonable. The idea of and Enlightened despot or absolutist is somewhat flawed, in as much as it is very difficult to find a ruler who both deemed himself to be part of the Enlightenment and believed in the fundamentals of the movement, such as faith in science.
The idea of an Enlightened ruler is rather taken for granted by many historians, however eighteenth century Europe struggled to accept the concept, and often the conservative populace rejected the efforts of rulers to give them liberty. After the 1755 earthquake in Lisbon, it fell to King Joseph's minister Sebastiao Jose de Carvalho Melo, later Marques de Pombal, to direct relief and rebuild the city. Pombal went on to rule as a model eighteenth century enlightened despot, he expelled the Jesuits, reformed education, and established chartered companies for fishing, trade, and manufacture. Even though the 1770s saw economic self-sufficiency, Pombal was only superficially successful as upon the King’s death in 1777 he was deposed, and his reforms were quickly reversed. During the period 1680 to 1790, Italy had a many native enlightened thinkers and pre-enlightenment characters such as Giambattisto Vico helped allow the concept to flourish. When the brothers, Joseph II and Leopold I were ruling Milan and Tuscany respectively, life in Italy was of an enlightened nature. Leopold especially, liberated trade in grain, abolished capital punishment and drafted a constitution for Tuscany, yet when he became Emperor in 1790, the regents put in his place soon bowed to pressure to reverse Leopold’s reforms. This aspect of the movement, where rulers take on ideas from the enlightenment, and try to implement them amongst their subjects can be deemed as reason. The fact Pombal had a penchant for executing Jesuits emphasises that he used the Enlightenment pragmatically, however both he and Leopold understood that most of their reforms would create a prosperous and liberated society, whereby humans could live, as indeed humans should.
The Enlightenment was born on the back of the ideas of the new science pioneers; Galilleo, Newton, Bacon and Leibniz. Fundamentally to be enlightened, one had have faith in science. Where Rationalism required thought alone to discover the ultimate answer to life, the universe and everything, Enlightened philosophy encompassed only truths, which has been proven by science. On one hand there were scientists certain of their answers but not their methods, on the other the scientists were willing to change their answer if the method proved different to their original thought. Newton stated that “If I have seen further it is by standing on the shoulders of giants.” This was true, Newton (1642-1727) was born amongst Rationalists and died during the upsurge of the Enlightenment, he learned from and elaborated on the work of those before him. His era restrained him however, as he refused to move out of the sphere of Christianity, he asserted that we live in a law bound universe with laws established by God who was as bound to them as humans. Newton called for constant investigation of the material world by mankind, on the basis that we were able to do this because of the ability to reason, which the rest of creation did not possess. This is an example of reason in its highest form, probably unachievable if the Rationalists had not laid down the foundations of free thought.
The Philosophes were an active group of French thinkers who embodied the idea of the Enlightenment. They were mostly driven by doubt in the perfectibility of humans and a fierce desire to dispel erroneous systems of thought such as religion. The ultimate goal for the Philosophes was to master natural law and promote rational and intentional progress, aditionally tolerance was also of great concern for the Philosophes. A fair, just, and productive society absolutely depended on religious tolerance, which for some included the tolerance of non-Christians as well as different denominations of Christianity. The characteristics of this group did not largely involve speculative philosophy or abstract thinking they were more concerned with the betterment of society and thus their focus was overwhelmingly practical. This was rational thought and perspective at work, the Philosophes were attempting to use their new found truths to steer society towards a better life.
There are two interpretations of the word ‘revolt; one is that of strong disgust and the other is that of trying to find an alternative way. The Enlightenment, principally as a movement, did not have a strong disgust for Rationalism, however one could argue that it was trying to find an alternative way than that of Rationalist style thought. The fact remains that the age with which the Enlightenment is associated, that is 1750-1800, was without doubt an age of reason. From Bayle to Berkely, the enlightened individuals were putting their faith in science and their senses to discover answers about the world. Rationalists had done the same, but put their faith in their mind and thoughts instead of senses. Both groups were striving away from the irrationality of the Church, searching for a feasible explanation for human existence, which the Church could not provide. It took millions of years for man to discover reason, for it to take a further fifty or one hundred to discover a different kind of reason, does not amount to revolt.
It is my belief that for the Enlightenment to reach its conclusions, the existence of Rationalism was necessary to inspire further thought. Similarly, it is my belief that the Christianity’s existence was paramount to the emergence of Rationalist thought. None of these things are a revolt against the other, but an augmentation of their ideas. The revolt against rationalism cannot replace the age of reason, for they are one and the same thing. For mankind to be at the intellectual point we are in the twenty-first century, it was necessary for the Enlightenists to be reasonable in their search for an alternative path to rationalism.
antagonist
Bibliography
Cassirer, E., The Philosophy of the Enlightenment (New Jersey 1951)
Dunthorne, H. The Enlightenment (London 1994)
Gagliardo, J.G., Enlightened Despotism (London 1967)
Krieger, L., Kings and Philosophers 1689-1789 (New York 1970)
Ogg, D., Europe in the Seventeenth Century (London 1971)
Porter, R. The Enlightenment (Studies in European History) (Basingstoke 2001)
Snyder, L.L., The Age of Reason (New York 1955)
Source: Dunthorne, H. The Enlightenment. From the third edition of Beccaria’s Dei delitti e delle pene, Livorno, 1765. P. 11
Dunthorne, H. The Enlightenment, p.12
Porter, R. The Enlightenment (Studies in European History), p. 10
Isaac Newton, Letter to Robert Hooke, February 5, 1675
