Emergence of Enlightenment.

Enlightenment When it was published, people and mostly the conservative did not believe in what he said nor anticipate. Perhaps most significant from a religious standpoint was that by characterizing the earth as just another planet in an immense universe, Copernicus destroyed the idea of Aristotle. Where then was heaven? Especially protestant leaders attacked his ideas. Before it was published, Luther heard of his theories and spoke about him as the "new astrologer who wants to prove that the earth moves and goes round... The fool wants to turn the whole art of astronomy upside down". The catholic reaction was milder at first but declared the theory false in 1616. When a new star appeared in 1572 the people started to doubt that the heavenly spheres really existed, because it was not possible for them to change, since they were unchangeable and perfect. In 1577 a comet went through the sky and people then started to doubt even more. From Brahe to Galileo Tycho Brahe (1546-1601) agreed with this though. He was according to himself the leading astronomer of Europe after having collected detailed information of the star in 1572. He studied stars with the naked eye the next 20 years. Brahe's contributions were the great mass of data he had collected. He wasn't as good in mathematics though, but that he left for his assistant Kepler to do. Kepler formulated 3 famous laws of

  • Word count: 1583
  • Level: University Degree
  • Subject: Historical and Philosophical studies
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Choderlos de Laclos: Les Liaisons Dangereuses - In what ways may "Les Liaisons Dangereuses" be seen as a novel of the Enlightenment? Illustrate with references to the text.

Landmarks in European Literature Choderlos de Laclos: Les Liaisons Dangereuses In what ways may "Les Liaisons Dangereuses" be seen as a novel of the Enlightenment? Illustrate with references to the text. "Les Liaisons Dangereuses" is a direct product of intellectual development in France at the time of the Enlightenment. Both internal and external evidence in "Les Liaisons Dangereuses" point to the notion that the issues of the Enlightenment are intrinsic to the novel's structure and plot. The influence of "Enlightened" writers such as Voltaire and Rousseau can be perceived throughout the story and would have been important to the novel's impact upon contemporary readers. Through the agitated, ever changing political and cultural climate in France during the era, through his novel, Laclos adds his own conflicting criticisms and observations to be set in stone beside those of his influences and the whirlwind of ideas taking place throughout not only France, but across the whole of Western Europe. "Les Liaisons Dangereuses" is on the whole a damning portrayal of decadent, privileged nobility whiling away their time in sexual intrigues. Woven in the midst of the sinister romantic plot are further explorations into the fundamental ideas of the Enlightenment. The first area in "Les Liaison Dangereuses" which Laclos explores is perhaps the most obvious one, and that is

  • Word count: 2334
  • Level: University Degree
  • Subject: Historical and Philosophical studies
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Hinduism and Buddhism.

Hinduism and Buddhism are two of the five major religions in our world. They are widely practiced, and have survived for centuries. Both have similarities and differences, as do all forms of religion, and I will discuss the practices and theological aspects of Hinduism and Buddhism. No one is completely sure of where Hinduism was started and by whom. Today, it is the world's third largest religion. Many changes have come upon Hinduism since they practiced it first. Hinduism includes many different denominations and beliefs that have arisen. Though there are many things in common with all of the Hindu sects, their basic beliefs are what tie them together. Their oldest written documents, the Vedas, were written down in 1000 B.C. but had existed orally long before. The religion of Hinduism teaches us that each living body is filled with an eternal soul. Hindus say that the individual soul was a part of the creator spirit, Brahma. It is each soul's job and wish to eventually return to Brahma. It is not possible because of sins and impurities from the world; they are no longer pure and holy to return. The process of becoming pure is so difficult that no soul can accomplish it in one lifetime. The soul is forced to live life after life until it is pure enough to return to Brahma. The Hindus call the cycles of rebirths samsara, or the Wheel of Life. When a soul is

  • Word count: 1865
  • Level: University Degree
  • Subject: Historical and Philosophical studies
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The Dialectic of Enlightenment.

I. The Dialectic of Enlightenment A. The Project of Enlightenment The self-proclaimed project of Enlightenment is the subjectification of the individual - the overcoming of all those elements which militate against the autonomous ego's establishment of itself as a free and self-determining agent, an agent unencumbered by the mystical forces which, in pre-enlightened times, penetrate its consciousness and degrade its worldly existence. A definition of myth: that other-worldly realm in which the contradictions of this world are resolved in an illusory totality at the level of consciousness. For the individual to establish herself as an autonomous subject is clearly to rid herself of mythic thought, to take back the actual conditions of her life and confront the world as that which it really is - the individual must know the world, for only in knowing, only in rational and informed comprehension, is agency possible. To be free is to not only act, but to act according to the dictates of your own will, a pure will free from constraint, a will able to recognize and interpret the concrete situations of its existence as they are, shrouded not in superstition nor myth. To Enlightenment myth is anthropomorphism[]; it anticipates Feuerbach in viewing myth as nothing more than the projection of individuals' fears onto a fictitious sphere. By understanding nature, by analyzing and

  • Word count: 7670
  • Level: University Degree
  • Subject: Historical and Philosophical studies
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Nagarjuna was a great contributor to the Mahayana tradition.

Nagarjuna was a great contributor to the Mahayana tradition. He acted as the interpreter and clarifier of the tradition's texts clarifying the notion of the Middle way as offered and taught by Buddha. Nagarjuna's system of the Middle Way greatly influenced not only the Mahayana tradition but also would influence the future developing schools of thought that would originate from the Mahayana Buddhist tradition, namely the Zen Buddhist tradition. Nagarjuna's philosophy of the Middle Way is manifested in the methods of the Zen Buddhist tradition. There are fundamental elements in Nagarjuna's philosophy of the Middle Way that are manifested in the Zen Buddhist tradition and way of thought. A case can be made for the Zen tradition being a practical application of Nagarjuna's Middle Way. Hsueh-li Cheng in one of his published works has already explored the proposition that Zen is a practical application of the Middle Way in 1979.1 The aim of this paper is to build upon the foundation Hsueh-li Cheng has already laid down to bring closer the ties of a notion of a Middle Way in the thought of Nagarjuna and Zen. The approach taken will examine how the central tenets of the Middle Way as described by Nagarjuna are manifested in the application of Zen discipline. The teachings that will be highlighted from Nagarjuna's philosophy of the Middle Way will be emptiness (sunyata), the

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  • Level: University Degree
  • Subject: Historical and Philosophical studies
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The Elusiveness and Effectiveness of Zen Buddhism.

History of India April 28, 2004 The Elusiveness and Effectiveness of Zen Buddhism Of all the sects and divisions of Buddhism, one of the hardest to describe in words is unquestionably Zen. As one of the core values of the religion (although some would call it a philosophy) is that there is no value in relying on the texts or the words of others, attributing a dictionary style definition to this sense of enlightenment is a difficult task. Zen teachers seek to clarify to their students that things cannot be explained in words but can only be learned through concrete personal experience. They assert that enlightenment cannot be achieved through words, for words, which are just a "logical" description, do not elucidate the truest essence of an object. Despite being difficult to express through written or spoken words, it is one of the most popular forms of Buddhism in Western society. Though it has had great success in its Western advances, Zen has roots strong in Southeast Asia, where it arrived in roughly 520 AD from the India, the motherland of Buddhism. Buddhism developed in India as a nonconformist counterpart to the local dominating religion that is Hinduism. It denied the authority of the caste system and did not accept the importance and value of the extensive Vedic rites and rituals. Eventually, Buddhism was near extinguished from India, as the Hindu religion

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  • Level: University Degree
  • Subject: Historical and Philosophical studies
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Blackcave - creative writing.

Michael Le Professor Dubuclet Rhetoric 1301-003 26 November 2003 Blackcave It is dark in the cave, really dark. There is a man sitting in the corner chained at the neck and wrist. Images fly by on the wall so fast that he can barely make out what they mean. Suddenly, someone grabs him by the neck and drags him up the stairs. The caveman screams and refuses to go. The cave is his home and he does not want to go outside of this comfortable place. The cave is the world to this man. Even with all his effort, he eventually gives in and follows the man out of the cave. The sun blinds him subconsciously at first sight; the caveman slowly regains his sight and sees the world for what it is. Outside of the cave is true knowledge (Plato 107). This caveman is now enlightened. Similar to this caveman in Plato's "The Allegory of the Cave," the character John Preston in the movie Equilibrium takes the same path to enlightenment. Equilibrium in many ways supports Plato's argument for the necessity of enlightenment and resembles the allegory in many ways; although the outcomes are different, it proves that even though there are many drawbacks, in the end, the rewards, of truth and freedom, are worth every bit of the effort. "The Allegory of the Cave" describes a man's journey to obtain true knowledge-enlightenment. The allegory depicts a cave which holds prisoners, chained to the wall.

  • Word count: 1613
  • Level: University Degree
  • Subject: Historical and Philosophical studies
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Explain Rousseau's dissent from Enlightenment politcal thought.

Explain Rousseau's dissent from Enlightenment politcal thought. Before attempting a comparison of Enlightenment thought and that of Rousseau, it should be noted that the Enlightenment consisted of a large group of individual thinkers who were often not in agreement and thus, as Crocker points out, the ideas generated by the movement consisted of "a vortex of conflicting theories and proposals" (1969, p1). However, bearing this lack of cohesion in mind, it is still possible to elicit several common beliefs of the 'philosophes'. Building on the ideas developed in the 17th century, the Enlightenment rejected all authority (especially the institution of the Church) as the basis of knowledge and instead relied upon reason (either induction or deduction) to investigate the world and develop general laws. It was believed that all questions could be resolved through the application of rational method and thus that progress was inevitable. Rousseau (1712-1778), despite being a contributor to a major work of the Enlightenment, the Encyclopaedia, dissented from its thought in several crucial ways. He disagreed with the belief that man was motivated solely by reason arguing that other capacities such as compassion and sympathy were also important. Furthermore, the Enlightenment's belief in the inevitability of progress was rejected by Rousseau who took a pessimistic stance arguing that

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  • Level: University Degree
  • Subject: Historical and Philosophical studies
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Summarise and discuss the origin and development of Mahayana Buddhism.

EASTERN RELIGIONS LEVEL 2 Summarise and discuss the origin and development of Mahayana Buddhism. Mahayana Buddhism in the modern era is the largest Buddhist tradition, throughout its development, however, it was very much a minority interest. It distinguishes itself from the more conservative Theraveda school,1 through its emphasis on the supramundane personality of the Buddha, the Bodhisattva ideal, the philosophy of the Shunyata, and its rejection of religious elitism.2 The origins of Mahayana Buddhism, are very obscure as it has no geographical or conceptual origins.3 Emerging sometime between 150 BCE and 100 CE, Mahayana is probably the culmination and indirect successor of various earlier developments.4 The earlier Mahasanghika school (Universal Assembly), for example, shared many of the Mahayana aspirations. As their name suggests they rejected religious elitism, believing it possible for enlightenment achievable outside the confines of the monastery by the practicing laity. The teaching of the emptiness of dharmas (dharmasunyata), another characteristic of the of Mahayana, found in the writings of the Purvasailous, a Mahasamghikis school.5 The Bodhisattva ideal was also held by other earlier schools, such as the Mahasamghikis, and the Sarvastivadius.6 Mahayana Buddhism was not the sudden inspiration of any one individual, neither was it a rival school; the

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  • Level: University Degree
  • Subject: Historical and Philosophical studies
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Religion in Ancient Egypt and China

Religion in Ancient Egypt In today's society, religion is the foundation of most cultures and families. Religion has played a significant role on how the way people live, which affect values and norms of most cultures. Religion was the most important aspect of everyday life in Egypt. Before studying the Egypt civilization, one may assume that the Egyptians worshiped only pyramids, cats, and Pharaohs. To be honest and truthful, I had the same assumptions when I thought about religion in Ancient Egypt. However, as I further studied the Egyptian culture, I leaned that they had a variety of gods and goddesses. In fact, the Egyptians were polytheistic, having many gods. Some being land gods, sun gods, nature gods, and of course the Nile River. While conducting my research on the religion of Ancient Egypt, I found out there was not specific word for religion. In our text, "The Essential World History", it states "there was not specific religion because it was an inseparable element of the world order to which Egyptians society belonged" (Duiker 12). Siegfried Morenz writes, "The gods individual persons, defined and characterized by their form and name. In this respect they are like human beings" (Morenz 24). The Egyptians had gods for everything. Sir Flinders Petrie states, "The earliest gods were the personifications of the sky and the earth. The sky goddesses was called Nut and

  • Word count: 1437
  • Level: University Degree
  • Subject: Historical and Philosophical studies
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